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| It's fun to run with the Y-M-C-A! |
Fun, healthy competition for organizations and individuals, and a nice tour of Charlotte.
RACE FOR A REASON
The YMCA of Greater Charlotte kicked off its race season with the BB&T Corporate Cup. It's a beautiful tour of uptown and surrounding neighborhoods. There were two options: 5K and half marathon. This race has been around over 35 years, and benefits the YMCA Community Support Campaign.
The Corporate Cup is named because of the Corporate Team Challenge. Organizations assembled teams of runners to participate, and points were given for number of runners, number of volunteers, team shirts, etc. The team with the most points won the Corporate Cup.
The presenting sponsor again this year is BB&T, which continues to demonstrate its commitment to the Charlotte community. One of the most popular and talked-about additions to the uptown Charlotte landscape is the new home of AAA baseball team The Charlotte Knights, BB&T Ballpark.
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| BB&T Ballpark. On a different day. A warmer one than race day. |
Getting up and getting there
I chose the half marathon, and honestly my training hasn't been stellar leading up to the run. Two weeks prior I ran the Charlotte 10 Miler and had a great time, but my training between then and the half didn't include a run over 10K and I wasn't sure how I would hold up during the run. My last run was about four days prior to the race, and was just over two miles. At least I was rested, right? :)
The alarm sounded at 5:00 am. The temperature outside was 27°F. I knew it would warm during the run, but was hoping for a warm surprise like last race. No such luck!
Chris and I were riding to the race together, and team photos were at 7:20. Both the 5K and the half marathon started at 8:00, so there should be plenty of time. By 6:15 we were headed in. Originally we were going to park at Gateway Center - a parking deck about 9 blocks away. A peek at the temperature gauge (31°F at this point) and we decided the BB&T parking deck was the better option. Directly across the street from Two Wells Fargo Center, home of the expo, registration, and post-race celebration.
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| Technical race shirt. |
The D-Tag was used in this race again like in the UNCC 49er Gold Rush 5K in February. I'm getting used to having something on my shoelaces, but I think I might still prefer the stuff affixed to the back of my bib. I like to tighten one shoe a little tighter because of an injury, and it crimps the D-Tag's style.
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| D-Tag. Style not crimped. Yet. |
Team TIAA-CREF
I had a chance to run on a corporate team. Robin organized team TIAA-CREF, handled the ordering of shirts, keeping everyone looped in, and getting the race packets out to the team. Special thanks to him for all the work in getting a group headed in the right direction!
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| Back of TIAA-CREF team shirt. |
The team had a great showing, with Rex, Elaine, and a lot of veterans of the Tuna Run 200 last October. Cori is working on a qualifying run for Boston, and Eric continues to run fast. I'm not sure he's ever winded after a run, and today was no different. Ian was also out, clocking what must be his 500th half marathon by now (I could be exaggerating but have no idea - he's always out running).
The Run
It was a great crowd, with over 1,700 running the 5K and over 1,000 running the half. Both races started at 8:00, with the 5K taking an earlier turn back towards the finish line later in the race. The announcer called out there were about two minutes to start, and I made my way to the line. There were probably 100 people behind me, and the rest were between me and the starting line.
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| The other 2,600 are in front of me. Starting line is beyond the traffic signal. |
My goal was to come in under two hours, or at least a 9:07 pace. In the last two half marathons I've been under that by two minutes or less. Still nursing some injuries but healing, it seemed like a good goal. Two runners next to me mentioned that the race already started up front. After about 2 minutes my feet crossed the starting line and we were off!
One of the challenges starting at the back of a larger race is that you have to respectfully navigate walkers that lined up EXACTLY where they were supposed to - near the back. In the first mile I remember walking on a few occasions while looking for a path around lines of walkers that literally blocked the entire road. Again, these walkers were right where they should have been near the back of the line - I was the one that should have moved up a bit before the start of the race.
As the 5K runners turned off around mile 3 to head back to the finish, I opened a peanut butter GU and consumed it slowly as we left Uptown and headed towards Myers Park and Presbyterian Hospital. I know I'm supposed to "squeeze the entire packet into my mouth" and then chase it with water, but every time I've tried doing it the GU way I choke on the GU since this thing called breathing is happening at the same time. Today small sips of cold GU worked really well. The gel was thick enough that I could almost chew, and an aid station was less than a half mile away.
Speaking of aid stations, I walked through three of them. I bonked in my last half marathon, and didn't want to risk it happening again. Powerade over water every time for carbs and all the other goodness a sports drink offers. At the last aid station I fully intended to grab another cup but a runner getting a cup started walking between me and the aid station and I missed the opportunity. Not a big deal, it happens.
Around mile 7 it really started to feel like I would have a nice run. When I stepped across the 10K timing mat I was on pace to beat my goal time of 2:00. While there were no insurmountable hills, there were very few flat segments of the run. The neighborhoods were nice, the people were friendly, and the volunteers were terrific. I tried to thank as many of the volunteers and police as I could, as they really make the race fun and safe for everyone.
Two people unwittingly paced me for portions of the race:
I don't know the name of the first person. I don't know his name or his bib number, but we can call him Under Armor Guy. I usually run based on effort, which means I'm a bit slower up hills and a bit faster down them. UAG seemed to be running based on pace, and for a few miles he would pass me on every stretch of uphill. Whatever pace that was, it was slower than what I was running on my descents, and at some point I lost him in the run.
The second person, at least based on 10K and finish time, was Rachel Rausch, sporting the race t-shirt. After the 5K portion, we seemed to be running together for several miles. She pulled away during the last mile, and ended up finishing about 40 seconds ahead of me. The main thing that was different about our runs was that she held her running form for the full 13.1 miles, and mine started to break down around Mile 11 or so.
Thanks to UAG and Rachel, hope you both had a terrific run!
With the finish line in sight I was keeping my pace when I heard fast footsteps to my left, getting closer. Mark Harrell was in his final kick, and about to pass me! I found my last little bit of energy and we sprinted to the finish line. I held him off, but what a great way to finish a race! Kudos to him on a very strong finish. Here's the finish line video, I'm in blue and Mark's in black.
Highlights from the run:
- I always seemed to run faster when we passed a music station. We grooved to Taylor Swift, Michael Jackson, and some old rock that escapes me as I try to think back. Shake it off! Shake it off!
- The sun rising over Presbyterian Hospital as we ran towards Myers Park was beautiful
- At one point children's voices were heard cheering, but the kids couldn't be seen. Turns out they were hiding in a large rhododendron tree on the course, one falling out as we ran by
- A man in a suit crossed the street in the middle of the run, going from Bojangles to Auto Bell car was carrying a cup of coffee. What a great idea to have breakfast while your car is cleaned!
- Live updates on your run were available via text, tweet, or Facebook post. Very cool
- Finish line video so you can see yourself crossing the line
- Chris PR'd in the 5K! Go, Chris!
- Celebrity sighting: The Old Runner was there, continuing to blaze along around 7:30 min/mile as always. Check out his blog in the near future - his race reports are great.
PR!
So that's the other fun part of the day. In spite of still healing, I have a new half marathon PR! I came in at 1:49:32 chip time, well under my goal of 2 hours. ChronoTrack says my pace was 8:22 for 13.1 miles, but I like my results from Strava better: 13.6 miles, 1:49:39, 8:02 min/mile
Half marathon PR: check!
20K PR: check!
10 mile PR: check!
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| Good run. |
I had a great time, and our team really showed up and made this fun. With a team, I would absolutely run this one again. It's a bit hilly, and the last mile I pulled up for a bit to nurse a sore foot, but that's more me than the course. :) Great atmosphere, cheering at the finish line, and a really supportive environment made for a terrific experience.
=== RACE DAY ===
Race: BB&T Corporate Cup Half Marathon
Location: Charlotte, NC
Shoe: Saucony Guide 7
Date: 3/7/2015
Distance: Half Marathon
Time: 1:49:32
Pace: 8:22/mile
Overall: 323/1024 (31.5%)
Gender: 200/520 (38.5%)
Group: 48/109 (44.0%)
=== LINKS ===
Website: YMCA of Greater Charlotte
Registration: SportOften
Results: ChronoTrack Live
Organizer Pics: YMCA Charlotte
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