A Year of Races & Climbs (Part II)

I was not expecting to continue my ritual of a race each month after I got to the USA, but opportunities presented themselves and I did. So here’s a quick recap of the races I had in the last quarter of 2015.

TNF Endurance Challenge Utah 50k (25 – 27 Sep 2015)

This was on a spur of the moment and I signed up for the race on the Tuesday leading up to the race weekend. After some frantic attempts to sort out my flights and travel logistics, I was headed to Utah. Not knowing what the terrain was like, I conservatively registered for the 50k instead of 50mi (80km). The 50k had a time cutoff of 10h and the 50mi 14h, and I was not sure if I could make the 50mi. Runners in the USA seem pretty fast to me and the races here often had a much faster cutoff limit than what I was used to in Asian races. The race took place in the very scenic ski mountain of Park City. Race day was a lovely sunny morning and my fears of cold weather were unfounded. As it turned out, Park City was somewhat high altitude, which made the first half of the ascents tougher than the absolute elevation gain. Surprisingly, I was the only one using poles for the climbs. I guess many of the trails in the USA are runnable and not as technical as the ones that I had experienced in Asia, where poles were definitely a much needed boost. The route brought us winding up hills and down valleys, and I was loving that I could actually run on this trail. I was soaking in the picturesque views, the photos seemed to be straight out of trail running magazines! Awww…. As it turned out, I managed to complete the 50k in 7:55h. However, many of the runners had already returned, so that placed me at 98/158 overall, 34/57 females, and 3/9 of my age group.

 

Chicago Marathon (9 – 11 Oct 2015)

Chicago Marathon features up there in my 2015 list of memorable running achievements – a totally unexpected Boston Qualifying (BQ) race time and a Personal Best! Melvin and I had gotten ballots for the Chicago Marathon. It was my first time at a Marathon Majors (the six are Berlin, Tokyo, Chicago, New York, London and Boston). The atmosphere at the race expo and race day crowds were significantly different from all other races that I had been to. Again, we were blessed with fantastic weather, given that it was windy Chicago. Starting out at 16C, the morning warmed up to a high 21C. I was in a running tee and short tights, and enjoying the optimal temperatures. I had my swanky new Garmin as an early birthday present and gamely tracked the whole race. That would turn out to be a life saviour subsequently. Chicago Marathon was known to be a flat and fast course, and many runners used it for a BQ. I certainly had no such grand plans, knowing that the BQ time for my age group was 3:45h, which meant a time target of 3:40h or faster to be guaranteed a Boston entry. My official PB was a distant 4:03h, and at best, I could manage a sub-4h. A BQ time meant averaging a 5:10 – 5:15min pace. However, I was making good cadence and progress, and my Garmin was showing a range of 4:50 – 5:10min pace. I thought if I kept at it, I might just be able to hit a good timing. So I chugged along, caught up and overtook the sub-4h pacers. I was so worried that I might cramp being not used to that pace, I simply told myself to hold it steady. The crowds and music certainly helped to boost my running spirits. And finally I crossed the finishing line at 3:31h. OMG!! I was quite about to burst into tears, unbelievable!

So then came the dramatic twist. I checked my race results two days later, and it showed up as “DSQ” (ie. disqualified). In that instant, I was devastated. Dropped from a high and smashed. Apparently, any runners with two missed timing records were automatically disqualified by the computer system. Chicago recorded on a 5k basis, and also had a couple of hidden timing mats to catch would-be cheaters (yes, cheating is a big deal at marathon majors, especially because runners use the results to qualify for other races). Thank goodness I had my Garmin records, which mapped the exact race route and matched the official timing records almost to the minute. After three agonising wait for the race review, I was delirious that my race timing was reinstated. Which meant, Boston 2017!

Philadelphia Marathon (20 – 22 Nov 205)

On a high-then-low from Chicago, I signed up for Philly marathon as a ‘back-up’ to a BQ, lest the Chicago race director rejected my timing. It was a good thing that I did not have to do that, because it was a chilly-hilly-Philly race. The race weather stayed at 5 – 6C throughout, with winds and minimal sunshine. Some of the local runners were still in shorts, while I was all decked out in fleece long tights, a mid-weight top, and my trusted Marmot running jacket. At some points, I was heating up, but then the winds would come and I would feel the chills. Then there were the rolling slopes. I guess I would have run more efficiently if I was not wearing so much; I felt comfortable but not very agile. I only managed to pick up a good pace in the second half of the race, eventually getting a negative split timing. Race time was 3:47h; 2min off my BQ time, but it was my best effort so no complaints.

King of the Mountain – Staten Island Greenbelt 50k (5 Dec 2015)

Again, a last minute sign-up. I was getting extremely sick of running loops in Central Park and on tarmac, and I needed some trail therapy. This was a race held on Staten Island along its Greenbelt (sort of like a natural park connector), which meant some travelling to the race venue. I was in two minds about showing up for the race, but decided to kick my butt out of bed early in the morning – one never regrets going for a run. I met up with some runners in Brooklyn and we shared Uber cars to the start point. It was a chilly 6C, but the forecast was for sunshine, which meant the weather would warm up nicely. Learning from my recent Philly experience, I was mindful not to over-dress and weigh myself down. There some rolling climbs, but nothing technical. In fact, it was a rather flat course, except for all the autumn leaves that had fallen over the trail. That meant that one could not really tell what one was stepping into and what laid beneath those crunchy leaves. The 50k comprised one big loop and a smaller second loop. One of the girls that I shared a ride with in the morning came in 1^st female overall, and it was her very first 50k! Impressive. Me, I finished the distance in 5:55h, which earned me a 2^nd place for age-grouper. Nice surprise.