this would be year 3 for this event, and my 20th 13.1 to date. Not bad for a guy who thought that he would never run again.
The RnR events are great. They are well produced, well attended, have great crowd support, good on course entertainment, and, based on my experiences, good courses.
I registred for this event a year ago, when the price was a mere $50. I'll likely take advantage of the "deal" again for next year, and register over the next few days for '17.
My training has been poor thus far in '16. While I've completed 7 events, including 3 HM's, I have yet to really ramp up my training. Going into today, I had not exercised in 11 days. I have been fighting a bit of an illness, and, like every year, the 1st 2 days of March Madness took its toll on my nutrition and training. So...expectations were incredibly low.
I had an good experience yesterday at the Expo, as I was in and out in 10 minutes or less. I connected with Hider pre-race this morning, and saw a few tri buddies as well.
The temps to start today were in the low 40's. I struggled with what to wear, and finally settled on a compression shirt, tech shirt, and 1/4 zip pullover. Gloves, shorts, calf sleeves to round out the attire. This decision would prove to be problematic. More on that later.
As for the race...
I had only one goal today...finish. I got off to a slow start, and had to stop for a pee break at 1.5 miles. I suspect I lost about 3 minutes. I continued my slow (but running) pace until 4.5 miles, when I realized I needed to shed some layers. The problem was that I really needed to shed my base layer. In retrospect, arm sleeves with my tech shirt and 1/4 zip would have been better. I stopped on the side of the course and started the slow process of stripping my top layers. Once my base layer was off and tied around my waist, the shirt and pullover went back on.
I continued a slow pace until about mile 9.5, the another pee break was needed. I walked a few hills late in the race, but, ran most of the way.
Final time: 2:29:38. My slowest 13.1 ever. I suspect I lost 6+ minutes from the 3 stops.
While a slow time, it wasn't a bad day. The course, although hilly, was great. RnR did a nice job of showcasing the city. Between Deep Ellum, Kessler Park, Oak Cliff, the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge etc., this was an awesome course.
I stuck around for a few beers post race and listened to Blues Traveler (headlining band).
Rock N Roll Dallas is far superior to the Dallas Marathon. A shame, really, but, the truth. I'll be back for '17 for sure.
Glad to have this one done. #20 in the books...
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