Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Hacking Minutes

On Sunday, I'll do marathon #10 - the Flying Pig Marathon in Cincinnati! After a successful race last year, I'm feeling anxious about having another good run.

Last year, I did the DC Rock n Roll in March (just like this year) and I hacked off a ridiculous 10 minutes from my PR - from 3:59 to 3:49 (notice I say hack and not shaved. It wasn't a shave - it was a ridiculous chopping of minutes that I fear I can never repeat!). Then I went to the Pig, just to have fun, and cut off another 4 minutes, from 3:49 to 3:44.

This year, I started off by finishing Rock n Roll in 3:44:47 - almost a full minute faster than the 2012 Pig (3:45:39). Can I still cut some time? Maybe the adrenaline of a new race won't be as strong this year. Last year's conditions were absolutely perfect - it was sunny, a little warmer than usual, and a gorgeous day. Of course, things didn't go off without a hitch - I didn't eat my typical dinner, a mariachi band was playing until 1am outside the hotel for Cinco de Mayo...and things still went well.

It's impossible to know how things will go, but I just keep reminding myself as always - the city is shutting down so that I can go for a run. I need to cherish the time that I have on the street, even as I try to make that time just a little bit shorter.

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