Schaumburg Half Marathon 2014 Race Recap

This was my second time running the Schaumburg Half Marathon, but the first time running it on the new course layout. I was excited to run my last half marathon for the season and see what I could do time-wise.

Goal: Since I had just raced the Lincolnwood Turkey Trot 10k less than six days ago, my expectations for this race weren't too high. I did low mileage all week in order to try and recover from the 10k and despite that my legs were still slightly sore. I knew it was going to be a tad on the cold side for this one, so the extra layers plus the cold air might slow me down a little. So, my goal was to run a smart race (i.e. negative split) and see if I could flirt just under 1:30:00.

Getting To the Race: On Sunday morning, I drove on an almost empty Kennedy expressway and made it from my house to the parking lot in Rolling Meadows in under 30 minutes.

Pre-Race:  After getting out of my car, I headed over to the yellow school buses (aka "shuttle buses") which would take us to the starting line. This was a point-to-point course so our checked bags would have to be shuttled back to the finish line.

Waiting for the bus

On the bus

The total time from the parking lot to the start line felt like it took about the same amount of time it took me to drive from Chicago to the parking lot. Oh well, I had plenty of time to spare so it was NBD.

I got my packet and made my way over to the bag check area. I spotted Zoe, and after twittering and blogging back-and-forth for a few months we finally met IRL.

Me and Zoe waiting for the race to start

Around that time, I realized I had lost one of my gloves, so I backtracked around to look for it. I did not find it, but I did find another lost glove on the ground and just assumed that the person who lost the one I found had found mine. So, the karma evened out, I hope!

Zoe and I made our way over to the start corrals. It would not be a 2014 Chicago-area race if I did not see Lynton, and of course, there he was calling my name near the starting line! Seriously, I have seen Lynton at perhaps every single race this year (either spectating or racing). Unbelievable. Anyway, I met Mark H. and Adam stopped by and said hi as well So it was one big happy family. Lynton warned us all beforehand that the course had plenty of ice on it, so we would have to watch our footing.

Miles 1 through 3: Temps were comfortable considering it was in the 30s, perhaps it was the sunshine? Anyway all of the aforementioned people took off ahead of me and I settled into a nice groove somewhere above 7:00/mile. There were several ice patches which we had to navigate around. On the first big hill of the course I caught up to Zoe again and we ran together for about a mile and a half, chatting and chilling. 7:04/mile.

Miles 4 through 6: After mile three, Zoe and I parted ways and I ran somewhat alone through scenic Busse woods, picking off runners here and there. There were a few hairpin turns which afforded me glimpses of Lynton and Adam as they were coming back towards me. I think we passed an Elk pasture. This picture shows kind of what the trail looked like:

The scenic Schaumburg Half course

Also we ran on a few hundred yard stretches of snow covered grass. 6:44/mile.

Miles 7 through 9: I was finally able to see the 1:30 pace group up ahead and thought it would be cool to catch up with them and then hang with them until the finish. I spotted Lauren's husband Mike, but he seemed to be running faster than the 1:30 group and breaking away from them. 6:38/mile.

Miles 10 through 12: I finally caught up with the 1:30 group and tucked in the middle of them. The pace leader asked if any of us were attempting half marathon PRs. One woman in the group said this was her first half marathon! A first timer was running smoothly in the 1:30 group. It took me years of 1:40s and 1:30s to finally break 1:30, so that was cool. Anyway, looking at my Garmin, I knew they were going a little faster than the 1:30 pace (6:52/mile) they needed. So when they finally slowed down to 6:52/mile, I thanked the pacer and took off ahead of the group. Some guy in the group shouted "smart race" to me, because he knew I had been playing it conservatively up until these last 3 miles. 6:37/mile.

Miles 13 and 13.22: I was basically on my own, just picking off runners willy-nilly. The final stretch was downhill, but it was on the snow-covered grass. I started shouting "the finish is on grass?" over and over. For some reason it ticked me off, but I am better now. I think I wanted a faster kick and was slowed down by the snowy grass. Oh well! 6:10/mile.

I crossed the finish line and got my medal about 2 feet later!

Analysis:

Overall: 35/1,620

Age Group: 7/110

Official finishing time was 1:28:47 for a new "Schaumburg Turkey Trot PR" by over a minute! My main goal of finishing sub-1:30 was accomplished. The course was icy, grassy and had lots of turns, so I'll take it.

Post Race:
I picked up my gear and headed back to the finish line. I spotted Lynton who had just set a massive PR. I believe he keeps PRing in Schaumburg. I also spotted Erica fly through the finish line and she came by and said hi.

Me and Erica

I cheered on Zoe near the finish line, then chatted with Lynton and Mark before heading back to the car.

Me, Lynton and Mark

Once I got near the city my "check engine" light came on, so I dropped my car off (with smoke coming out under the hood) at the mechanic and walked/jogged about a mile until I found a cab home! Looks like I'll need a new $150 oil valve.

Conclusion:
Great sunny day, race PR, and another race where I got to see so many race friends!

Next Up: I might run the Jingle Bell 10k in December. If not it will be the epic "It's S-NO-W Fun Run" in January with the Wurst Running Club Ever!