Race calendar..bluurghh

[foundmylazybum]

I am trying to figure out a race schedule for myself...

I am strongly considering doing the Atlanta Marathon on October 28th...but that is 22 weeks away.

I am running Peachtree 10K on Jul. 4th...

I think I need a half marathon in between Jul. 4th and October 28th...but am having trouble finding something...I'll be honest....I'm looking in the South and am afraid of running a half in the south...In August. It sounds horrible.

So I push to September, but that also looks like approximately three months away from the 10K...

Does anyone have a good suggestion for a Half..in a slightly cooler, yet kinda close to Georgia location..in between late August and Early September?

Also, is there something I'm missing...like should I race another race in between these times or something.

[joenali]

Yes there is something missing! A triathlon !!

[allez]

There is the half at Robins AFB on August 4th, but that probably wouldn't meet your specifications.

I believe that there is a half in Asheville, NC on September 15.

[psyri]

RnR Virginia Beach on Labor Day weekend? Could be warm but also very flat.

I am supposed to run a half sometime in late August, and I am having enough trouble finding one in the DC area. I might just make my own race with my training buddy.

[foundmylazybum]

Jun 3, 2012 9:44:28 GMT -5 allez said:

There is the half at Robins AFB on August 4th, but that probably wouldn't meet your specifications.

I believe that there is a half in Asheville, NC on September 15.

Sorry, I should have said...I will be out of town from Aug 2-8th

[foundmylazybum]

Jun 3, 2012 9:35:31 GMT -5 joenali said:

Yes there is something missing! A triathlon !!

Lol. I "Want" to do a triathlon, but I don't think I can commit to the training...I already feel like I had to scale back and create more realistic goals to even say I would do this. Which makes me mad haha.
I like my job but it gets in the way of my fun time!

[allez]

That's probably good that the Aug. 4th doesn't work. My H is debating doing it but we know how blazing hot it will be considering the temps we've already had. Good luck finding a race that works!

[gt7301b]

I'm not answering the question you asked but I'd run the silver comet half over the Atlanta marathon. It is awesome course... I think the races are the same weekend

[foundmylazybum]

Jun 3, 2012 11:33:39 GMT -5 gt7301b said:

I'm not answering the question you asked but I'd run the silver comet half over the Atlanta marathon. It is awesome course... I think the races are the same weekend

no...I'm open...I've also considered the Philly marathon in November..

What is awesome about the course vs. Atlanta marathon...It kind of looked like Atlanta went through all the good neighborhoods etc etc...

I thought about RnR Savannah but their course looked sucky..(like all RnR's)...

I've recently come to this realization about myself about what matters to me..and course does matter.

Someone recently told me "I only care about competition and people pushing me.." I guess I don't need people around pushing me..if I did the work I'll get the time I want. No matter who is there. :-| I'd rather be on a "fun" course haha.

[stingsharkruns]

Why do you need a half? Can you really even enjoy a half when it's so hot? Is the course really going to matter? Maybe i'm just being a super debbie downer.

Racing a half in July/Aug/Sept sounds like a horrible idea. I did hear the RnR Savannah half course sucked - went through a lot of bad areas & industrial areas of Savannah - There are 2 half marathons a month between May - September in Florida. All down in Hialeah, and it's part of a series...

[gumi]

Jun 3, 2012 10:12:03 GMT -5 foundmylazybum said:

Jun 3, 2012 9:35:31 GMT -5 joenali said:

Yes there is something missing! A triathlon !!

Lol. I "Want" to do a triathlon, but I don't think I can commit to the training...I already feel like I had to scale back and create more realistic goals to even say I would do this. Which makes me mad haha.
I like my job but it gets in the way of my fun time!

if your goal is to do a marathon, then you dont want to train for a triathlon. the most important part of the triathlon in the bike - you need to bike at least 3x the race distance. you dont want to try to fit in 75 miles of biking each week on top of running 60+. that would be crazy!
BUT..........it could make for a really good post-marathon recovery plan

I dont have any suggestions for a half but I do agree that you need to do one. That is so exciting you are going to do a marathon! It will be the first sub-3 we have seen on this board!

[gt7301b]

Jun 3, 2012 11:48:39 GMT -5 foundmylazybum said:

Jun 3, 2012 11:33:39 GMT -5 gt7301b said:

I'm not answering the question you asked but I'd run the silver comet half over the Atlanta marathon. It is awesome course... I think the races are the same weekend

no...I'm open...I've also considered the Philly marathon in November..

What is awesome about the course vs. Atlanta marathon...It kind of looked like Atlanta went through all the good neighborhoods etc etc...

It is about as flat as they come. There aren't a ton of spectators just because it is on the Silver Comet trail. DH has done tons of half marathons and it is his favorite. We are doing the full in Philly and I think he is planning on running the silver comet half. Since this is my first full not sure if there is enough time for me between the full and the half.

Are you running Peachtree as a sub-seeded or early wave runner? Otherwise it is a fun race, but is hard to race.

[runblondie26]

Jun 3, 2012 11:33:39 GMT -5 gt7301b said:

I'm not answering the question you asked but I'd run the silver comet half over the Atlanta marathon. It is awesome course... I think the races are the same weekend

Knowing your race times, you'll be the lead woman. Fortunately there's no chance of getting lost, it's basically an up-and-back on a bike trail. It's the flatest, fastest course you'll find in near Atlanta and the weather is usually perfect that time of year. Definitley a race people pick for it's PR'bility. Nothing fancy, but a nicely organized race.

The Atlanta Marathon course is challenging with it's hills (well, coming form Colorado maybe not for you), but it's a nice tour of the city. I think you'd enjoy it.

What about the Atlanta 13.1 on October 7th? There are 2 small half marathons in the area in August, but I think they'd be a test of survival, not a true test of fitness.

[katinthehat]

silver comet was my first half so it holds a special place in my heart.

what about another 10K? the big peach sizzler is September 3rd. I'm pretty certain that used to be the Buckhead Sizzler and it's a supa fast course

[foundmylazybum]

Jun 3, 2012 12:27:55 GMT -5 stingsharkruns said:

Why do you need a half? Can you really even enjoy a half when it's so hot? Is the course really going to matter? Maybe i'm just being a super debbie downer.

Racing a half in July/Aug/Sept sounds like a horrible idea. I did hear the RnR Savannah half course sucked - went through a lot of bad areas & industrial areas of Savannah - There are 2 half marathons a month between May - September in Florida. All down in Hialeah, and it's part of a series...

I don't know? Do I need a half? That's a serious question. I just thought it was good practice..and I like half marathons. lol.

It seems like I need some more racing in this...20 + weeks before a marathon to keep me going! I guess I thought a half would be a good place to practice marathon race pacing.

In all these races my initial thinking was the above...practicing marathon race pacing rather than shooting for some wild distance PR...

I heard that too about Savannah and it really turned me off but didn't surprise me at all b/c I think RnR's are like that.

[foundmylazybum]

Jun 3, 2012 15:58:10 GMT -5 gt7301b said:

Jun 3, 2012 11:48:39 GMT -5 foundmylazybum said:

no...I'm open...I've also considered the Philly marathon in November..

What is awesome about the course vs. Atlanta marathon...It kind of looked like Atlanta went through all the good neighborhoods etc etc...

It is about as flat as they come. There aren't a ton of spectators just because it is on the Silver Comet trail. DH has done tons of half marathons and it is his favorite. We are doing the full in Philly and I think he is planning on running the silver comet half. Since this is my first full not sure if there is enough time for me between the full and the half.

Are you running Peachtree as a sub-seeded or early wave runner? Otherwise it is a fun race, but is hard to race.

What's the difference? I have an A qualifying time for Peachtree...
I'll be honest, Peachtree confuses me lol. I know what time I entered at..which was an A standard...I should be in the earliest time group.

[stingsharkruns]

Jun 3, 2012 19:55:53 GMT -5 foundmylazybum said:

Jun 3, 2012 12:27:55 GMT -5 stingsharkruns said:

Why do you need a half? Can you really even enjoy a half when it's so hot? Is the course really going to matter? Maybe i'm just being a super debbie downer.

Racing a half in July/Aug/Sept sounds like a horrible idea. I did hear the RnR Savannah half course sucked - went through a lot of bad areas & industrial areas of Savannah - There are 2 half marathons a month between May - September in Florida. All down in Hialeah, and it's part of a series...

I don't know? Do I need a half? That's a serious question. I just thought it was good practice..and I like half marathons. lol.

It seems like I need some more racing in this...20 + weeks before a marathon to keep me going! I guess I thought a half would be a good place to practice marathon race pacing.

In all these races my initial thinking was the above...practicing marathon race pacing rather than shooting for some wild distance PR...

I heard that too about Savannah and it really turned me off but didn't surprise me at all b/c I think RnR's are like that.

Seeing as how I've never run a full, I don't know if you NEED a half or not. I have a half built into my schedule about a month before my full. Full is at the end of Nov, half is halloween weekend - it just worked out that way. But, if it wasn't built in, I wouldn't kill myself trying to find one.

[gt7301b]

Jun 3, 2012 19:58:15 GMT -5 foundmylazybum said:

What's the difference? I have an A qualifying time for Peachtree...
I'll be honest, Peachtree confuses me lol. I know what time I entered at..which was an A standard...I should be in the earliest time group.

The good thing about being in the A group is you should at least be able to race. The problem is there are SO MANY people and it is SO HOT. We ran it last year and I was done by mile 4. (I didn't actually train for it, we were just in town, found numbers, and ran the race. I had run a half a few weeks before but my pace was slower than my half pace.)

Don't get me wrong it is an awesome race, but it is one of those experience races. I'd have a backup race that you can actually race. Is there still the 10K on Cobb Pkwy over Labor Day weekend? I've never done that one, but it seemed to be small enough that you could actually race it.

[runblondie26]

Jun 3, 2012 19:42:59 GMT -5 katinthehat said:

silver comet was my first half so it holds a special place in my heart.

what about another 10K? the big peach sizzler is September 3rd. I'm pretty certain that used to be the Buckhead Sizzler and it's a supa fast course

+1 on the Big Peach Sizzler if you're looking at other distances.

The US 10k Classic is supposed to be coming back this year. That was a good race. It was disappointing when they canceled it last year. It's normally on Labor Day.

us10k.org

[starryfish]

I agree with stingshark. There is no way in hell I would run a half in July/August/September, maybe not even untl
November. It's HOT here!!!

[mrshandy]

We're doing the RNR Va Beach half over Labor Day. It starts at 7AM and it's on the beach so maybe they'll be a sea breeze.

I grew up in Norfolk and Labor Day weekend weather is a crap shoot. It could be really nice, really hot or there could be a hurricane.

[clseale]

Yes, halves in the south that time of year suck. However, if you find one slightly north, it might not be that bad.

Do you need a half? You probably don't NEED one, but I like having them. I did one 2 months out from my last full and I really enjoyed it. You could a) Use it to really get a feel for your marathon pace or 2) Use it as validation for your marathon pace. You might not need that, but I liked looking at my pace and saying, "Ok, I ran that at x pace, y pace for the marathon really is realistic."

There's the Asheville half in September. I've never run it, but Asheville is beautiful and the weather might not be too bad.
www.halfmarathons.net/usa_half_marathons_north_carolina_asheville_citizen_times_half_marathon.html