DRC Half: #tradition

Once upon a time I did something that felt really bold and brave and I signed up for a half marathon. I had been running for a few months and I was enjoying the challenge that it brought, but I wanted more.  I also wanted a pretty, shiny medal with the number 13.1 on it too, but I digress.  I was familiar with the Dallas Running Club (DRC) Half because, randomly enough, I volunteered at it about five years prior.  I remember handing out water that day and thinking that those runners were so cool and so impressive.  I never thought that I would be one of them, but I sure did admire them for their determination and discipline.  So when it came time to pick my first half marathon, DRC Half was a natural choice.  I have not missed a race day since that first one in 2008, it is a highlight on my fall racing calendar.

I was super excited with DRC Half weekend rolled around because I really love the event, but I was not sure to expect from my running.  I have been training by heart rate and time versus pace since I started my half ironman training back in June.  I felt strong, but I didn't know how fast I could realistically expect to run.  My last half marathon was at Redman 70.3 and was so darned hard that it left me feeling like I was a terrible runner.  I was hoping for a positive experience to erase that little bit of self doubt.  I decided to run this one largely by feel, aim for negative splits, and use this as a base for the other half marathons coming up this winter.  Simple enough, right?

Mile 6ish Aide Station (Photo: RunOn!)

Because this race was on November 1, I had to be aware of the amount of Halloween candy that I shoveled down my pie hole the night before.  I have an incredible sweet tooth and usually let myself eat whatever I want on Halloween, but I knew that a belly full of chocolate and sugar would not make for good racing fuel.  Mr K and I enjoyed the extra hour of sleep granted to us by the end of Daylight Saving Time (the famous fall back) as we had to head out extra early to allow time for the shuttle to Norbuck Park at White Rock Lake.  We arrived in plenty of time to check our bags and visit with friends.  The temperature was not bad at 60 degrees and there was no sun, but the humidity was quite high.  It was still better than the heat that we trained in all summer so I was not about to complain.  

It was time to line up in the corrals, listen to the Anthem, and hear my favorite pre-race declaration: "We are the Dallas Running Club, and today we run!"  The race was on!  The first couple of miles felt great, like a pace that I could run all day, and I was surprised to see them come in at 9:04 and 9:02 on my watch.  Perfect pacing to run it in under 2 hours, which is always a goal for me in a half marathon.  I just worked hard to keep it nice and steady for a while just like my race plan called for.  I felt like I needed to pee for most of this race and considered ducking into a restroom, but there were always lines and I didn't want to invest that much time so I just tried to put it out of my mind and kept on moving.

It is always great to see Elaine's big smile! (Photo: Elaine)

I really enjoy this course because when we leave the lake and go into the beautiful Lakewood neighborhood and there are always people out in their yards cheering us on.  They have rerouted the course in recent years and it isn't as hilly as it used to be, but these miles are where most of the hills are.  It was somewhere around mile 5 that I saw Mark L and his son Cairo volunteering as course guides.  Mark has spent the better part of this year dealing with an injury and I had to smile when he showed me his shirt that said "not running sucks!" It sure does, Mark, and we sure do miss your energy out on the course with us.  Hope to see you running again soon!

I made it to the timing mat at the halfway point in 1:00:18 - I was executing my race plan well!  Now if I could only negative split the second half then I would have my much desired sub-2:00 time.  Just after the mat I spotted Mel volunteering as a course guide.  She called out to me, asking if I had Flat Eli with me (lost a bet, long story).  I had to laugh and tell her that I left that guy at home, she agreed that was a good thing.  If you have to lose a football bet, you might as well do it with humor, right?

Clever Mr K seeking shelter from the rain 

We approached the veloway I knew that it was an opportunity to pick up the pace for a mile before the dreaded hill by the spillway.  At this point I started to notice the people ahead of me and I keyed in on a few random runners that I would like to pick off before the end of the race.  I find it helps to have a goal like that in the later miles as things can get a little bit tedious.  We made it back to White Rock Lake around mile 9 - which is both good and bad.  Good because I feel like I know every inch of that lake...and bad because I feel like I know every inch of that lake - including just how far it still was to the finish line.

Mile 10 came along and I knew that it was time to start inching down to a faster pace.  I felt really good at this point and my heart rate was staying nice and steady.  My splits had been very even and were trending negative, which always makes me smile.  Maybe I don't suck at running after all!  The best aide station of the day had to be the Dallas Dirt Runners (I think that I got their name right) and this is where I found Karen Baha.  I love seeing my people along the way!  They were blaring "Never Gonna Give You Up" and they were dancing their tails off.  As I left the aide station I saw signs that said "you've just been Rick Rolled." Well played, Dirt Runners, simply brilliant.

I was able to to keep dropping the pace going from 9:04 in mile 10, to 8:51 for mile 11, and 8:49 for mile 12...but things were about to get really interesting.  Somewhere just past the 12 mile marker I spied my friend Stude (aka Sheriff).  Stude does many things well, but he is really good at finding his friends in the closing miles of a race and pushing running them into the finish.  I think that part of my mind said "oh good, Stude!" and the other part said "oh sh!t, Stude!" He hopped in next to me and things really got going from there.  I was huffing and puffing and just trying to keep up and Sheriff was doing his best to encourage me.

Sheriff smiles while I suffer (Pic: Mark O)

Just 800 meters to go now....I'm not sure that a half a mile ever seemed so long.  I was truly dumbfounded when my watch chimed and displayed 7:58 for mile 13.  That might very well be the fastest 13th mile that I have ever run.  Remember the runners ahead of me that I was targeting? I dropped them like a bad habit! Stude told me to keep on pushing and then he peeled off right before the finisher's chute.  I'm not sure how I did it, but I did indeed keep on pushing and managed a 7:26 for the final fraction of a mile.  I ran the second half in 58:07 for a total time of 1:58:25 - my goal for a sub 2:00 race with negative splits had been met.  Turns out it was the fastest half of the five I've run in 2015. What a wonderful feeling!

Fake it until you make it! (Photo: Stude)

I collected my beautiful medal, part of a six years series portraying landmarks on White Rock Lake, and my cap - this race always has some nice swag!  Mr K and I devoured some post race food (hello In n Out Burger!) and then spent some time with friends in the beer garden (hello Lakewood Brewing!).  The sun never came out and it even rained on us a little bit, but it did not dampen our spirits.  I love the post race atmosphere at the DRC Half!

Hanging with new friends Chris, Sandie, and Dory (Photo: Stude)

This race did a great deal for my running confidence.  It marks a great starting place for the winter running months and upcoming half marathons.  I've already got a few target races marked on my calendar and I'm ready to get to work.  It is running season, y'all!