Brooklyn Half Marathon - 5/30/09

I guess that the third time is a charm. I have signed up for the Brooklyn Half for the past two years, but unfortunately was unable to run either of them. Finally, I was able to participate in my first Brooklyn Half Marathon this weekend (only the Bronx is left for me) and it was a lot of fun (not as much the race per se, but the activities afterward).

Although the weather was hotter than I usually like for half marathons, it was not unbearable. I knew that I needed to be smart and take the proper precautions during the race. Luckily, Prospect Park had a considerable amount of shade to run in as long as you hugged the curb, and I made sure to take a little more water or Gatorade than I usually would. I know that there were a lot of people out there that did not like the course change, but I was happy with it. Although the beginning part of the race was tougher than in past years due to the two loops of Prospect Park, I was happy that the race ended in Coney Island which allowed us to finish on a less crowded boardwalk (since in previous years the race started there) and gave us the opportunity to enjoy a beautiful day taking in the atmosphere, riding the Cyclone (first time for me) and eating an original Nathan's hot dog and fries.

Since I went into the Long Branch Half several weeks ago with the intent to run a hard race and go for a PR, I decided to take the pressure off of myself this time around and to use this race to practice my pacing a bit. Given the fact that the temperatures were going to be on the hotter side, the goal was to keep a consistent pace during the two loops of Prospect Park (between 7:50 and 8:00) and then to gradually try and pick up the pace for the remaining 6 or 7 miles that ran on the straightaway of Ocean Parkway, allowing for negative splits. I knew from my first venture in Prospect Park during the Cherry Tree 10 miler that the hills were not easy, so I knew that I had to respect the course even if I felt good at the beginning of the race. I needed to keep myself in check and not speed up.

The first loop didn't feel too bad. I made sure to stay in the shade as much as possible, and go out at a pace that felt slightly slower than usual (knowing that if it felt slow, then it was probably a reasonable pace). I went through the first mile at 7:52 and thought that this would be a good pace to try and stay out throughout the loops in the park. With the impending hills coming up, I was surprised to see that I remained on pace at 7:52 for mile 2, and even dipped a little bit at mile 3, coming in at 7:38. I knew that my mile 3 time was a bit too quick, and I tried to slow it down knowing that the Prospect Park hills would be reappearing shortly. I was able to keep myself under control at mile 4 (7:49), but the next couple of miles were definitely slower. This is where my pacing slipped a bit. I felt the effects of the heat and the hills from the first loop, and overcompensated slightly. Thinking I was going a little too fast in the previous miles and not wanting to wear myself out, I slowed down to 8:06 in mile 5 and then 8:12 for mile 6. Not wanting to see my pace go up anymore, I told myself to pick up the pace, which I did, but too much in the other direction (mile 7 was at 7:36). At this point, I knew I was leaving the park pretty soon and I all wanted to do was get out to the flatter terrain of Ocean Parkway and normalize my pace. Ocean Parkway was a 6 or 7 mile straight line to the end of the race and wasn't terribly exciting. In the hopes of getting a negative split for the second half of the race, the plan once I left the park was to keep a pace as close to 7:50 as possible until mile 10, and then slowly pick up the pace each mile until the finish. Miles 8-10 were pretty much right on target (7:50, 7:54, and 8:00 respectively) and I still felt pretty strong going into the last quarter or so of the race. I was thinking back to Long Branch and knew that I had it in me to pull out fast times over the last 3 miles. I was looking forward to ending on the boardwalk (and not falling), and seeing the ocean view as I crossed the finish line. I felt good enough to gradually lower my pace to 7:39 and 7:36 for miles 11 and 12, and then another 7:36 time for the remaining 1.1 miles. For a hot day and a new course, I felt I had a very good race.

Mile Splits:

Mile 1 - 7:52
Mile 2 - 7:52
Mile 3 - 7:38
Mile 4 - 7:49
Mile 5 - 8:06
Mile 6 - 8:12
Mile 7 - 7:36
Mile 8 - 7:50
Mile 9 - 7:54
Mile 10 - 8:00
Mile 11 - 7:39
Mile 12 - 7:36
Last 1.1 miles - 8:22 (7:36 pace)

Overall time: 1:42:29 ; Overall pace: 7:50

This was a good race for me. Without a pace leader, I was able to keep a relatively consistent pace on my own throughout the race (although there were some hiccups along the way), and adjust pretty well if I saw my pace change dramatically from mile to mile (my times got up to 8:06 and 8:12 in mile 5 and 6, but I was able to drop it down to 7:36 for mile 7 before leveling out). Now I just need to build on this experience, and continue to pace well during longer races. I was very happy to see that on a day that I wasn't going for a PR, I was able to run a time that would have been my second fastest half up until three weeks ago.