Boilermaker,  Race Re-Cap,  Races,  Running

2010 Boilermaker 15K

Wow, I’m finally home, showered, and extremely exhausted! But I feel amazing. πŸ™‚

Today I accomplished one of the greatest things in my life…running in and completing my first 15K road race! The Utica Boilermaker! As of today, 9.3 (9.5?) miles is officially the furthest distance I’ve run at one time. And I’m so proud of myself and how far I’ve come. Less than two years ago I was overweight and out of shape and never would have in a million years thought I would be running in a 9.3 mile race. This just goes to show that you can do anything, if you put your mind to it. I’m living proof.

The morning started out early, and I mean early. I got up at three am to drive to Utica with Chris, since packet pickup started at 6am and it takes almost 2 hours to get to Utica from Albany. So, we were up at the crack of dawn (way before dawn, actually) and took the roadtrip to Utica.

I ate breakfast in the car on the way at about 4AM…a bagel thin with Justin’s Maple Almond Butter and Chia seeds sprinkled on top…but this didn’t really hold me over for very long. After stopping at a Dunkin Donuts for some coffee and iced tea, we went to the packet pick up to get our bibs. We ended up parking at the start line since roads were closing at 6AM, so we wouldn’t be able to drive to the finish, which turned out okay.

I got my gear ready at the car and then headed to hang out at the starting area and ate a Clif Z Bar since I was starving!

Chris is making his cute debu on my blog!

After waiting around with the other 13,000 runners, eventually we made it to the start line at 8AM.

We actually didn’tΒ  even get to line up on the road; we were stuck on the grass and didn’t even start running until 10 minutes after gun went off! Thank god for my Garmin. πŸ˜‰

Until we started running I was kind of in denial that I would be running over 9 miles on this lovely morning. I ran pretty slow to start, because I didn’t want to burn up all my energy, and I knew I would be needing it in those last few miles. My goal for the race was to finish, even if I had to walk, because I feared I might be a little bit weak due to the cold I had this week. I also didn’t know how not running this past week would affect the race.

I felt pretty good the first four miles, and the crowd was awesome! I’ve never ran such a fun race! There was so much support and music! After mile four, the hills came, and that’s what killed me! But I made it. I was just running in the zone for most of the time, glancing at my watch now and then and talking to Chris so I could make it through!

I also stopped at most of the water stops and walked through them after mile five, just to sort of re-charge so I could keep running. At times I felt like stopping to walk, but I pushed through! It was so hard!

9.3 miles and 1 hour and 39 minutes later, Chris and I crossed the finish line, holding hands! He had pulled me along at the end of the race and if it wasn’t for him I probably would have started walking. πŸ™‚

Official Race Stats
Place – 8,714 out of 11,524
Chip Time – 1:39:00
Pace – 10:38
Place in age group – 645 out of 932

Garmin Stats
Total Distance – 9.5 miles
Total Elapsed Time – 1:39:18
Average Pace – 10:27
Average Speed – 5.7 mph
Calories Burned – 1,126

Splits
Mile 1 – 10:44
Mile 2 – 10:30
Mile 3 – 10:25
Mile 4 – 11:27 <–Hill of death
Mile 5 – 9:10 <–Downhill with a gorgeous view!
Mile 6 – 9:55 <– More downhill
Mile 7 – 10:56 <–Starting to feel the pain
Mile 8 – 10:20 <–Pushing thru the pain
Mile 9 – 10:58 <–dying
Mile 9.5 – 4:42

After finishing, we found water, and some orange slices and Chris and I shared a coconut water that I had been carrying in my Camelback.

After resting in the grass for a few minutes and stretching my legs, which were in a lot of pain by the way, we made our way to the post-race party at the Saranac Brewery. There were so many people, it was pretty hard to navigate our way around. We did find our way to the beer table though! The Boilermaker is not complete with out Saranac! πŸ™‚

Chris drank the beer, but I didn’t have any, since I don’t thinkΒ  I could stomach it after running for so long! What a trooper. πŸ™‚

We ditched the post-race party after getting the beer and headed to the shuttles to get the bus back to the parking lot. The buses came really quick, which I was pretty happy about.

On the way back I munched on the fruit salad we got for free, and also drank some Poweraid.

We also made a pit stop to Starbucks on the way back, where I got a refreshing iced green tea! Mmm!

We got back to Albany in time to get lunch and watch the World Cup! I was having a serious craving for pizza, so I got a couple of slices at SoHo. πŸ™‚ Tomato, spinach and ricotta and Veggie!

I ate all but the crust on the first piece, and about 3/4 of the second piece. Such a satisfying lunch after a long but satisfying morning. πŸ™‚

Well, I have a huge blister on my left foot, aching legs, and I’m about to fall asleep at my laptop, but I can safely say I accomplished something big today. My first 15K! πŸ™‚

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