Hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving

I completed my sixth Skinny Turkey Half Marathon. This year I am running the event as a pacer for 2:15 group. Sugars were behaving pretty well that morning. I have been eating pretty healthy for the nights before training runs. In the morning the usual latte with hot cereal and banana. I like this event location, it has plenty of bathrooms and areas to stretch, sit down and relax. There I met with few a friends from RTR (Raleigh Trail Runners club) and other pacers, including my friend BD, we were going to pace together today.

No warm-up today, since my goal today was to help to pace. Also on Saturday, I am running Derby 50k for the third time and just want to have a controlled event without raising my heart rate much. We walked just behind the 2:15 pacers, after a few announcements, the National Anthem and off we went, similar to last year around 350 runners.

Mile 1-6: Very uneventful miles, temperatures were awesome. The Sun was out and by mile 3, I already took my hat and gloves off. The course similar to previous years with tons of up and down hills but running at a steady pace and checking my heart rate once in a while to see how much effort I was exerting during the event. We started holding a steady pace, just a little bit ahead since we were aware of the long uphill at the later parts of the event. Since the route is a very nice wide road, we easily started moving with a decent group of runners.

Miles 7-12: The hills continued, but we were all feeling great. My sugars remained steady and other than a couple of water stations from which I grabbed some Gatorade, and a honey stinger gel that they were handling out. Just having good conversations with runners, spectators, and volunteers. It was awesome to see friends come by on their way back from the turnaround. Most of them having a good time and with a smile.

Mile 13 to finish: The final stretch, more ups, and downs, we pressed on as we were just at the right mark for the 2:15. The last 150 meters were downhill so, so we increased the pace and finished strong and within the 2:15 target. 

We hang around at the finish line area, with the finisher’s medal in hand we went to get my traditional picture with Santa. I checked my sugar levels with the meter when I returned to my vehicle and the reading was 156. Now to recover well and get ready for Derby 50k on Saturday.

 

 

 

 

Month/Year	Event	Location	Type	Time
Nov-19	Skinny Turkey	NC	Half	2:15:18

Event Highlights:

Course: Great ample road right of the start but very hilly. Around 350 runners. With the ample road, there is no problem starting and finding a comfortable pace.

Venue: At a High School, plenty of bathrooms and seating areas to rest before and after the event. At the finish, good food, plenty to drink, and snacks.

Expo: No Expo.

Weather: Overcast skies at the start, then sunny, 47º with 54% humidity.

T1D: Sugars within running range and stable throughout the event.

Fueling:

Pre-Race: 1 serving Hot Cereal, latte, and banana.

Race: Gatorade at third and fourth station, water at others.

Post: Protein Shake within an hour of the event. Great Thanksgiving dinner.

Learning Points:

• Taking it easy makes it feel like you can run forever.