Practice Makes...

You know the saying "practice makes perfect"?  Sure you do!  This past Saturday I practiced the half marathon course with a friend.  But rather than practice makes perfect, we'll just say practice makes Jonathan's nerves settle down.

For those of you that know me, you know I can be a bit extreme about worrying about the unknown.  The half marathon that I signed up for to run on March 30th is a big unknown to me.  I signed up because the price was good and I thought it would be a good challenge to get me focused and out in the cold to practice when I would rather stay in my nice warm bed.

Then I started researching the course a bit more.  Let's just say it is a hilly course!  Most people have named it "technical".  But I don't know what the heck that means, so I'll call it what it is, HILLY!  The benefit of this course is that it goes through some of Lexington's finest horse farms and back roads, so the scenery is beautiful.  While reading about the course, here are some quotes I found on the website:

• FAQ section - Is the course hilly or flat? Challenging, easy, or…?
• A test… Kentucky’s hills with some flat spots… exquisitely beautiful… challenging – and inspirational.  The best way it’s been described: “RunTheBluegrass is a technical course.” To hear what other runners (of various levels) say about our course, visit their own dedicated page.
• "Don’t be surprised if your pace is a minute per mile slower or more."
• "Probably won’t be a course to set a PR on."
• "If you want to experience some of the most beautiful Bluegrass scenery while being challenged by some spirited hills, this is your race!"
• "Beyond a doubt it will test your sole and soul with it’s elevation changes. If you are planning to run just one half marathon this year, this is your race. If you’re planning to run a new PR, not so much."
• "Definitely a challenging course that requires hill training. This isn't a course for the weak at heart. Not a course that most would try a PR on. However, this is one of the prettiest routes I have run."

Now you can see why I got a bit nervous about the run.  My first half marathon!  Yikes, what did I get myself into???!?

I was happy to see that the race organizer (whom I might add has coordinated some amazing things and it sounds like the pre- and post-race activities will be just as fun as the race itself) planned three training runs to practice the course.  I missed the first two due to other engagements, but made it last Saturday.  The bonus was that they had fresh donuts at the end of the run.  Yum!

So I woke up early to be at the starting point, Keeneland, at 7:30 AM.  My friend made it about the same time I did. We talked for a short bit, but decided to get moving since it was so cold and windy!  I printed off a map of the course for both of us to run with the night before and brought them along.  

The rumors were true, the course is beautiful.  It was so nice to run in streets that were next to farmland and horse farms.  It simply was beautiful to watch the sun come up on this scenery as the frost began to disappear off the grass.  

By the second mile we had all but forgotten we were frozen to begin with and really began to enjoy the course.  It was nice to have an experienced runner with me and also a companion to talk to.  This is only the second time I have run with someone else.  We would talk about whatever popped in our heads at the moment and it made it easier to not constantly check my watch and analyze my pace.  This was practice after all!  

With two miles left to go, we took a wrong turn.  I am directionally challenged.  So that was no surprise to me.  My friend noticed and said "we've already been here before."  We had a good laugh and tried to figure out where we were on the course.  We then decided that rather than finish out the course (which would have put us around 15-16 miles total with the backtracking) we would just blaze our own path back to the finish area.  That worked well and I only had to circle the parking lot twice to get my 13.1 miles in.  lol.

We had our donuts and went on our way.  What a great way to start a Saturday!

The best part was after we realized we had made a wrong turn and stopped to look at the map, we noticed there was a group of horses (maybe 5 or 6) watching us.  As we took off running, they decided to trot along with us.  Wow, that was an amazing feeling.  Sure we were on the road and they were behind a fence, but they were literally running next to us for a good half mile.  It is one of the most memorable moments I have about running.  It really makes me look forward to what it will be like on race day.

Here is my GPS map of the course that we ran:

Here is the actual course map:

I was pretty happy with the pace.  Again, it was just practice and I told myself going into it not to look at my watch and I was pretty good at that.  My goal was to be around an 8:30/mile pace, so that was pretty close. 

I think the ability to get out there and practice really helped to calm my nerves about the race.  The hills were fierce! The blue line in the picture above is the elevation of the run, so you can see where it goes up and down.  

Now I just have to wait until the end of the month to see how I actually do.  I look forward to the challenge and experience of being in a race.  My only fear now is the mental game.  I know I can do it physically and will complete the race barring injury.  But what about when I am fighting those hills and on the long stretches?  Will I find another racer to talk to and pass the time?  Or will I get bored and let my mind start playing with me?  I guess time will tell, but I think I will be ready...