Philadelphia Half Marathon - 11/22/09

Notes from the Philadelphia Half Marathon - I'll put in a more concise written form later on.

-Overall time - 1:38:23; Overall Pace - 7:30
-Second fastest half marathon time - Missed a PR by only 3 seconds (1:38:21 at the Long Branch Half in 5/2009)
-The weather was absolutely perfect - in the 50s and sunny
-Ran with the 1:40 pace group - the beginning was a bit crowded and we did not get back on pace until about mile 9. I took off from the group in between mile 9 and mile 10 since I wanted to make up time that was lost in the beginning
-This is the third time I have run sub 1:39 this year (Philly Half (1:38:23), Staten Island Half (1:38:44), Long Branch Half (1:38:20)), and the fourth time of 1:40 or better. My half marathon time is now consistently under 1:39 and now makes me rethink what I am capable of for my next marathon.
-I felt great today - again negative splits (7:44 pace for first 6 miles and 7:20 pace for the last 7.1 miles) and ran strong at the end - never really felt tired or strained. Again, I felt on cruise control with the pace group and even found myself slowing down a bit with to stay with the group. Before I knew it I was at mile 9 or 10 and I didn't blink an eye. I think I can now try to drop my pace in the half - maybe run with a 3:15 pace group. I think I can handle a faster pace as long as it is consistent. I feel that maybe I am getting too comfortable with the 1:40 group and should try the 1:35 group and see how I do. It will definitely be a stretch for me but I need to try it a couple times if I am going to get faster.
-The pace group keeps me on pace and allows me not to vary my pace considerably
-The weather was obviously a lot more comfortable than it was last year, but I feel confident in knowing that I probably wouldn't have run a marathon time that was too much different than last year's. I am a much smarter and (I think better) runner than at this time last year. My half time has come down considerable and consistently (while feeling good) and pacing has been a much more important part of my race and something I have been working on.

Mile Splits:

Mile 1- 8:14
Mile 2- 7:47
Mile 3- 7:30
Mile 4- 7:47
Mile 5- 7:38
Mile 6- 7:25
Mile 7- 7:21
Mile 8- 7:36
Mile 9- 7:20
Mile 10- 7:36
Mile 11- 7:18
Mile 12- 7:11
Last 1.1 Miles - 7:37 (6:55 pace)

First 6 miles - 46:22 (7:44 pace)
Last 7.1 miles - 52:01 (7:20 pace)

Overall time - 1:38:23 (only 3 seconds off of a PR) ; Overall pace - 7:30