I didn't hit my goal of 1:25, but I knew that was very likely out of reach. But 1:28 felt very much within grasp. First, some stats:
- Overall: 66/2797
- Male: 57/1178
- Male 45-59: 3/137
- Male Masters: 11/512
I got up at 3:30 in the morning to have two slices of toast and make 500 mL of coffee. I took 1,000 mg of acetaminophen before heading out the door to make sure it was in my system before starting the race. When I got to the start line about 6 AM, I had a full banana and called it good on nutrition. I had a Maurten 100 gel with me for mile 8 as a safety net.
I started the first 4.4 miles to the spillway with the 1:30 pacer. It's very flat so I knew if I stuck with him, provided my HR and power weren't going into Z4, I would be okay. That seemed to pay off. The goal was to average 6:50 for those first 4.4 miles, and I averaged 6:51. Right on target.