Race Report: 2014 Cesar Rodney Half Marathon

In early March, with a little over a month to go to my goal race - the Vienna City Marathon - it was time to look for a quality tune-up race. Travel to a conference in Canada the second week of March meant I would miss two of the most popular half marathon races in the area: Shamrock in VA Beach and Rock 'n' Roll in Washington, DC. Fortunately, two of my teammates at Falls Road Racing independently recommended a nearby alternative: the Caesar Rodney Half Marathon in Wilmington, DE. Turns out that this race had just been nominated by "Runner's World" as one of the best half marathons in the country. That, and the fact that entry fees were very reasonable, had me convinced and I soon signed up.

A few weeks later race day rolled in, and I embarked on my trip to Delaware. Unfortunately, it was a solo effort this time since most of my teammates had already raced the week prior. Matters not since the drive was pleasant enough, accompanied a mix of classical and electronic music. To my excitement, free race parking was right off the I-95 exit ramp, just a few blocks away from the start line. I got my gear together and walked over. Again I was surprised, this time by the lack of lines by the restrooms. Thus, I had plenty of time to start my warm-up, consisting of 2 miles of light jogging, toe walking, heel walking, spring jogging, skipping and strides. At the start, I eyed the competition and noted a handful of fast looking runners. After the national anthem - an excellent performance - we were off!

The course can be best described as a flat first half, and uphill second. And so when we started out with a 5:20 first mile I wasn't especially worried. No point in holding back on the downhill. The second mile took us into the baseball stadium area, where just a few months prior I had run the Delaware Distance Classic, then to the Christina River riverside walk. Here the wind picked up but since the field had already thinned out significantly, there was no one to draft off. Next, we looped back to the start area, and after mile 6 our climb began. It was along Park Drive, inside the Wilmington State Park, which made it easy on the eyes but hard on the legs. We continued to gain up until mile 9, and kept the high ground for another 2 miles, before dipping down towards the finish. This was along the same route as before, and so I saw many of the slower runners coming towards me, working to best the uphill. Their cheering and the fact that it was such a smooth angle that did not require much breaking, felt truly uplifting and I was able to effortlessly roll down the hill. The finish however was another story: a quarter mile hard uphill to right before the finish chute. By this time I was all alone, with 4th place half a minute ahead, and no one behind me. Thus, I went on to finish 5th overall in a new personal best of 1:14:22, 6 minutes off my most recent half marathon from September 2013 in VA Beach.

The post-race was just as well organized as the rest of the race, with your typical spread of bagels, bananas, coffee, bars and even pizza (which I respectfully declined, its value in recovery still lacking scientific evidence). I had also prepared ahead by bringing a serving of Hammer's Recoverite. After a light cool-down jog I stood around enjoying the festivities for a little while, then picked-up my award and made my way back home.

Conclusion

While not necessarily a PR course, the Caesar Rodney Half is a fun, challenging, superbly organized race in the Mid-Atlantic area. I may very well be back next year to tune-up for my 2015 spring goal marathon.

Sporting my Hammer race kit and the age group award plaque!

RRCA Club Challenge race report

Every year, local Maryland running clubs get together to race each other for the glory of taking home the "Club Challenge" trophy. And every year, it seems to boil down to the rivalry between Falls Road Running and Howard County Striders - with Falls Road having the upper hand in the last few years. However, new scoring rules had been implemented this season and with the announcement that Georgetown Running was going to show up, Falls Road' chances of taking the win seemed slim.

For me, it was my first time running the Club Challenge. Having only started training with the guys at Falls Road last summer/fall, this race would be the first time I ran for our team and with so many of my teammates. A few weeks prior, we had gathered on the course for a practice workout. Even with scouting the course, I didn't see the challenging hills after mile 5 coming. It wound through residential streets in Columbia MD, and only after looking at my GPS watch did I notice that the first half was a net downhill. With all the ups and downs in-between I would have never guessed it!

Since I arrived only 45 mins before the race I wasn't entirely happy with my warm-up but still managed to put in a solid 2 miles and some drills. Topped off my energy levels with a bottle of Hammer HEED just prior to toeing the line. At the start, the weather was ideal: no wind, warm enough for shorts and singlets and just barely overcast. We went out with a 5:20 downhill mile which felt pretty smooth, and I soon found my teammate Tim Burns beside me, and was glad for the company. We locked in a mid 5:30 pace for the next miles, and tried to stay connected with the pack ahead of us consisting of my teammates Steve and Ed as well rival club members. Tim and I kept passing each other as he would surge ahead and then drop back - in hindsight we should have worked together seeing as how we were so close for most of the race. We picked off a Howard County Strider early, though he'd ultimately catch us on the way back and finish just ahead of me.

As opposed to my marathons, I barely glanced at my GPS pace but instead opted to race by effort - which came down to trying to hold on to the pack directly ahead of me. This seemed to be working until the hills rolled around, at times I would find myself just a few seconds behind the pack ahead. However, during the second half of the race I encountered two weaknesses in my running which I plan to address over the next weeks: a) my downhill performance - I didn't feel like I was able to roll down the hills whilst recovering from the previous uphill and b) having done no hill work this season the effort of pushing up really cost me. Thus, mile splits at miles 6, 7, 8 were approximately 10-20 s slower than I would have liked - seconds which ultimately caused me to loose connection to the pack ahead (which by this time was pretty strung out anyways). Fortunately, I kept the rival Strider that had passed me earlier in my sights, and was able to pull it together after the final hill for a 5:35 last mile. The cost was that I had nothing left in the finish, and so couldn't match an unexpected move by teammate Dan who came out of nowhere (I thought it was Tim) with less than a mile left to go. He quickly caught up to the Strider, who hung on for dear life to finish just seconds ahead of both Dan and myself. I came in 17th with time of 57:10 and was the 6th scorer for Falls Road.

Races like these really showcase what I love about the running community: positive energy, enthusiasm, team-spirit and friendly competition. What's more, all of this for a mere $8 entry fee (which was kindly paid for by the team), including: chip timing, numerous course marshals and water stop volunteers, access to a heated gym pre & post race, and a deep field (at least 40 runners under 60 minutes). A big thank to the
Howard County Striders for hosting us and the other clubs and putting on such a great race.

In the end, thanks to an awesome showing by our team and many great performances by my teammates, Falls Road not only won the Women's and Men's, but also the Overall competition!

In sum, I really enjoyed this race and the lessons learned. Add the nearly 5 minute PR (previous best 61:49 at the Baltimore 10 Miler in 2013) and factoring in a handicap accounting for hills I think I'm in a good spot 6 weeks away from my goal marathon.

Moments before the finish, I'm going wide to take a sharp right turn before crossing the line. Thanks to Jonathan Michel for taking the pic.