Race Recap: Shamrock Weekend, a Spotlight on the Athletes

Now, I know what you’re thinking, “Oh great, another race recap of how great that blonde girl thinks she did while running!” Well, if that is what you were expecting, I am so sorry to disappoint. If you were hoping to not have to read mile splits from my most recent road racing endeavor, well, you’re in luck!

This past weekend is a pretty BIG deal in Hampton Roads, specifically Virginia Beach—both from an economical/tourism perspective & in the running community. The Shamrock Weekend holds many races over 2 days including something for every member of your family—an 8K, a Final Mile, a Leprechaun Dash, a half marathon, & a full marathon; with various challenges incorporating multiple races along the way. The weather is typically great for racing, although you’re likely to encounter some wind, at some point, thanks to running so close to the coast. The course itself, super flat! Crowd support varies, in my experience, having completed the half marathon race four times now. However, the racing company, J&A Racing, certainly never disappoints & always throws a great race, with what some might say, an even better after party {seriously, you get FOUR beers for free & there are great bands playing live music!}. If you’ve never ventured to this area of Virginia, you should!! You would likely be pleasantly surprised about the vastness & awesomeness of the local running community!

Sure, I had a great race on Sunday, even PR’d (by 3:18), with an official time of 1:45:43 (8:04/mile). I met my race goal of 1:45:xx by executing a safe & conservative run with even 8:00 splits. Thinking back, now over 4 days later, my legs had more in them; however, I was dead-set on my goal & I am happy I achieved it!!

BUT, that is not the point of this particular race recap. Instead, it felt fitting to highlight & brag upon my athletes—those are the people who keep my coaching dreams alive on a daily basis. Their accomplishments are what make my coaching heart smile. When they do great, I am elated with them. When they have a bad race, I feel devastated with them. So, sit back & enjoy as you read about 11 runners!! They are all from different backgrounds, with different goals & obstacles from which they succeeded & ShamROCKED this past weekend {all except 2 were members of The Running Blonde’s Shamrock Running Club; the other 2 are coached privately, on a 1-on-1 basis}.

Abby: It seems fitting to start with the athlete that I have known the longest—27 years precisely—my baby sister. She is also my longest coached athlete, as I began her running journey with her almost 18 months ago, which was shortly after I became a RRCA-certified coach. This past weekend, Abby took on her FIRST half marathon, finishing it in 2:53:08 (13:13/mile). With this being her 1^st attempt at this distance, we didn’t really set a time goal—she just wanted to FINISH! This particular athlete’s major obstacle for which she had to overcome was becoming a student teacher during the final 8 weeks of training. Although it derailed many of her training runs, she still stuck with it & can now officially call herself a half marathoner!! Good job, Abby!

Michelle: This particular athlete has made excellent strides since our first half marathon training session, exactly 1 year ago. Michelle is a self-proclaimed “Running Turtle” & happily embraces this title. For each of the 3 half marathons that I have coached her, she has improved upon her time by close to a minute per mile. On Sunday, she had an official time of 3:19:16 (15:13/mile), which was a PR by 14 minutes + 33 seconds—in just over 4 months since Harbor Lights!! Just to give you a little background, she ran the 2014 Shamrock half in 3:44:41. Michelle is making HUGE strides & I for one am super proud of her!

Antonette: After taking a break from running, Antonette was ready to resume the sport, in part, for improving her overall heath. She also hoped to PR with a goal time of 2:30. However, what she couldn’t predict was a sore foot that presented itself with 6 weeks of training left. Once anything serious was ruled out, she resumed running after a 2+ week break, with the likely culprit of her pain being a bunion. The likelihood of a PR was out, but that didn’t stop this amazing woman. She ran on Sunday & came within 2 minutes of her PR, with an official time of 2:37:30 (12:01/mile). Next time, I am certain she will crush that old PR!! Fantastic, Antonette!

Joseph: Joe, as I called him, even if he referred to himself as Joseph (ha!), came upon our group via his girlfriend, who I had trained for her first half marathon last fall. She also was in our running club initially, but had to defer the race due to a foot injury {we missed you on Sunday, Leigh!}. Joe had a goal of accomplishing 1:45-1:55 at Shamrock. His first half, last fall in Richmond, was run in seconds under the 2 hour mark. He admittedly lost sight of some of his training, specifically when Leigh was unable to run with the group, but surprisingly, that didn’t stop him from achieving a PR this past weekend. Shamrock rewarded him for sticking with it—with an official time of 1:51:41 (8:31/mile). Congrats Joe, on your 8+ minute PR!!!

Julia: Also a fellow NNP, my co-worker Julia is a natural athlete. She is an avid soccer player & took to running quite well. I vividly recall the conversation after her first 5 mile run, I believe back in December. She was elated, as was I! As a newbie to running, we didn’t really have a time goal for Julia’s first half marathon. We discussed potential times, based on her first race EVER last month, a local 5K which she completed in just under 31 minutes. Although I am very proud of her Shamrock performance, I understand {as a fellow perfectionist!} her desire to have done better. Regardless of the time & her feelings on the race, she is now officially a half marathoner!! Julia crossed the finish line in 2:40:27 (12:15/mile) – not too shabby at all girlfriend! Great job!

Shanny: Yet another NNP, my friend Shanny, completed her first half marathon this past weekend. This athlete began her running journey in October, when on a whim she ran the Wicked 10K, essentially untrained. Although she did great at that race, Shanny knew she would need to properly train to have a better race for her first half marathon. Along with a few others, she completed the 16-week plan. With the exception of bad weather days & a sore foot, Shanny stuck to her personalized training plan very well. She was rewarded with a 2:18:10 (10:33/mile) finishing time. She has been bitten with the running bug & is already planning her next half marathon! Great things are to come for this athlete!!

Meghan: If you’ll recall from my Frozen Booty 8K recap, Meghan entered our running club via a raffle she won. She completed 8-weeks of training with the group, during which time she did various other local & traveled to races. Weather during this awful winter & a bout of sickness sidelined a few runs, but it didn’t matter one bit this past weekend. She completed the Dolphin Challenge & PR’d in both the 8K & 13.1 distances! Her official 8K time was 53:45 (10:49/mile) & her official half marathon time was 2:19:21 (10:38/mile). Her 2:20 goal was crushed when she PR’d by exactly 10 minutes. Great job, Meghan!!

Margarita: Another co-worker of mine, Margarita, has been running shorter races for quite some time. Once we {all of the coworkers} coerced her into signing up for the half marathon, her first, the next step was to con her into joining the running club. She happily, or maybe I should say willingly, to get us “off her back” obliged {hehe!}. Margarita completed most of her training runs with her hubby, who was also running his first half marathon at Shamrock. I should add that this woman works a crazy amount of hours, at many of the local hospitals, & still managed to get in most of her training runs. Kudos! She crossed the finish line in 2:37:09, which equated to exactly 12 minutes miles on average. So awesome, Margarita!!

Mary: You’ll recall this name as the lady who won her running club entry via a contest by “Predicting My Marathon Time”. Mary is also an avid tri-athlete & an extremely dedicated runner. Our friendship goes back to high school days. Her goal going into the half marathon was to break 1:50. Sadly, she did not PR this weekend—missed it by 12 seconds with an official time of 1:52:16 (8:34/mile). This “upset” was the hardest as a coach for me to “swallow”. With the exception of a few days off due sciatica pain, Mary completed ALL of her training runs. She attended every single Saturday group long run & also amongst the other group members, she won the attendance award for our Tuesday morning group runs! So as you can see, her not PR’ing was quite confusing & frustrating. After reflecting upon the day, we resolved that fatigue & possibly electrolytes may have been the culprit. Yet another perfect example of sadly, sometimes you just have a bad day. Regardless though, I am still uber proud of Mary!! She has some great triathlons coming up & one day soon I am certain she will break through that 1:50 barrier!

Kara: This half marathoner is the first of two athletes whom I coached for Shamrock, but they were not in my running club. Due to working & family time constraints, Kara chose the “Training Plan Only” option for this particular race. After her initial consultation, we developed a plan that would both work with her lifestyle, as well as focus upon her race goal of 1:45. Along the way, Kara & I also became friends—an added perk in this coaching business! As the race approached, we decided that I would pace her for the first 5-10K, to allow for her adrenaline to not get the best of her with a too-early-surge resulting in late-in-the-race-fatigue. Kara’s excellent ability to follow the training plan precisely was rewarded with both an almost 9 minute PR & a well-deserved goal crushing! She crossed the finish line with an official time of 1:44:26 (7:58/mile). This speedy lady has great things in her running future!! Excellent, Kara!

Lorraine: The newest athlete to enter my coaching world is Lorraine. She was referred to me by Meghan, whom I mentioned above. This amazing athlete, long before I began coaching her took on the task of completing the Neptune Challenge. This particular feat was new to Shamrock Weekend this year—which included an 8K on Saturday, a half marathon on Sunday {with a required completion time of under 1:50}, then a full marathon just minutes after completing the prior 13.1 miles. A lofty goal it was, in my opinion, especially with the low mileage base that Lorraine had established. But what I would soon learn about Lorraine is that she is one fierce & dedicated runner. She will stop at nothing to earn a piece of bling to add to her ever growing collection!! On Saturday, she took the 8K easy, but on Sunday she brought her A-game. She amazingly enough PR’d both her half marathon AND her full marathon this past weekend. Her half official time was 1:49:11 (8:20/mile) & her full official time was 5:46:43 (13:14/mile). The half PR was by almost 3 ½ minutes & the full was less than 60 seconds from a full hour PR! Amazing!! I should add, she is uncertain of the accuracy of her full marathon time & believes it was actually lower—which would equate to an even bigger PR! Awesome job, Lorraine!

I hope you have enjoyed reading this recap, as much as I enjoyed writing it. I am SO very proud of ALL of these athletes!!! I can’t wait to follow & assist with their future running journeys!

Up Next For The Running Blonde: Cherry Blossom 10-miler in mid-April