NOVEMBER 20, 2022

yes, that’s me!

My final half marathon for 2022!!

I signed up for the Upstate Classic Half Marathon for several reasons:

• I had run the race three times before so I was familiar with the course and the hills.
• It was local and I could sleep in my own bed the night before.
• It was local so I would know a lot of the runners.
• I had run a half in September and October so I was sorta already trained.

Half Marathon Training:

For 2020, I had the ambitious goal of running 12 Half Marathons – one each month. The pandemic wrecked those plans.  For 2021, it was just race whatever half marathons were available.  Racing has returned so a result, I was lucky to have already run SEVEN live (and one virtual) half marathons this year.

• Fred Lebow Half Marathon (in NYC) – 2:26:02
• Publix Florida Half Marathon – 2:20:55
• Central Park Half Marathon (in NYC) – 2:21:29
•  Virtual NYC Half Marathon
• Helderberg to Hudson Half Marathon – 2:12:24
• Steel Rail Half Marathon – 2:32:04
•  Run 4 the River Half Marathon – 2:20:53
• Maine Half Marathon – 2:18:18

If you follow my posts, you also know that I am not strict about following a training plan.  I try to get in my long runs but this fall, I got caught up in a 5k racing frenzy and missed several key long runs.

Pre-Race Activities and Preparations:

I did some easy short runs during the week prior to the race: Mon, Tues, Thurs:

Packet pick up was easy peasy.  I just went to the race headquarters on Friday after work.

just a bib since I chose not to buy the race shirt

I skipped my long run on Saturday and walked with friends and then after, I met them and the others who ran for brunch.

My usual carb loading dinner was pizza and then I tried to figure out what to wear.  It was forecast to be VERY cold, windy  and cloudy. Colder then my last race and we would be at a higher altitude. I hate being overdressed (and was tempted to even wear a skirt) but I reluctantly chose a beanie, 2 long sleeved shirts, DIY arm sleeves, tights/skirt, and gloves.

I added an extra pair of gloves, compression calf sleeves, buff and throw away jacket (all were necessary!)

Race Day:

I woke up early and looked outside and there was a light coating of snow on the ground (the slippery kind.)

I had my usual pre-race breakfast of oatmeal and coffee. My running friend, Deb, was also running the race so we decided to carpool. I met her at 7 am and she offered to drive.  I knew that I may finish the race first but not much before her so it didn’t seem to matter who drove (Um, wrong!!)

On the drive, we discussed our plans for the race.

So what was the plan???

• Upstate Classic Nov. 2020 – 2:23:37 (but no watch)
• H2H April 2021 – 2:22:51 (same course)
• Upstate Classic Nov 2021 – 2:19:21

I would love to have improved my time on this course but hey, I’m a year older…

So Just finish.  No time goal!! Stay healthy for future races.

We both agreed on this goal…

The course:

A loop starting and ending in the same location.

and not flat… at all:

according to my Garmin

The race would be starting at 8:30am. We got there an hour early and parked in the huge grass parking lot. Then we sat in the car.  It was in the 20’s (teens with the wind chill) and we wanted to stay warm until the last moment especially since there was no bag check. (Well, Deb had to get her bib and use the porta-potty but I remained warm.)

Around 8:15 am, We dragged ourselves out of the warm car and headed toward the race start.

Brrrrr! I shivered but at least, I had time to chat with many runners that I knew.

Deb headed to the porta-potty line (which was a mile long.)

They announced that no matter what, they would start the race on time.

First the half marathoners started. (The marathoners would start 10 minutes later.) After that, there was also a 5k.

It was chip-timed so I just pushed myself into the crowd toward the front and near my friends. I still couldn’t bear to take my throw away jacket off.

.

Anyway, here’s how the race went:

Spoiler Alert:  This was posted by the RD in FB:

Miles 1-3:

We started running around the fairgrounds.  The path was snowy, icy and very slippery.  I took it slow but tried to stay with my friends.

I soon realized that my jacket was too awkward to run with so I threw it to the side. We continued on the entrance road to the fairgrounds until we turned onto the main road.

I was familiar with this course since this was my 3rd time running it.  Obviously since we were running on roads, there were cars. You were supposed to run on the shoulder but it was slanted and I found it awkward. And until mile 4 or so, it was also very snowy/icy.

So I ran toward the middle of the road until a car came by.  I was more comfortable that way. But the negative was not running the tangents. 😦

Miles 3- 6.2:

One of the course marshals that I knew cheered us on and took photos.

My friend Linda (above) gradually got ahead of me but she was always in my view.

The first water stop was around mile 3.  I wasn’t thirsty but stopped anyway to take a drink (and tossed it since I got a mouthful of ice.)

Soon a plow went by salting the road and so it was clearer and less slippery..  So far the hills weren’t too bad. I could even run up them.

This may get monotonous but it was VERY windy and cold.  At first, it didn’t seem so bad.  The sun even made me feel that I was appropriately dressed. Early on, I even rolled down my arm sleeves and took off my gloves.

I ate a GU since I tried to keep to my fueling plan of eating every 4 miles.

Around mile 5, we passed by Indian Ladder Farms and the smell of fresh cider donuts filled the air. Normally this is where there are tons of cheering spectators.  But not today in these cold windy conditions.

The rolling hills continued. The wind seemed to pick up.  Why did it never seem to be at my back?

When we turned off this road,  the hills ceased to roll and started to become steep hills.  Those type of hills where it was even hard to walk up them.  But walk I did. But trying to pick up the pace on the downhill with the wind blowing in your face was impossible!

Miles 6.2-8.75

Every now and then I would glance at my watch.  My pace was by no means fast but considering all the walking, it was not as bad as I feared. In fact, my legs felt great.  My feet didn’t hurt.  It could have been a good race…. if it weren’t for the crazy WIND!!!

The second water stop was around the 10k point. Again I stopped and had some frozen water.

Normally around the halfway point, there is a clock but it was not working when I went by.  Looking at the race results, it stopped around 44:xx and re-started at 1:04:xx.

So obviously even in this weather, I was doing pretty well.

Now the big hills seems to more frequent, the temps dropped and the wind picked up big time.

I pulled up my arm sleeves, put back on one pair of gloves and pulled up my buff.  My lips were numb and I was soooooo cold.

The wind was so painful that I thought about quitting!!!

Miles 8.75 – 11.1

But I continued… walking when I couldn’t run and running when I could.  At times I felt like the wind was pulling me backward.  But it was no different for anyone else… and there marathoners out there.  And those poor volunteers.

Around mile 8, I ate another GU.  I never really felt hungry during the race but knew I should fuel.

The race continued the same way.  The amazing thing was that my feet did not hurt.  My lower back was achy from looking down to protect my eyes from the wind.

I think there was another water stop (I’m pretty sure that I stopped.)

The course marshals were very enthusiastic. I knew many of them.  I couldn’t believe they were able to stay out there for hours in that cold. There were some families camped out (and bundled up or in heated cars) in their driveways.  But for the most part, we were running on the roads in the country… no place for spectators.

But surprisingly around mile 10.5, there was table of guys giving out bottles of water and alcohol.  It was one of our boating friends again. I was too cold to even greet him.

Miles 11.1-13.3

More hills. They never seemed to end.  And one last water stop.  I just wanted to finish so I skipped it.  I didn’t eat my last GU either.

Mile 13 seemed like a full marathon.  The wind had drained me. I wanted to run to finish but I just could not move forward in that wind. I was pretty miserable.

And for this entire mile, I had a terrible side stitch. I can’t remember the last time that happened to me (WTH?)

To make matters worse, there was one hill after another.  And so I walked most of this mile.

We were also running in a more heavily trafficked area and so you had to keep keep moving over when a car drove by.

But eventually we turned into the fairgrounds  There were even hills there!  The wind was swirling… the snow was blowing….

I barely sprinted through the finish line. I just couldn’t move fast in that WIND!!

Post Race Activities:

They gave us a foil blanket that I attempted to put on in the wind.

I immediately headed to the food tent. Refreshments were a boxed lunch but there was also a table of food that looked more appealing – pastries, quiche, bread, etc. But I was too frozen to eat anything.

Then I went to see my results. I found out that I came in first in my age group and at that table, they also gave you your finishers medal.

For your award, you could pick a hat or shirt from a previous year.

this was last year’s hat (and I was the ONLY crazy runner in my AG)

If I weren’t freezing enough, I no longer had a jacket and the wind was brutal and temps dropping. I hung around the food area until I was too cold and moved into the sun and waited… and waited and waited.

I didn’t have keys to my friend’s car and I was wondering if I had missed her finishing.

So I walked to her car and waited there.  I was sooo cold that I wanted to cry.. A lady nearby who was waiting for her husband to finish (took a look at me) and offered me a seat in her warm car.

Finally, my friend arrived (she had stomach issues and had a very bad race.) I obviously couldn’t complain about waiting 50 minutes in the cold without a coat..

The best part of the day was that we drove to Indian Ladder Farms and ordered the most delicious hot mulled cider (in fact two cups.)

Additional Race Reflections:

It seems that my recap above was a bunch of complaints.  But honestly, it was the first race that I wanted to quit during and the first race that I regretted running.

I guess, I’m proud that I didn’t. Others in the race (including some friends) did and felt much worse.

In fact, my time was a lot better than I expected. It was faster than my September half that was flat. If the weather were better, there was potential for a great race.

But you can’t control the weather. And any injury would have been much worse (My legs/feet felt fine after.)

It gives me hope that I could improve (if I dare to run it again next year.)

The Good:

• Connecting with local runners.
• Decent post race food. (box lunch of pre-ordered sandwich, apple, brownie) and a table of other refreshments (quiche, bead, pastries)
• Well organized.
• Lots of pre-race information
• Easy packet pick up
• Ample parking
• Enthusiastic volunteers (even with the cold weather)
• Live tracking for others to follow runners and runners to get immediate results
• Free photos

The Bad:

• Hilly Course.
• Most of my running group did not participate.
• Not trained for hills (my fault).
• Traffic during the last mile or so.
• Ice/Snow on the course

The Ugly:

• COLD TEMPS!
• INSANE WIND! (up 50 mph gusts)
• Waiting after the race

Final Stats:

6.4M ~ 1:03

Splits:

things got ugly after mile 8

I felt like I walked the second half of he race

Would I recommend this race?

Sure.  Pretty scenery and the perks mentioned above. But TRAIN ON HILLS before you run it!!

I’m pretty sure the weather couldn’t be as bad as this year. (I mean, it was 75 degrees two weeks prior.)

Next Up:

A Thanksgiving 10K

I signed up for the Fred LeBow Half Marathon as my 54th Half Marathon (and first of 2022) for several reasons:

• I love NYC.
• I love running in Central Park.
• I hadn’t run a race there since January 2020.
• I had enough pts for a free hotel room and free train to NYC.
• I had thought my NYC BRFs Cari and Elizabeth may be running it too or at least we could meet up during the weekend.
• It kept me doing weekend long runs during the cold temps of upstate NY.
• I would be running another half marathon in 3 weeks (so could consider this as a training run.)
• I had hoped to run the Frozen Penguin Half Marathon a few weeks earlier but it was cancelled.
• I ran this half marathon in 2020 with a sore foot so this would be a do-over.
• As a NYRR half marathon, if I do finish under 2:27, it would be easier to time qualify for 2023 NYC half & full marathons.

Half Marathon Training:

As I mentioned above, I had hoped to run a half marathon in Central Park two weeks earlier. I love to sign up for winter halfs because it motivates me to keep doing those long runs in the cold weather. (And this year, the temps were COLD!!)

If you follow my posts, you also know that I am not strict about following a training plan. But I do try to do those weekday short runs

and get in those double digit runs on the weekend..

I knew about the HILLS that would taunt me during the race. I have run in this park and I ran the Shape Half Marathon which was also several loops of the park (but different start and end.)

survived but not smiling

I also ran this same race in 2020. That time, due to construction, they added an extra hill and I was suffering big time from foot pain (so I had missed many weeks of training.)

smiling cuz it was over

In case you have never heard of Fred LeBow, he died of cancer in 1994 at age 62, but before his illness, he left an unforgettable mark on running in New York and the world as a runner, race director and founder of the New York City Marathon. There’s a statue in his honor in Central Park.

Pre-Race Activities and Preparations:

I took the train to NYC on Saturday morning. It was -6 degrees when I left (but the temps were a lot warmer in NYC – balmy 20s). I arrived at 11am and my hotel check-in time was 3 pm.  Due to COVID, there’s no hotel bag check but luckily my room was ready.  So I checked into my hotel on 39th St. and grabbed some lunch.

when in NYC… bagel and lox!

Months ago, I had bought some cheap tickets to a Broadway show in order to have something to do besides walking my feet off the day before a half marathon.  The show that I wanted to see was To Kill a Mockingbird but it closed so I wound up changing my tix for a different show.

The story in this show was told to songs by Bob Dylan

.Afterward, I grabbed some pizza for dinner

and walked around the area (Hudson Yards and Manhattan West) …

and eventually headed back to my hotel in order to plan my race day.

heat wave, right?

I have not run many winter half marathons so it was a challenge to decide on what to wear to keep warm but not too warm for 13.1 miles.

hidden is a skirt with tights attached

Luckily I still had some throw always and foil wrap to add to my outfit.

Race Day:

I brought my usual race breakfast of oatmeal and coffee with me and got up around 5:30 am.  It was chillier than I hoped so I put on my throwaway shirt and jacket, DIY arm sleeves, grabbed a foil blanket and called an Uber. (My hotel was on West 39th and the start was near E. 102nd. I could have taken the subway but obviously way too far to walk.

As I did in 2020, I got there too early and FROZE!!!

I had to pick up my bib and check my bag… everything was so well-organized even with ID and vaccination checks that it only took minutes.

decided to wear 2020 beanie and save this one for after the race

It seemed like most racers were there as well (the race sold out at 5,000) and we lamented about the cold but we knew that it was warmer than recent days.

As I was walking around trying to stay warm, I passed a heated tent with chairs. The runners in it invited me in.  It was awesome. Unfortunately eventually we got kicked out since it was for staff only. So we huddled near it sucking up any warm air that we could.  Of course, they soon shooed us away too.

happy to thaw out here

Soon it was time anyway to head to the corrals and I was assigned (as always) to corral I (based on a fast 10k race).  I debated what to throw away and decided on just the jacket and foil.  I kept on the extra shirt…. I was freezing!

I’ll do my best to recap the race below. (Warning: it’ll be long…)

The Race Plan: Do not get injured!! (You need to be healthy for the Florida half in 3 weeks!) And have fun!!

I would most likely do a lot of walking… because there would be umpteen hills!! (3 Harlems, several Cats and many other annoying smaller ones.)

I planned to stop and walk briefly at every water stop (so I wouldn’t get dehydrated even in the cold) and to stop and walk longer to eat a gel at every other water stop.

Anyway, here’s how the race went:

2022 Course Map:

2 1/2 loops of the park – 3 Harlem Hills and 2 Cat Hills 

Check out this elevation:

Miles 1-5:

It took a LONG almost 7 minutes to get to the start line. Even though I had on 2 pairs of gloves, my hands were numb as were my feet. I was glad to wear my buff since it kept my face warm.

It was slow going at first due to the crowd but soon we heading for a downhill stretch. Of course, I tried to stay slow and it felt slow but when you look at my stats you’ll see that familiar pattern – slow… slow… slower.

My corral had a 2:10 pacer whom I lost immediately. I never did see a 2:20 one if there was one.  I was happy to never see a 2:30 one.

courtesy of nyrr

The first hill was Harlem and it was the steepest.  I ran up most of it thinking that it wasn’t so bad (my opinion changed by the third time)

Once I started running, I realized that I was indeed perfectly dressed. In fact during the 2nd mile, I decided to take off my throw-away shirt.  Not easy. It got tangled in my two other shirts and I forgot about my watch. To make along story short, I had to take off my watch and two shirts and re-dress.

The best news was that my FOOT never HURT.  (Much different than the last time I ran this race two years ago when I could barely walk on it.)

I always tried to pick up speed on the downhills but they were short-lived as there were always smaller hills – the Sisters, etc.  According to Strava, each hill has a name.

There was a water stop early, I think I skipped it as well as the last one.  Many offered Honey Stinger Gels which I did grab (free is free lol).

I knew that Cari and maybe Elizabeth would be be cheering for me on the west side at 79th St. Of course, I really couldn’t figure out most of time where I was in the park… it seemed to be hill, recover, hill, recover hill. lol. I never saw Cari on the first loop but it turned out that she arrived just as I was going by.

I had eaten breakfast at 5:30 am so I was very hungry, I think I stopped at the next water stop around mile 4 to eat a GU.

not sure what I was doing (I’m on the left)

So we continued circling the park… many small annoying hills and then the 2nd largest hill, Cat Hill. I did the same as with Harlem, ran up most and then walked. Cat wasn’t as steep but seemed a lot longer.

(In case you’ve never run in Central Park, it’s called Cat Hill because there is a statue of a cat staring down at you.)

Soon we were back on the east side and passed the statue of Fred Lebow.  Every runner saluted him as they ran by.

Miles 6-10:

We passed the start again and that meant we were heading for round 2 of Harlem Hill.  Of course, it got harder to run up it each time. I did my best but never was able to run the whole thing.

I grabbed a Honey Stinger gel at one of the water stops. I ate it around mile 7 1/2. (It was a first time for Honey… a little too sweet but no bad after effects)

As we headed for the west side again, I was looking forward to seeing my friends Cari and Elizabeth. Around mile 8, I spotted Cari who snapped a pic and shouted “See you at the finish!” I so appreciated her being there to cheer me on especially since it was a cold day.

Thanks Cari for the action pic!!

That gave me some short-lived energy but since this was the second loop of the park, there was Cat Hill again and the statue of Fred and hill after hill after hill.

Miles 11-13.4:

We passed the start for the last time (Thank God!).  Always cruel when that happens to a slower runner. So many runners were walking by with their medals on already.

It was almost over but it wasn’t.  Some downhill as before but leading up for the last time to Harlem Hill. I occasionally looked at my watch and saw that each mile was slower than the next.  I was ok with it (this was not planned as a PR or anything even close) and so I decided to just do what I had to do to finish.  That meant walking a lot in that last mile… Harlem Hill during mile 13… Sigh.

But I finally turned toward the finish line and then turned again.

I ran as fast as I could…. (Adrenaline took over here!)

I saw Cari and Elizabeth cheering me on.

Post Race Activities:

I immediately got my medal, my foil sheet and posed for a quick pic.

I grabbed a bagel and headed to bag check to get some warm clothes and meet Cari and Elizabeth.

my awesome race supporters

I was cold now… I was glad to have packed a down jacket, vest and gloves.

We walked out of the park (from E102nd to W72nd).

the obligatory Imagine pic

stopping along the way for more pics

now I can wear the race beanie

so we could have brunch together.

photo credit = Cari. We were outside but there was a heater above us… I look cold

yes it was as good as it looks.

After brunch, we went our separate ways.  We would see each other in five weeks for another Central Park half marathon. Stay tuned…

Rather than taking the subway, I decided to walk back to my hotel (on 39th St.)

40,000 steps for the day!! OY!

Hotel check out is normally noon but I reserved a late check-out for 2 pm.  It was now 1:45. Yikes.  Originally I had a train ticket for 7:15 pm, but wisely changed it to 5:15 pm.  As I mentioned earlier, there were no bag check options (due to COVID).  I was not planning on dragging my luggage around the city so I changed my train ticket again and left at 3:40 pm.

I don’t recommend sitting for hours on a train or plane after running a half marathon.  I was quite stiff that night. (The good news is that I felt fine the next day.)

Additional Race Reflections:

As you can see from the stats below, my splits were slower the second half the race.

I was surprised and thrilled that I finished under 2:27!! (one of my 2022 goals). But a little disappointed that I only finished about 30 seconds faster than 2020 when I ran this race untrained and hurting.

Enough whining…I am so grateful to be able to visit NYC and run a race. I am unbelievably happy that after the race, my legs/feet felt fine.. no pain anywhere (always a good thing at my age.)

All in all, I thought this was a great race.

The Good:

• Easy packet pick-up (M-F at Run Center and also race morning near the start).
• Vaccination required for ALL participants.
• Many porta potties at the start. Long lines but they moved quickly (I was told – did not use).
• Bag Check. Well organized before and easy pick up at the end.
• Water and Gatorade stops (7 at least)
• Gels available at several water stops
• Many porta-potties along the course in addition to real CP bathrooms
• Roads were dry.
• Friends cheering for support.
• Well marked course.
• Timing Clock at every mile.
• Great crowd support at the big hills!
• Los of volunteers as course marshals and at water stops (and it was cold out!!)
• Pacers (useful if you started in the correct corral).
• Very cool medal.
• Great winter beanie.
• Foil blankets put on and taped close for each runner.
• Blogger meet-up with Cari and another friend to share the race experience after.
• NO foot pain. No Blisters.

The Bad:

• No packet pick-up on Saturday (day before the race) so those who do not live in NYC had to do day of race pick-up
• Loops!!!  2 1/2.
• Hills in Central Park. 3 Harlems, 2 Cats (and they are long and steep) among other smaller hills
• I did not do any training on hills (my bad)
• So cold waiting before the race (but it could have been worse).
• Post-race food – just bagel and apple (COVID?)
• No photos

Would I recommend this race?

Yes.

Do it if you can.  You won’t regret it (unless you hate hills lol).

No, it’s not an easy course. Only a little over 5,000 runners usually participate so a small race by NYC standards. And not an expensive one.

Final Stats:

Splits:

my Garmin time is off… may have had auto-pause on?? or started it late?

yeah there was lots of walking..

Next Up:

This one should have warmer weather but you never know with Florida.  I ran this one three years ago in the pouring rain.  No hills just TWO big bridges.