As with everything in life, there are ups and downs. The off-days in my running life - especially in the races where I struggle but don't accomplish what I set out to do - make me appreciate the days when I hit my goals even more. Even great athletes like Ronda Rousey had a lousy day or two this year. So, after covering my 2015 running highlights in
my last post (and there were quite a few of them), here are my lowlights of 2015:
2015 Lowlights
3)
Roselle Run for the Roses: All morning, the weather had been fantastic. That is until five minutes before start time when some close lightning strikes threatened to cancel the race. Just before the start horn sounded, the heavens opened up with a deluge of rain. Any hopes for a PR were dashed as my clothes and shoes were waterlogged the entire race. All the water added a few pounds of weight, which probably caused my finishing time to be at least 10 seconds slower than I needed to PR. Typically, I don't mind racing in the rain, especially if it cools me off on a hot day. However, it's not as fun when it's a downpour in a short race that costs me precious seconds. To add insult to injury - in the only picture of me from the race I'm mostly blocked by another dude.
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| I'm over that guy's shoulder (src) |
2)
Chicago Marathon: The 2015 version of the Chicago Marathon was my second fastest marathon ever - so this is one of those races that could have easily been placed on my highlights list. However, every single race conversion table says that based on my half marathon times, I should be able to run a sub-3:00 marathon. I ran this one in 3:08 and I did my typical fade over the last three miles. After eight attempts, I'm still trying to figure out how to conquer the marathon distance.
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| At least I got to run near an Olympian! (src) |
1)
F^3 Half Marathon: Soon after the race started, this one quickly veered into "struggle bus" territory. It was an unseasonably warm January day and I had over dressed. In addition, I started out too fast and my lungs were not used to the warm air and they started to hurt. Only after walking and letting quite a few people pass me, was I able to rebound, but it was a little too little, a little too late. I signed up for the 2016 F^3 which takes place next month and I'm looking forward to some redemption!
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| Still doing okay at mile 2 (src) |
Enough of my whining about the worst this year in running gave me. Since my highlights far out-weigh my lowlights I can happily smile at this post. Anyway, here's to an even better 2016!
Wow, Pete! Even with those "lowlights" you still had an unbelievably strong year! I am looking forward to your redemption at F3 next month, too, even though your 2015 showing was still amazing as heck. It's great that you only listed 3 lowlights compared to 5 highlights in 2015!!! That says a lot!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Emily! Yes, my lowlights weren't all that bad all things considered. I can only hope my 2016 lowlights post will also only contain three entries! :)
DeleteYour lowlights weren't really lowlights...it's just your perspective of a fantastic year! I can't really find too many lowlights for my year. I could have picked my Chicago Marathon since I fully expected to and could have BQ'd but it was just not my day. But instead of crumpling in the heat, I pushed through and finished respectably. So there's that...
ReplyDeleteYes, they aren't real bad lowlights like in previous years! I feel for anyone in the Chicago Marathon who did not finish around the time I did, it started to get really hot soon after I finished! Way to push through!
DeleteWahoo! Fake lowlights. Really, it's all in your perspective. I would definitely agree that a waterlogged race & the F3 were both lowlights. I did NOT like the F3, mostly because of that warmer weather than we'd expected! (race organization itself seemed fine, in my recollection). Happy holidays!
ReplyDeleteYeah, I must admit, my lowlights really weren't all that low this year. Yes, I enjoyed most everything about the F^3 except how my lungs behaved and the warm weather. Happy holidays to you!
DeleteThese are not lowlights!! :-) You did fantastic this year!!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Zenaida!
DeleteYour lows are still highs in my book. Way to keep a great attitude despite some setbacks!
ReplyDeleteThanks Michelle!
DeleteMy f3 last year wasn't what I wanted it to be because I faded on training toward the end. I am hoping to PR - but of course, that may depend on the weather. Hope to see you out there and here's to another year of great running!
ReplyDeleteI think I may have been over-trained for the race last year, hence my lungs were somewhat shot going into the race. For the last couple of weeks, I have been running low miles, so I am only looking to a better race than last year. Thanks, you too! Hope to see you there! :)
DeleteMy f3 last year wasn't what I wanted it to be because I faded on training toward the end. I am hoping to PR - but of course, that may depend on the weather. Hope to see you out there and here's to another year of great running!
ReplyDeleteFake lowlights, lol! Every race is an experience or teachable moment. Hell, we can say that about every run, even!
ReplyDelete