I ran the OC half-marathon yesterday. My wife and I were bummed that I did better than expected. (??)
Though I'd be the first to tell you I'm very much an amateur in the runner's circuit (I'm strictly a pack runner at 9.5-minutes-a-mile), I think I'm safe in saying that most avid runners would probably agree that something different happens when you're running in a race. You run better.
For some folks that could mean 'faster.' For others it could just easily mean longer, or with better endurance, whatever. Maybe gravity and atmospheric pressure was optimum in Newport Beach yesterday, but I think, too, that all the people on the sidelines cheering us all on, the pacing with other runners, and perhaps a little 'drafting' behind others all contributed to me finishing the race at about 45 seconds faster than my normal solo-pace.
The end-result of this was that when I came around the last corner and "kicked it up a notch," I was lookin' good, I was feelin' good, I was stridin' good... and my wife with our camera and camcorder were nowhere to be seen; I finished much sooner than she expected. :-(
My wife and I were bummed that I finished sooner than expected. :-(
