I entered this race with high expectations. After my PR on this course last year, I was expecting to set another PR. I even was hoping to go sub 1:20.

According to my coach I was in shape to get a high 1:20 or low 1:21 finish time. His pacing strategy for me was to start out with a 6:10min/mile and keep the pace till halfway and then speed up to 6:00-6:05min/mile if I feel good. Assumed that I would be able to speed up at half way point as planned together with a finish sprint I could get close to a sub 1:20 time. So far so good.

The week into the race, I tried to adjust my schedule to the east coast time by getting up earlier. Since the race would start 4:30am west coast time. Unfortunately, because of work and other events, I wasn’t able to go to bed earlier and therefore wasn’t as successful with this time adjustment. I flew out Friday (red-eye flight) and just spend the weekend in Pittsburgh. I arrived in Pittsburgh had lunch and went for an easy 25min jog in the afternoon. It was much warmer in Pittsburgh than in Seattle and I realized that my HR was much higher than usual even though I was running a very easy 9:30min/mile.

Amy and I were starting in the Pittsburgh marathon for the 4th time and knew by now how to maneuver the city. Based on my previous times I had a seeded starting number and was able to line up right behind the elite. I was about in the 4th row when the race started. I tried hard not to start to fast and crossed the first mile marker after 6min 8seconds. A big group going at about the same speed was 30m ahead of me. I would have liked to catch up and pushed a tiny bit harder to not jeopardize my strategy too much. But that wasn’t enough to close in and I decided to stick with my plan and follow my own pace. This also meant that I was running alone from mile 2 onwards. Around mile 2-3 I had my first doubts if I can hold this pace. I knew that my HR was higher than in other races and was above threshold. It also didn’t settle down 15min into the race. In addition to that, I felt my quads slightly burning on every incline. I tried to ignore these thoughts and stick with my plan. I told myself that if I would give up if it gets a little harder I would never get a PR.

At the halfway point, I was tired and exhausted I didn’t believe it was realistic to push the pace and tried to stick with a 6:10min/mile. I was thinking about my last half marathon on in Bellingham, where I felt great at the half way point and then slowly started to push the pace. Not so much this time. Well the sub 1:20 was off the table, but I could still do a new PR if I wouldn’t fall apart. Every little hill made my quads burn and I was wondering how I should get up the one mile long hill on mile 11. But than I was even more worried to get there without loosing to much time. Around mile 8 I felt better for a while and I got some new hope to finish with a new PR. Shortly after the tiredness was back, the first time this year I also felt to be short of breath. Normally I am limited due to muscle strength but this time I couldn’t get enough air into my body. All my focus was to get to mile 11 without slowing down. I don’t remember much of that part of the race, except that I finally caught up with a runner in front of me and I just tried to keep pace with her (Note: As it turns out she is in the USA national marathon team). For that part of the course, I was in my own world, just focusing on the pace and trying to ignore my body. It felt like waking up at mile 11 when I looked up the hill and knew that now was the time of truth, where I would find out if I could make a new PR. I wanted to slow down as little as possible knowing that the last mile was all downhill. Unfortunately my pace quickly dropped below a 6:30min/mile.

Eventually, I could see the top of the hill and also that the 12mile mark was there. Which means after that it would only go downhill. Finally I was on top of the hill and started to increase my pace again, and there I could see the finish pretty much a 1miles straight downhill. I pushed the pace and my watch indicated that I was running well below a 6min/mile. I overtook a couple of other runners. To my surprise they didn’t even try to stick with me. One last little hill up to the finish and I crossed the finish line in 1:21:25. (I ran the last mile in 5min 40sec)

This time placed me 49 out of 12134 runners and 12th in my age group.

Amy finished the half marathon in 1:59:34 which is exactly the same time as her previous PR from Philadelphia in 2009. But the course here in Pittsburgh is much harder. Congratulations!

Race Results

Run HR and Pace
Note: I stopped my watch right on the finish line. For the first time my Garmin measured too much.