Check out my video below to see how my day went.
Showing posts with label Chevron Houston marathon race report. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Chevron Houston marathon race report. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 18, 2017
Houston Marathon 2017 - Spectating
Tuesday, January 20, 2015
Chevron Houston Marathon 2015 Race Report
The Houston marathon is my favorite marathon out of the 14 that I've done and I look forward it every year. This was my 4th Houston full marathon and this time I ran it with my girlfriend Theresa. She had been having some lingering knee issues and still wanted to do the race so I told her I would pace her. We implemented a 2:1 run/walk method that worked out for us and even though we were at the back of the pack Houston was still out there to cheer us on. We finished it in 6:07:00 and I was so proud of my girl for gutting it out to do the 26.2 miles.
Check out the footage I caught with my GoPro camera during the race. Enjoy! If ya like the video subscribe to my youtube channel for more videos just like it.
Check out the footage I caught with my GoPro camera during the race. Enjoy! If ya like the video subscribe to my youtube channel for more videos just like it.
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Chevron Houston Marathon Race Report 2013
The Houston Marathon is a race I always tell others about. I've ran it twice before and both times I've enjoyed the crowds, the volunteers, and how well organized the event has been from beginning to end. So for my third Houston marathon, my 9th full marathon, I knew I would have another great experience.
This year the organizers decided to have the 5k on Saturday so you could get a medal for the 5k, a medal for the marathon, and then you would get the Houston Double medal for doing both. I took my GoPro with me to insure that I took it easy and I had a blast running it with my girlfriend and brother. (You can check out my ABB 5k GoPro Youtube video to the right.)
Later that night I headed over to Birraporetti's for the Beef TEAM pre-race dinner. This was going to be my first race running as part of the Beef TEAM. As many of you know I'm a part of Got Chocolate Milk Team REFUEL so being able to be a part of the Beef TEAM just made for the perfect combo. Beef to fuel you for the finish line and then chocolate milk and beef to refuel you for "your after".
The forecast for Sunday was calling for temps in the 40s with highs in the 50's and rain. I could deal with the temps and actually prefer it but running in the rain was not something I was looking forward to. I run in Vibrams so I don't really have an issue with my shoes getting all squishy from them holding in water but I knew the rain was going to make running the marathon pretty miserable and cold.
RACE DAY
Gotta love the Houston Marathon for letting all their runners get ready inside the convention center away from the elements. We arrive at about 5:30 am to go to the Catholic mass that they have for all the runners beforehand. After getting our feet blessed we head over to claim a space to get ready in. I put on my throwaway gloves, t-shirt, and trash bag then we head over to check in our bags.
There is some congestion at the doors leading to the starting line because people are hesitant to go outside into the elements. Once through the doors there is a cold rush of wind and rain. My vibrams are pretty much soaked through with water after the trek to corral A. It's cold but in the corrals it warmer with all the body heat of the other runners and the energy of the corral is high. I need to pee and notice a line of guys by the fence line so I go over and join in on the festivities. LOL. After that they do the countdown and we are off to run the marathon.
RACE PLAN
While figuring out my racing plan I initially told myself that I could realistically run it in less than 4:30 as I knew my training for this marathon was pretty spotty. My ego got me to input a time of 4:20 which would be a new PR for me. The MARCO Marathon calculator gave me these splits to go by:Miles 1-2: 10:19
Miles 3-9: 10:05
Miles 10-17: 9:55
Miles 18-26: 9:42
MILES 1-2 (9:51, 9:42)
It was warm in the corral with all the bodies packed close together but once we start running the effect of the wind and rain on the body is really chilling. (Probably shouldn't have thrown away my trash bag poncho after the gun went off.) Although its cold and rainy I didn't think it was too bad for running a marathon. There is congestion at the beginning but even with that I'm going way too fast and knowingly not following my racing plan.
MILES 3-9 (9:49, 9:55, 9:51, 9:36, 9:42, 9:49, 9:37)
One of the reasons I love the Houston Marathon is the crowd support. Its cold and its raining but Houston still comes out to cheer us on in their ponchos and umbrellas. How could I slow down when I see signs that read "Don't stop.... I just farted" or another that read "Go Random Stranger I'm so Very PROUD of you!" Yup I'm running below my prescribed pace throughout these miles because I can't slow myself down, the energy is just electrifying. I told myself and knew that I'd probably pay the price for this speed in my later miles. I take my GU at mile 4 and again at 8 but noticed I've dropped one of my 6 Gu's along the way. NO BUENO! Mile 9 is where the half marathoners turn around at and all the marathoners go straight towards Rice University.
MILES 10-17 (10:08, 9:53, 9:52, 9:47, 9:49, 10:05, 9:56, 9:49)
My ankle starts bothering me after the split from the half marathoners. Its really pretty painful and I try to shake it off but it's not going away. I decide to stop and stretch it out which helps a little bit but not much. Luckily after a couple of miles the pain subsides and I'm running pain free again. About mile 15 I notice I'm being tailgated by another runner who eventually kicks up some water on me and snickers. I look back and its my brother, William, who caught up and was messing with me. He's running strong and eventually passes me when I see an open port-a-john and take a bio-break. Make my way up the little hill on Westpark through to the Galleria area and I'm on my way to mile 18!
MILES 18 - 21 (10:45, 9:58, 10:03, 10:00)
Started to slow down during mile 18 it was probably due to the faster earlier miles finally taking its toll on my body. Around these miles the 4:15 pace group passed me up. Which gave me the motivation to try to keep up with them but they end up keeping their steady pace which was too fast for me. I decided to fall back and run an easier pace.
MILE 22: THE WALL!! (12:11)
UGH!!! My legs said no more! I let myself walk through the water stop and I just kept walking on after the water stop.... My initial goal of a sub 4:20 was not going to happen today. I dwelled on that for a bit before deciding that my original goal was to break 4:30 and that was what I was going to do today! So I picked it back up.
MILES 23-25 (10:57, 11:17, 11:23)
With my new goal in mind I got back into a running form and trudged on. I'm doing good for a bit but then on mile 25 I find myself walking once again. Thats when another runner comes up behind me and tells me that she had been using me as her guide to keep moving forward and to kick it back up and I could follow her. So thats what I did. These miles are what the marathon is about. It's about the heart to move forward when your body is raising the white flag and telling you you're crazy to go on. Gotta love the camaraderie of a race.
MILE 26 - 26.56 (10:36, 8:56)
1.2 more miles to go and I'll be done. I'm looking at my watch and its getting mighty close to my 4:30 goal so I dig deep and start running. I can see the George R Brown convention center and didn't want to kick to early so I wait. I pass up mile marker 26 and start my kick. The crowds are yelling "GO BEEF" and "GO JEREMY". I see the finish line and run a little harder but my left quad is starting to cramp, I ease up a bit and push through to cross the finish line with my hands raised up high. I'm a Marathoner! I cross at 4:29:52! Sub 4:30!
Do you want to join me on the Beef TEAM? Go to this link: http://www.txbeefteam.org and fill out the pre-qualification form.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Chevron Houston Marathon 2012 Race Report
Saturday night I'm still debating on whether or not I should wear my GoPro camera for my run and also whether I should wear my Vffs or my MT-20 Minimus shoes. I was thinking that the GoPro would be too much of a hassle to wear and mess with for 26.2 miles and as for my Vibrams the longest I had ran while wearing them was 15 miles and it was pretty painful for the last two miles of it. But I decide finally to go ahead and wear my Vffs I figured my feet were gonna be hurting regardless of the shoe I wore after mile 20 so I might as well wear the shoe I've been training in since March 2011. I had also decided on wearing the GoPro Cam since it would just be so cool to have video documentation of me running a marathon.
RACE DAY: SUNDAY MORNING
Alarm goes off at 4 am and I jump out of bed and get myself ready for the Marathon. Breakfast was a banana, a few granola bars and a gatorade. We head off at about 4:45 and park, seeing all the runners around walking to the GRB convention center is really getting me excited to start this thing. At 5:30 they have Catholic mass so we attend that and they have a blessing of our feet at the end which I definitely took part in. We then check in our bags, port-o-johns, and head to the starting line.
MILES 1 - 5
We are in the OPEN Corral so we start 10 minutes after corral A starts. After some introductions by the Houston mayor and the 10 minute wait the crowd starts moving and we are off. I'm running at first with my brother Willie. I wanted to keep a 10:30 - 10:45 pace through the early miles so I knew we wouldn't stay together for too long. But we were able to stay together long enough so we could get some footage of each other with the GoPro camera which was fun. A little after the convergence of the halfs and fulls I told Willie to go ahead and wished him well on his marathon. These miles felt real good the crowds were out cheering and it led me to run faster then planned so I kept having to remind myself to slow it down because if I didn't I knew the later miles I'd be doing some major walking. I also ran into Julia and her running group of 80's themed ballerinas. Its always nice to see someone you know on the course.
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| Running alongside Dinh |
Still feeling good just taking it all in giving high fives to the crowds and hearing a lots of them shout out my name or comment about my Gopro camera like Look he's got a "(webcam/lil camera/GoPro) on his head" which really got me pumped. Sometime around these miles Dinh another DMer comes up and runs besides me and ask "Are you Jeremy?" I tell him yes and he introduces himself and runs besides me for a bit before I tell him I'm gonna slow it down as I'm running faster than planned. I also ended up seeing a barefoot runner and chatting him up to let the miles go by. Once the half marathoners split off around Rice University the roads open and its not so congested anymore so most of the weaving is done with. During this point I start grabbing food from the crowd bananas/oranges/pretzels. I'm not sure if it was the crowds food or just my stomach but I started to feel the need to go #2. It was probably a good thing people were holding up signs that said "Don't POOP your pants" because that gave me the motivation to go ahead and stop and take care of business. I won't go into details but I was in the port-o-john for a good 5 to 7 minutes but if felt like forever! Knowing I had lost some time but also feeling better I start picking up my pace to make up for that lost time passing many people and finally reaching some of the familar runners I had been running with previously before the stop.
Getting back to my planned marathon pace everything is feeling pretty good until about mile 13.1. I start getting the feelings of the beginnings of a cramp on my right calf. If you've followed any of my training you know that I've suffered through some tough calf strains so I slowed it down a notch until that pain went away and luckily the pain subsided and I was able to run at a strong pace again. 13.1 more miles to go!!!
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| Messing with the GoPro Cam probably making sure its on. |
MILES 14 - 17
These are tough miles the crowds are a bit thinned out as we go down Westpark but there is also this little hill that we have to go up. People start groaning, others are pumping themselves up by screaming "hills are our friends" "They make you stronger". I love it when other runners try to pump everyone up. So I go up and down the thing and finally make it back to some crowds down Post Oak Blvd. where the Galleria is. Whenever I'm tired and see the crowds I make my way to the right or left so I can get some motivation from them. I loved reading the signs like "Chuck Norris never ran a Marathon", "Worst Parade Ever", "Run like a Kenyan and quit after 2 hours"
MILES 18 - 20
This was my first Marathon 2 years ago and back then along Woodway street I saw President George H. W. Bush but didn't have a camera to document it. I thought to myself as I was passing that same area wouldn't it be cool if he was back here again. As I'm passing St. Martins Episcopal Church I see him there again. So I take the time to stop and get not just one pic but two because I had to make sure I had a picture of me shaking hands with this great American President. Talk about flying high, I was excited about meeting and taking the pic with the ex-pres that I had once again picked up my pace and was just running along crossing 610 and into the Memorial Park area.
MILES 21 - 24Still chugging along my feet hurt, my legs were hurting, my whole body was hurting but this is a marathon and that's how its suppose to feel right! Lots of people are slowing down their paces to walking at this point but I was trying my best to keep myself running at my goal pace. Its rougher roads here as the cement is mixed in with some pebbles so I decided to run on the grass for a bit but then I step on a rock,which sucked, so I go ahead and just run on the roads. I see a beer truck, I forget what the brand was, and I decide I'd get a cup. Talk about the best beer ever! It tasted great and I was chatting with some other runners and cheering them as we drank and ran together.
MILES 25 - 26
Entering downtown you can see the George R Brown Convention center which meant the finish line is RIGHT THERE! I pick up my pace probably too much as I soon tire out and start walking for a bit but motivate myself to run again as I knew a PR would be mine today. I'm passing runners left and right I see one of my friends from Beaumont and I try to motivate her to run with me. My legs have found new energy and I'm flying. I'm in celebration mode.
MILES 26 - 26.2
Crowds are to the left and right everyone cheering for us. I'm pumping them up by telling them I want more and raising my arms. The finish line is there and I run as hard as I can, my lungs are hurting, my legs are hurting, I want to slow down but I don't. I raise my arms in celebration and savor the moment a bit before turning off my Garmin. I had just completed my 6th marathon and a new PR! Official time: 4:40:07. What a great day!
SPLITS: 10:23, 10:25, 10:14, 10:34, 10:12, 10:08, 10:20, 10:04, 10:22, 9:58, 10:08, 10:14, 10:28, 10:14, 10:34, 10:40, 10:17, 10:17, 11:12, 10:49, 10:45, 10:52, 10:44, 10:49, 10:54, 10:39, 7:40(0.45)
Running with the GoPro Camera wasn't bad at all. I might even do it for my next marathon. I set the setting to take pics every 10 seconds and when I looked back at while editing the pics weren't as fluid as when I had it set to take pics every 5 seconds. So I'll have to work on that if I run with it again. My Vibrams worked out really well for me. I'm definitely glad I went with them for this run. With all the stops I made during this marathon like the restroom break, meeting the pres, and messing with the GoPro cam I know my time could have been better but who cares I enjoyed every minute of it.
My next marathon is going to be the Gusher marathon in March in Beaumont, TX. I'll take the time to recover some and hopefully I'll be able to get another PR for my hometown marathon. Thank you for reading my race report and thank you to all the DMers and everyone that follows and motivates me during my training.
Check out the edited GoPro footage here:
Part I: http://youtu.be/on4dlCX78Uk
Part II: http://youtu.be/f83I_omW7zY
Part III: http://youtu.be/MWvvVqxE2IY
Part IV: http://youtu.be/VPc2GbCHLaQ
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