Surfin'

Yesterday was the Surf City 1/2, an event held every Superbowl Sunday and one that I have participated in for either the 1/2 marathon or 5K for the last 6 years or so. I was on my own for this event, as my troop of peeps were not feeling it for another 13.1 miles after the Carlsbad event two weeks ago (and a Safari Park 1/2 planned for mid-March too), so off I went for a solo run with 20,000 of my closest running friends.

It was not too long before I met Cyndi and Sue, two ladies from Utah who make me look like a very quiet and shy person when it comes to talking abilities. These two could TALK and talk they did, from the moment we met when they asked me to take a picture until we said goodbye and parted ways at the end of the run. Within the first 5 miles Cyndi had declared me her new BFF for Facebook and invited me to stay with her to run the Ogden 1/2 in October.

I learned something interesting about interval running - there is something to it and I like it! We had been talking for so long that once we finally got across the starting line, it seemed rude to run off without them, so I followed along on their 2 minutes run, 1 minute walk plan. At first I was pretty skeptical about finishing in a reasonable time, but lo and behold, we crossed the finish line in 2:44...not a world record by any stretch, but given that 1/3 of the time was spent walking (albeit quickly), I say cool!

It would appear that this method allows for just enough rest time to keep the energy level higher and sustainable across the duration of the race. You admittedly are a slave to the beeper/timer that regulates the whole thing, but once you get into the zone, it is all good. My best time on a 1/2 is 2:31, and given we had to walk through a couple of run cycles in the last mile because Sue was having some issues with her calf, I can see where this is going to help me shave some time off my future events.

Suddenly, I feel very fast. I might actually be able to finish at the same time as the winner of the full marathon instead of 10 minutes later!