Julia Labovsky ran the Pike’s Peek 10K in Rockville, MD coming across the finish line in the time of 45:45 which is a PR of 12 minutes.
I had only run one 10K a few years ago, and since I’ve pretty much only run longer races, I was nervous about the pacing for this race. Fortunately, I had many chances to practice my race pace during workouts, so after a good warmup, I easily gravitated to a little faster than my 10K pace. This was a fast course on a cool day – perfect for a new racing distance. I came across a fast friend at the last mile, and she helped to give me a push at the end. It’s rare that I’ve run with anyone during a race, but that really worked out.
Mike Sheridan ran the London Marathon in London, England finishing this race in the time of 2:57:44 which is a PR of 1 minute and 30 seconds and 1st in his age group.
This is a marathon major, one of the six in the championship. It was special because it was a revisit to the venue of my first marathon (Olympic year 2012) and I had some “wrongs” to “right” – mistakes I made on my first attempt which rankled. The 3 hour pacer went off too fast and I had to let him go at about mile 4 and take responsibilty back. This worked to halfway where I was about 47 secs behind Coach Sarah’s recommended schedule of 1:29:30 but better that than burned out behind a pacer. I was still in touch with my targets of sub 3hr again and sub 3hr on the gun and chip. Then I messed with my garmin at around mile 14 and instantly regretted it…..now having to run on “feel” and single lap pace. Didn’t panic and upped the tempo to close in on the pacers again at about mile 22 or so. Squeezed past them and struck out for home which was like throwing away a crutch…. I was truly breaking new ground. Just about held it together for a second consecutive negative split in a marathon major – this time by 2 mins 50 secs. Crossed the line in 2:57:44 1st in V65 category and 10 minutes ahead of my nearest rival. Unofficially lead the UK age grade ranking (2015) in marathon; HM and 10 mile road races this season. Finally, the icing on the cake: had a conversation with the great Paula Radcliffe and congratulated her on her career achievements (including2:37:xx on the day and THAT world best 2:15:xx) and let her know how much she inspired me and thousands more.
Thanasis Kypraios ran the Athens Poseidon Half Marathon in Athens, Greece finishing this race distance in the time of 1:31:16 which is a PR of 5 minutes and 50 seconds.
This race was one of my big goal races for 2015. The next will be a full marathon in November. I race almost ten times per year, but I base my training schedule on a couple of them. So this one was special and I was so excited about it! The whole training schedule came easily. The workouts were half marathon specialized, interesting and I completed nearly all of them with much pleasure.Most of the training days were easy, and that’s the key, in my opinion. We do not need to exaggerate and struggle during training, we have to keep our special best for the race day.
I started the race slightly faster than planned (4:20 min/km instead of 4:30 min/km), but I was very comfortable so I decided to stick with the faster pace. The 10K split was at 43 mins without much pressure (at that moment I realized that if it were a 10K race, I would certainly PR again in it – this was the sign I needed that I was in a great day and I had to push it all). As time was passing, fatigue was accumulating and the calves were silently complaining. For the whole race I was inside the first 20, and I thought to push even harder to pass some of the guys in front. Sometimes, running a bit faster can be refreshing (different muscles involved? – altered body frame?) and yes it was!
At the last km, one runner came next to me and we both silently agreed to push it all and be each other’s pacer. Two times i passed him and I shouted “Come on, where are you?”. two times he passed me and he did the same! We finished together. I didn’t know him at all. I am not sure if I recognize him if I see him again… But when I recall this race, his help will be the first thing that will come to my mind. This is the power of running and the bond that is developed between total strangers!!!
Jonathan Bogaard ran his first 10K at the Illinois Marathon running events in Champaign, IL finishing this race event in the time of 57:45.
Terrible conditions – cold (48-50) and rainy. I stuck to the plan and did warm up run in drizzle and cold. I used the race plan and was able to put the conditions aside (cold and rainy off and on throughout the race) and focus on the run. Went out a little fast but not too bad and was able to work the pace down and finish strong. Followed lots of good advice from RC and fellow runners, in particular the race plan and then to focus at the end on picking someone ahead out and then catching them, that worked great. My last mile was about 8:20 and my final kick was sub 7:55 – strong for me. A fairly flat course (climb was 162 feet) but even the little inclines looked big to me. I took each as a challenge to maintain pace and power up the distance. Based on RC advice that mile 4 might be difficult I had “Lose Yourself” lined up to play for that stretch and I think that helped. Finish line was 50 yard line of Illinois Memorial Stadium with video on the big screen. Very cool but I didn’t even watch myself – I was too focused on accelerating through the finish line. Finished 14/63 for Male 55-59, finished 267/795 for Overall Male. I’m very happy with those results. While I try to focus on my performance vs my potential, its natural to check these stats as well. I traveled with friends and two ran the 1/2 marathon and one ran the full. Great to share the experience with them. “Thank you” to the Coaches (especially Jamie) and teammates at RC for all their support.
Ramona Dragnea ran the Big Sur International marathon in Big sur, California coming across the finish line with a time of 4:32:30.
This race had been on my bucket list since I started running and I was very excited to get in last summer when the registration was open; it is a really small but very desirable race, the location (Highway 1, from Big Sur to Carmel) cannot accommodate too many runners and now having run it, I can only attest it is indeed a gorgeous marathon and makes your heart skip a bit at every turn as you see the majestic landscape unfolding before your eyes! Overall, an amazing experience and I feel I enjoyed every step I ran during this race. I am very happy I was able to run the whole thing (I noticed as I passed by people left and right, a lot of runners were actually walking the hills and even more, as the miles were getting higher, a lot of people were just walking), even if slower. I know that the training plan that RunnersConnect put together for me was key in making me truly enjoy the run and not struggle. I stopped to take pictures, to refill my hand held water bottle, and to take orange slices and strawberries at a few stations and had no problem in taking in almost 4 gu gels and was able to run strongly through the finish line! What an amazing adventure, I cannot thank RC coaches and community enough for all your support! I am looking forward to continuing my running adventure as part of this great group.
Michael Iban ran the Big Sur International marathon in Big sur, California finishing this race in the time of 3:53:47.
Woohoo…completed the Boston2Big Sur Challenge. There is a reason why the Big Sur International Marathon is on the list of marathons to run before you die. It was breathtaking; and the weather was perfect. I had taken many road trips along this section of the Pacific Coast Highway, but never by foot. It was a worthwhile experience; and I encourage everyone to experience it at least once. If you do, I strongly encourage you to do lots of hills, hills, and more hills; and when you think you have done enough hills…do more. The ascent up Hurricane Point (or should I say Hurri-pain Point was a killer). Anyhoo, the run was a blast. Thanks to the coaches for preparing me to run two marathons, two coasts, six days. Now, on to the CIM in December. Cheers.
Shawn Stewart ran the OKC Memorial marathon in Oklahoma city, OK finishing this race event in the time of 4:00:05 which is a PR of 13 minutes.
Achieving a PR was nice even though my goal was to get under 4…..I’ll take it. My wife and son ran the half and they both PRed too. The training schedule was perfect and the tips helped tremendously. The ideal thing was that this was the first full I’ve done that I wasn’t injured during the schedule. From a race perspective, the people who put this race on did a great job. I recommend this race to every distance length.
Sascha Fennel ran the a half marathon in Nice, France coming across the finish line in the time of 1:44:28 which is PR of 2 minutes and 22 seconds.
This was my fifth race in a row with a personal record ! 20 months after taking up running and 9 months after joining RC I see a huge improvement in my ability to keep a pace over a longer distance. Prior to this race I was not able to train for two weeks. No running at all and two extremely stressful working weeks. Before the race I doubted I would come close to my former PR of 1:46:50 from 6 weeks ago. But I really wanted this PR and I wanted to break 1:45 if possible. So I started off strong. A bit too strong maybe. Once I noticed that I was faster than my plan and losing energy fast I reacted in two ways: 1. Nutrition. First gel at km 5, second gel at km 9. I also finished my bottle of Powerade at km 9. 2. I tried to hang on to a pace around 5 min/km. Both worked. I gathered confidence and noticed that I was not losing energy any more. Instead I was able to maintain the pace. The last 5 km were with a bit of head wind. I would have liked to follow some runners who were stronger but decided to just maintain my pace. Good decision as I had enough power at the end to make the last km my fastest. At the end I am totally happy and excited about my new PR. I have been able to adapt my race plan and to maintain my pace until the end without exhausting myself. My next big job will be to increase my mileage in order to break my marathon PR in Rio on July 26th. And I know I can count on the training of RC and the numerous support from the RC community who was a big support for me today.
Edward Sum ran the Glass City Half Marathon in Toledo, Ohio coming across the finish line in the time of 1:36:22.
This was my first ‘road trip’ race. First time in Toledo. The past few weeks have been rough, having to battle through a foot injury and forced to cross train for 2 weeks. I was also ill the last week. Hence, I had to downgrade this race from a full to a half. I treated this run as a tune-up half for my goal marathon race in 3 weeks. My plan was to go into the race to not PR, but to run a solid pace and see where my fitness is at. Again, I was aiming to do a progression run and did just that at Toledo. I estimated my finishing time to be around 1:38 to 1:39, but ended up with 1:36, so I’m pretty happy with the result. Though this was a small race, the Toledo crowd was spectacular and very supportive! I appreciate the enthusiasm of this city a lot! Thanks again!
Rick Sansoucy ran the Cheshire Half Marathon in Cheshire, CT finishing this race in the time of 1:59:23.
This was a great run. Weather was perfect and I executed the plan quite well. The first mile was a bit slow due to the crowd but then I fell in with the 2 hour pacer for the middle miles. I picked the pace up beginning with 11. The last three miles were 8:46, 8:58 (hill), and 8:45, finishing with an 8:03 pace for the last .21. (My watch had the distance at 13.21.) I was delighted to finish strong, especially given that this was 4 weeks after a marathon!
Luis Cifuentes ran the 1/2 HM Rock and Roll Madrid in Madrid, Spain finishing this race event in the time of 1.31.24 which was a PR.
We set off for Madrid last Friday to have a wonderful weekend and sure it was. Plenty of family-friends time and activities in the capital city. Whoops yeah and a big race on Sunday. Everything went even better than expected. Rainy and windy morning but over 30k people in the start line along with thousands of cheerful spectators along the course made this Rock “n” Roll marathon & 1/2 Madrid race unforgettable. Thanks Coaches and all RC members so glad and proud to be part of this running community.
Russ Shupe ran the Get in Gear Half Marathon in Minneapolis, MN finishing this race in the time of 1:55;51
This particular race was my very first half marathon a year ago and so I was interested to see how much I had improved. I didn’t set a personal record as I was experiencing some lower leg problems during the race, but I did improve my time on the course by 6 minutes. So, I am proud of that.
Anna Shariat ran the New Jersey marathon in New Jersey, NJ coming across the finish line with a time of 3:37:25 which is a 10 minutes 47 seconds.
After training for my 1st marathon via Jeff’s Sub 4hr Runkeeper plan, I ran the Marine Corps marathon in 2013 with a 3:48:12, I realized if I worked hard enough, I could *possibly* BQ. Three weeks prior to my 2nd marathon in December 2014 I ended up injured. I had to take some time off towards the end, but still thought, maybe I could achieve my goal or at least, PR. Unfortunately, I went out to fast, cramped, my injuries were bothering me and I blew up in the last 6/7miles and ran my 2nd 26.2 48 seconds slower than my 1st. I was so disappointed but vowed not to give up. Since this was a huge goal of mine, and Jeff’s runkeeper plan worked well for me, I decided to join his Runners Connect team and get personal coaching. I was coached by the fantastic Danny Fisher and did just about everything he told me to do. He kept me injury free with specific workouts throughout training. I should mention that he also helped bring me to a n almost 4 minute Half Marathon PR 5 weeks out from my goal race. From then, I knew I had focus and do all my workouts in those last few weeks. Before the race, I was having doubts and was very scared wondering if I could truly accomplish this goal knowing how much time I needed to shave off to BQ. Coach Danny was very reassuring and told me to trust myself, my training and that he had a lot of confidence in me. Race day went off without a hitch, weather was near perfect, I started out slow and very conservative and did exactly as Coach told me. I felt like I breezed through 17/18 miles and felt very strong. After 18 I knew I could push the pace a bit. Miles 21-23 brought some headwind which was not so fun, but I kept at it knowing what my goal was. The last few miles were a blur, but I did dig deep and with a negative splits, sprinted across the finish line 2 minutes and 35 seconds under my Boston qualifying time. Elated!! I have learned so much from Coach Danny and I have loved all the Runners Connect emails from Coach Jamie, the Coach Chats, and articles. What a great team of coaches you all are. I will with 100% enthusiasm be recommending this team to anyone I know looking to PR, BQ or just accomplish something they have dreamed of in running!!
Bill Wischmeyer ran the La Jolla Half Marathon in San Diego, CA finishing this race in the time of 1:47.
My favorite half marathon in San Diego. Great weather and a great route. Did better than expected on this run after spending the last 2.5 weeks in Vietnam on a family vacation and also after bringing back food poisoning earlier during the race week. All told, pretty satisfied with my finish time. This half has some pretty impressive hills in the middle and end, the one at the end got me. My energy was sapped at the end and really hurt me on miles 11 and 12.
James Hunt ran the Run for the Trees 5K in Winter Park, Florida finishing the race in the time of 18:15.
This was my best 5K since 2003 and an improvement of almost 20 seconds over just a couple weeks ago! Using lessons learned from some recent 5Ks, I put together a disciplined race strategy to maximize my current fitness levels, though success would depend on courage and trust. Courage to run all out for the last 1/2 mile and trust that my training and experience would get me to the finish! This is a beautiful point to point course through nice neighborhoods with the last mile on a private dirt road. Every finisher gets a free tree to take home! A my age group winner I got a Tulip tree which was like 9 feet tall and barely fit in the car. It will grow to 80 to 100 feet tall. For me, this was a day worth remembering with with such tree.
Shirley Diaz-Brown ran the Jonquil City Jog 5k in Smyrna, GA finishing this race distance in the time of 31 minutes which is a 1 minute PR.
The last two weeks I’ve been dealing with a cold that turned into a sinus infection & double ear infection. I didn’t run for about 8 days prior to the race. Our daughter was running the race and this was the race I had been training for! Being sick was not in my plans. Up until getting sick my training had gone great, I was looking forward for crushing this 5k. Race day was a wash out – warm but down pour! The race started well! 1st mile 9:53, mile 2 9:23 and after that my lungs started to hurt, burning and aching! My hubby paced Olivia and I. My goal was to finish in 30 minutes. But I’m not sure what my finish time was, I think 31 minutes! I started slowing down as Jargon and Olivia kicked it in to the finish. I kept moving and tried to kick it in for the last half mile but the pain in my lungs was painful. Jaron and Olivia had finished but it was great to see him come back for me. He helped me finish & I honestly don’t remember my finish. I didn’t look at the clock and the results haven’t been posted. Our daughter placed 3rd in her age group – we are so proud! I’m still not feeling 100% but more races will come.
Brian St.George ran the Hope Springs 5k in Hibbing, MN finishing this race in the time of 16:55.
I didn’t have the same energy level that I had before my race 2 weeks ago, so I was questioning myself before the race. Once the race started, I felt good and kept positive thoughts flowing for most of the race. I didn’t have anyone around me throughout the race and think that caused my 2nd mile to slip a bit. I never felt as comfortable as I did in my last race, but really don’t think I slowed in the 2nd mile because I wasn’t able to hold the pace. My goal was to run 5:30 for the 1st two miles and see how fast I could finish in the 3rd. I was able to run the 3rd mile as my fastest mile, but not quite enough (missed my PR by 6 seconds). I finished 1st overall and was part of a team who won an award for the largest team and fastest average time.
Alison Scofield ran the Hope Springs 5k in Hibbing, MN coming across the finish line in the time of 25:06 which is a 11 seconds PR.
This was my first race of the year, and my first race as an RC member. I will admit, I was a little nervous going in to see how all my slow miles and specific workouts would translate to race day. My goal was to run a negative split, around 8:15, 8:10, & 8:05 if possible. Well, the entire pack started out too fast. That is one constant that I heard from nearly everyone that started around me, after the race. That first half mile was closer to 7:15, but I was able to check myself and slow way down for the second half of the first mile. Which ended up maybe being a bit too slow for the first half of the second mile. Best intentions! Overall, I was very happy with my race and the way I felt. It was a challenge to keep the pace up and speed up at the end, especially with a long hill at the very end, but I felt comfortable holding it the entire time. I was even able to chat a bit and cheer on some other runners! This race has shown me that joining RC was a great decision. Trust in the training!
Mike Smart ran the Southampton Half Marathon in Southampton, UK finishing this race in the time of 1:24:43 which is PR of 1 minute and 49 seconds.
Southampton Half Marathon – hillier than expected! As ever everyone set off faster than they should and for the first mile I got caught up in a group I found awkward to run with but couldn’t get round. About 1 mile in I passed the 1:30 pacer despite starting in front of him and already being on a pace faster than my goal. That was pretty confusing. Shortly after I started get into my stride and settle into a more realistic pace. It didn’t take long (approx mile 5) before the legs started to feel tired and from that point it was pretty much a case of hanging on and trying to keep the pace consistent. I managed to overtake a number of people on each hill which I guess comes from training in a relatively hilly area.
Anne-Lise Vivier ran the Run as One 4 miler in Central Park, NYC, NY coming across the finish line in the time of 35:53.
This was the first race I ever ran that was not a PR. Does that make me a real runner now (as opposed to a newbie)?
Kim Rankin ran the Roar Through Ybor 14th Annual Race for Sight 5K in Tampa, Florida finishing this race in the time of 37:46.
I enjoyed this event with friends. My daughter’s friend, won for the Women overall, almost getting first overall by 10 seconds. So excited for her. My cousin, who’s like a sister to me and who got me into running , did this race with me. She’s had some health problems and decided to walk it. The charity is close to our hearts, her dad (my uncle) donated his eyes to this charity when he passed away. They were great with our family. So happy to support this charity. It was fun to try a short race for a change. I had no expectations about finishing times. So just tried to enjoy the day, which I did.
Ryan Coombs ran the Christie Clinic Illinois Marathon in Chaimpaign-Urbana, Illinois finishing in the time of 3:06:55 which is a PR of 36 minutes.
I raced Space Coast Marathon in November with hopes of qualifying for the Boston Marathon. Unfortunately, I hurt my tibia at mile 9. I was put in a walking boot for a month and then physical therapy for a month in a half. I was finally able to start running again at the end of January. That’s when I signed up with RC to help get me back on track from the injury. Coach Danny set me up with a great schedule and listened to my concerns. He adjusted it as my health improved and helped get me back in top shape. I had more confidence in my training than ever before going into this race. I went in with a great game plan in hopes for Boston. Unfortunately, the weather had other plans. It was cold, rainy, and windy. Something that is hard to train for in Florida! Lol. I ended up finishing just short of Boston with a 3:06, but I was not disappointed! I finished with a 36 min PR! It just proves to me that I am ready for Boston and it is in r each! I’m looking forward to finding my next race and achieving my goal and possibly a sub-3 with the help from RC! Thank you Coach Danny!
