Chicago Project: Complete
RYAN CARRARA | Bib #309 | HUDSON, MA - UNITED STATES | Age 30 | M | USA
START 5K 10K 15K 20K HALF 25K 30K 35K 40K FINISH
7:58:59 17:05 33:59 50:49 1:07:36 1:11:17 1:24:29 1:41:01 1:57:52 2:16:04 2:24:33
TIME Chip Time: 2:24:33 Clock: 2:24:33 Pace: 5:30
The Chicago Marathon experiment has been completed. Sunday was a frigid windy day which made the going tough. You really had to concentrate out there or else you could easily drop in a mile 10 seconds over pace on one of the tougher miles. You guys who are still reading probably read the results online sometime ago. I ran a 2:24:33. 2:34 slower than my target goal of 2:21:59 which would have given me the B-standard for the Olympic trials. I was actually on pace through 22 when a killer 30 mph head wind down the final four miles just took me right out of it. Mentally I did not quit and tried to drive the whole way but the more I fought the wind the less effective I was. I really think I could have had the standard if the race was on Saturday. Would have been, could have been, should have been, if not for (fill in lame excuse here). As my college coach once said "We all have excuses and we all know what they are good for." I have a rule which states you can not be dissappointed with a personal record. If you run 11 minutes faster than the last time you raced that distance, who are you to think you could run any faster? Yet, I still am a little bit dissappointed. I will post all the splits and give a whole run down of the race tomorrow when I have some more time to write. You will probably think I am a wimp but, I just got back to the house, I am a little tired, and the legs are a little sore. I am going to ice and massage them a little bit, unpack, have a beer and watch, some of the Giants vs. Cowboys game.
Before I go, thanks to Kevin, Mario, Terry, Mark, Matt, Brian, Hodgie-san, and everyone else I have worked out with and helped keep me on task, relaxed, and so selflessly shared everything they knew about racing. Special thanks to Dan, Yvonne, Christy Mae, and New Balance for putting up with me down in Chicago and making me feel like an elite runner even though I am far from it. Thanks so much.
Full report tomorrow. So that's not all I got.
But for now. . .
That's all I got.