Team RunnersConnect has an incredible weekend as athletes notch 12 Personal Bests

Matthew Stewart ran the Blackmores Sydney Running Festival Half Marathon and finished in 1:22:19. This was a new personal record by 5:01.

Great mild race conditions (9 °C, partly cloudy) with a whisper of wind and a beautiful sunrise – perfect for running. As it turned out my average pace was 3:48/km resulting in a five minute and one second PB, 58th overall from 7300 finishers, and 12th in my age category. And my wife smashed out a massive PB in the Half (over 9 minutes). That alone would rate a 10 out of 10 race rating but wait! there’s more! Waiting in my inbox when I got home was my Boston marathon entry confirmation.

This is huge for me. Running Boston has been my goal since I started running. I figured if I was aiming for Boston I should get a Boston coach! And that’s how I found Jeff and RunnersConnect. Thanks to Jeff, Jamie, Danny, and Sarah for tinkering with schedules, answering questions, and offering encouragement – as do so many of my fellow RunnersConnect members. Looking forward to meeting some of you next year in Boston! Roll on Patriots’ Day!

Wesley Dinsmore ran the Marine Corps Half Marathon and finished with a time of 2:06:09.

I always love to come back to this one because I served at Camp Lejeune on and off for the last 17 years of my career. My oldest son ran it with me in 2011. I was also married after I ran the race last year and for that it is most special. It was the first time my wife accompanied me to a race. She loved the atmosphere so much she started to race also (5K/10K) She places in her age group every time and we have such a wonderful time together.

Tim Schroader ran the Equinox Marathon and finished with a time of 5:18:52, which was a new PR!

This was my first marathon since 1981 and second race since then. This race is a mixture of dirt roads, pavement & trails with about 3300′ elevation gain/loss. I was hoping for a faster time but had no real idea of what was possible for me. By the time I got to the mostly downhill part my legs were shot and had to slow down instead of speed up. I’m very happy to finish, however, and would like to thank Danny Fisher & all at RC for guiding my through the last year. Back in 1981 I promised my PE instructor, David Neiman, that I would run another marathon. I’m happy to be able to make good on that promise after all these years. Hope to complete many more.

Chelsie Smith ran the army run half marathon and finished with a time of 1:39:39.

After suffering from tendinosis in six of the tendons in my lower legs (4 in the right and 2 in the left), I had to take 18 months off running (and 12 months sedentary) to completely resolve the issue —- this race was my first race “back” after injury. So in a way it felt like redemption.

It wasn’t a PR, but I’ve only been back running for 7 months, so this is just a stepping stone to faster races, and I can’t wait to see how far I can take it!

Brenda Steedman ran the Sydney Running Festival Half Marathon and finished with a time of 2:02:22

I was pleased to finish this Half in a decent time (only 3m24s slower than my only other Half). My training for the past two months has been very sporadic – including two bouts of the ‘flu, and a hamstring injury only 4 weeks ago which stopped me running properly until only one week ago. So with pretty inadequate training in the past few weeks I was pleasantly surprised to find I ran at an OK pace and while my hamstring was aching it didn’t really cause any major problem. To top it off my GPS failed early in the race so I had to guess my pace using my watch and the km markers! I think I ran at a fairly even pace most of the race but found I couldn’t get any ‘kick’ at the end. Best news – feeling pretty good one day later, and already thinking of my next run!

Robert Hardy ran the Saratoga Palio Half Marathon and finished with a time of 1:51:43, which was a remarkable 29:12 improvement!

Sorry if this is long. It was such an amazing and important day for me, that I want to share it all with anyone who will take the time to read it. I got into running a couple years ago. Never doing anything longer than a 5k. I was a seasonal runner. I would never run in the winter. I put a ton of weight on and run in spring to take it off. I’m pretty much the only one in my family and friends that runs. Sometimes it’s lonely. On Christmas Eve of last year my Aunt passed away at the age of 48 of breast cancer. It was such a hard time. I wanted to personally honor her in only a way I could. There is a local breast cancer run that I decided to do in her name. It was a half marathon and was my first. It was Mothers day weekend of this year. I trained for one month and did it. I was so unprepared but my aunt got me through it. Not only that but growing up never meeting my father, and seeing the look my son gave me when I finished convinced me i needed to train more and go further, just to show him that you can do anything. Me, needing help I came here. I needed guidance and direction. I signed up for my first full (which is in 20 days). My outlook on running was mediocre at best. My coach, Sarah is working with me to change my attitude and outlook on everything. One of the things that bothered me the most was why cant i be as good as the 15-25% of runners that are better than me? She’s teaching me to look at it different and look tows the 70% of people who are looking up at me. She has been an amazing coach and more importantly a friend who listens in a rough patch I just had. I had to cancel service for the past month due to so family issues I have been having. Sarah said a couple months back a half would be good a couple weeks prior to my marathon the see how far I have come. For the past month I have 3 1/2 weeks I have been on my own training on my own for yesterdays half and next months marathon. It was so hard as I still need to stick to a schedule on my own when I don’t have to answer to someone. I only joined RunnersConnect 4 days ago, just in time for some last minute advice.

Today, race day! The race was an hour from where I love. I woke at 4am and got ready and headed out. It was chilly early, but after I took that first couple steps it was perfect. 65 degrees with bright sun and a lot of shade. My time at my aunts run was 2:21:31. My goal was under 2 hours which I wasn’t sure was attainable. Even with Sarah, I never hit those times even on speed days. It’s one of the biggest races in the area. 1139 people. I moved towards the front to avoid the slow start and shook off the butterflies and I was off. Sarah was right. Adrenaline took over like never before. My first mile was 7:59, followed by 5 consecutive miles all under 8:41. I never ran like this and it felt so amazing. Even when I got tired I was pulling low 9’s. Barring some catastrophic my 2 hour half was in reach. Miles 10-12 with all low 9’s and I wasn’t thinking straight, telling myself to pick it up the last mile so I didn’t go above 2 hours. I had no clue really where I was at time wise. I started busting ass. Coming around the corner I saw the clock about 100 yards out and it read 1:51 and change. I saw my wife and son right there and both people clapping on both sides. The moment got me and I got real teary eyed. I ended 29:12 faster than my May time. My whole family was shocked and I think I surprised Sarah a little as well. I finished 312 out of 1139 and for the first time ever, I never questioned why I wasn’t further up the leader board. After enjoying time with my family i went to the half mile left mark and cheered on the remaining runners. I was a day I will never forget. Hopefully in 20 days my marathon will be just as amazing.
I know a lot of it was me, but I never would have done it without the help of this site and especially Sarah in my corner! I will be forever great-full for the changes she is helping me make not just in running but in my outlook towards life.

I’m sorry this was so long, but if one person smiled a little while reading this it was totally worth it to me!!

Con James Kittos also ran the Blackmore’s Half Marathon and finished with a time of 1:55:00, which was a PR by 13 minutes!

Karen Scobie ran the Den Haag Peace Half Marathon and finished with a time of 2:10:50, which was a PR by 2:30

At first I was a little disappointed, as I was hoping for a bigger improvement, and was beating myself up about it. But my Garmin clocked it as a longer route and the 3km in the sand slowed me down by about 2 minutes. Also, I met up with an old Army buddy for this race, and there was some good food and wine consumed the night before 🙂

So my lesson learned from this: 1 – don’t compare apples to oranges – each race will have different elements which will change the outcome. 2 – work on managing expectations: this is not a bad result at all for my age and running experience!

Barbara Powell ran the Sioux Falls Half Marathon and finished in a time of 1:32, which was a PR by 2 minutes!

I ran this race as a little birthday present for myself on a pretty low key year (27 years old). I held back a bit because I want to feel absolutely wonderful for Chicago Marathon in October and didn’t want to over-extend myself beforehand. I really went into this race with the expectation of hitting my current PR for the 1/2 or comng right above or below it.

The result? A PR and second in my age group! The course itself was absolutely beautiful and had a real small town charm to it. So great to see families lining the course to cheer and with their little ones in tow.

The race ended on a track which was MONEY because I had a really strong and exciting finish, chasing down the guy in front of me who had been going back and forth with me all race. Really excited to see how this PR translates over to my main event, which is creeping up so soon!!

Patrick Douglass ran the Palio Half Marathon in a time of 1:44:24, which was a PR by 15 seconds.

I was hoping for a time below 1:44, but didn’t quite make it. My watch had the race distance at 13.2 so I will blame it on that. It was a great race because my family and friends were there to share the day with me. My 3 sons ran the 5k race as well.

Christophe Cadiou ran the Sandy Springs 5k and finished in a time of 19:43.

This was my second 5K race of the season and it went much better than the previous one – I ran 30secs faster, came close to my PR and won the Masters division. There is still room for improvement but I am definitely on the right path. I know I can run faster and will sooner or later!

Brian Putnam ran the Oklahoma City 5k and finished with a time of 23:54.

This was just a tune up race for my November half marathon. My legs were pretty tired from running 5 miles, 8 miles, and 5 miles in hot weather with only one day to recover before today’s race. Even worse…as much as I was looking forward to today due to expected cooler weather (64ºF…yay!), we had to run in a downpour. The overall winning time was slower than the pace I had planned to run, but I just couldn’t get my legs moving. At any rate, I won my age division, finished 5th in male division, and 6th overall. I guess things could’ve been worse.

Helen Barnes ran the Prospect Park 10k and finished with a time of 54.38, which was a personal best by 5 minutes!

I have not run this sort of race in 6 years and so it was great to get a 5 min PR, all thanks to runners connect. I was also first in my age group for women (40-44) which was an amazing bonus. Considering at mile 4 I felt terrible with a big hill coming up and seemed to be running backwards I am so happy at what I achieved. This is all helping with mental preparation for the New York Marathon and I am starting to believe I can make it round even when I hit bad patches which I am sure in inevitable.
Such a fun race as I had my husband and son cheering me on for the first time which just made it all the more special when I crossed the finish line to my crazy 3 year old jumping on me!!
John Gardener ran the Sydney Marathon and finished with a time of 3:26:09, which was a PR by 2 minutes!
Best time in my present Age Group period of 5 years! Last year the winners time was 3:23:00 ; he wasn’t running this year, so I won the Age Category!
Last time in Sydney I climbed over the Harbour Bridge, this time I ran over it! It was a good day for Running, temperature approximately 17 degree with little wind.
Thanks to the Coaches and the programme!! I wouldn’t have achieved it otherwise.
Linda McCosham ran the Canada Army Run Half Marathon and finished with a time of 2:25:42
This is the fourth time doing this race. It is well organized, great route, we run through the Governor General’s Rideau Hall where he is high fiving runners, dog tags as medals, and much more. This was a tough race for me. It went from trying to get a certain time to just crossing the finish line. I don’t want to whine, but my knee acted up and my hamstrings felt like they were going to snap. The weather was great for a run, though, and passing disabled soldiers puts everything into perspective. It’s an honour to be out there with them!
Daniel Tanguay ran the Montreal Oasys Rock n Rock marathon and finished with a time of 3:48, which was a PR by 26 minutes!!
Ran with a huge cold and cough. Did not want to run and looked for another marathon but was not possible So I said … it, I’ll try it. Next time, with good lungs, I’ll try to do better.
Dale Stein ran the Navy Air Force Half Marathon and finished with a time of 2:02:29
This was the first race I’ve run since the Chicago Marathon in 2013 and since joining Runners Connect. Primary benefits were the great experience of running in Washington, D.C. – past national monuments, through a little visited park near the Capitol, and with members of the military – and of validating the results of training with Runners Connect.
Jayne Nisbet ran the Great north run half marathon and finished with a time of 1:27:23, which was a 3 minute PR!
It was my first ever half marathon race after a change in career.
Jeroen Domensino ran the Ventura Marathon and finished with a time of 3:22:17, which was a PR by 1:27!
With 2:43 minutes better than the qualifying time for my age category ***hopefully*** this result will be sufficient to be accepted to the 2016 Boston marathon. We will know for sure next week… It was my goal this year. The race was almost a replica from the last one I ran 3 weeks ago. Same race plan, just 3-5 secs / mile faster during the first 16 miles. Still negative splits which I think helped me improve my PR. Thanks Jamie once again! You told me what I needed to do. I exactly followed your guidance 🙂

 

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