Race Report New Bedford 1/2 Marathon

No Nor'easter made this a typical race day in New Bedford; cool in the mid-30s and breezy. Not nearly as windy as last year. Once again, a big crowd with some top NE runners making the trip to whaling town. I opted to run in a coolmax long-sleeve, shorts and gloves, but could've easily gone with a spandex tee. I had the gloves off my hands after mile one. Managed to hold 6:15s through mile 8. The next few miles are tough though, as they go along the ocean and make for some pretty breezy conditions, especially at the turn to head for mile 10.

Here are the numbers:

1:23:09 (6:21 pace) - gun to chip time 1:23:19 - why was I so far from the line??

199th overall, 29th AG

team 6th (I scored 4th behind Vitelli, Stumbras the machine and Bernie O'Reilly, then Kaiser)

My PR of last year stands 1:22:08. The good news is that I am closing in on where I was last year very quickly. In the last week or so I have started to get that feeling again, which is good news. I believe if I work hard enough, I can actually cross where I was last year and take this thing to a new level. I have five weeks until the marathon.

Here are last week's numbers:

Run: 59 miles (1-track, 1-race)

Bike: 6 hours (1.5 outside)

Swim: 8500 yards

All in all a good week. Sore lower back made good timing for small taper before the race.

Congrats to my BAA, MRC team-mates and friends that ran!