Eh - it was an ok city. Mostly buildings, not much action. (especially after just being in San Fran) I'm glad we didn't plan to spend all our time in San Jose.
Expo:
Again Eh. I was disappointed in the number of booths. I don't even think Brooks was there, and they are at every expo!! Truthfully I was bummed not to find a company I've been on the look out for since Nashville - and of course I can't find them online. No tool time either :)
I was impressed with the official race artist. Sonya Paz. A bright bold style. I loved it!! Also a bit pricey. Once I realized the expo booths were duds I should have headed back and bought one of her smaller prints, but I forgot. I'm still holding out hope I'll win the official race painting. Not sure when the drawing is.
Hotel:
Excellent choice J! The set up in San Jose was nice because the expo, start line, and finish line were within 5 blocks of each other. This makes logistics great!! This is the first time we've stayed at a hotel that was at the start line, and by at the start line I mean we heard them testing the microphone at 5am from our hotel room. It wasn't that loud - I was just awake already because I stayed on east coast time. That the best thing about the West Coast races, 7am doesn't seem so early.
Race:
Most race mornings start at a crazy hour like 4:30am - and involve long walks or crowded buses to make it to the start area in time to find coffee/water/bananas, stand in 30 min lines at the port-o-jon's, final pre races prep, drop off gear check bags, and make it to your corral. Let's see... in San Jose I woke up on my own and stayed in bed for a while, made a trip to the hotel lobby for coffee, got back in bed with my coffee and read for a while, got dressed, used my own nice bathroom, sat around chatting, then headed down to the race. My starting corral was maybe 50 steps from the hotel entrance. Now that's a relaxing prerace morning!!
My goal for this race was just to run the entire 13.1 - wasn't worried about speed - I just wanted to finish this year with a race I was proud of :) The race course started in the city - moved out into the neighborhoods - and finished up back downtown. The weather was beautiful and a lot of the course was shaded which was nice, totally diff then then heat in VB. The crowds support was ok. Hopefully as this race continues, San Jose will get more excited and into it. The course was also very flat - which isn't my favorite.
Of course the first couple miles felt great... and in my head I was thinking 'maybe I'll get my second best time'. As the miles past and I watched the clock that turned to 'maybe I'll finish around a 10 min pace. Which then progressed to 'it'd be really cool to finish in 2:13 something', my two favorite numbers. I felt ok for most of the race - but not ok enough speed up - just ok enough that I knew I'd finish. Then came mile 13, it seemed to take forever! I was feeling so sick by this point I'm surprised I didn't lose my breakfast on the side of the course. My thought 'I could just have a bunch of shots and feel this bad - I don't need to run 13 miles' :) Then I saw the finish line!
The finish line is my favorite part of the race. Not just because it means I get to stop running - but because of the excitement! The crowds the thickest and loudest here! I always fill with emotions for everyone who is crossing that line an accomplishing their goals! There's nothing quite like it!! And praise R for giving me an orange as soon as I crossed! My body always needs replenishment immediately and it takes forever to move through the post race area and get to the food!
| splits | |
| Mile | Time |
| 1:2 | 19:34 |
| 3:4 | 19:42 |
| 5:6 | 20:34 |
| 7 | 10:42 |
| 8 | 9:55 |
| 9 | 10:19 |
| 10 | 10:20 |
| 11 | 10:28 |
| 12 | 10:32 |
| 13 | 11:02 |
| .1 | 1:17 |
| official race stats | |
| 5k | 30:24 |
| 10k | 1:01:55 |
| 10m | 1:41:08 |
| Chip Time | 2:14:23 |
| Pace | 10:16 |
| Div (F 25-29) | 330 (781) |
| Sex (F) | 1781 (4830) |
| Overall | 4164 (8336) |
Post Race:
As is typical with me - I felt pretty bad after the race. 2 hours later - after a nap and shower - I was ready to join the guys for the post race drink.
Guinness
Guinness
Cranberry w/ a splash of Pineapple (hold the vodka) :)
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