Garver Runs the Nation

This morning started normal enough. Then, I got a text from Mary with her half-marathon time, a very respectable 1:46 (8:05 pace). Today was the first day of "Garver Runs the Nation," which is a virtual event leading up to our corporate virtual Summit meeting next Thursday. 

So, while I'd been planning to run a leisurely half-marathon (I hadn't run fast for distance since this summer), I accepted the challenge and decided to try to best Mary. After work, I drove and parked at Sam's. I didn't want to cheat and run a downhill track (and have Julie pick me up), but I also had no interest in trying to finish a new PR half-marathon uphill, which is the only way to get back to the townhouses (unless I run a jillion laps around the complex, which would not be fun).

I started off and ran south, towards the new house (closing is tomorrow morning, by the way). I felt pretty good, and I was at a 7-flat pace for the first couple. My pace gradually slowed over time, due to a combination of fatigue, topography (my starting point - and ending point - was the high point on the run), and wind (not bad, but I think generally out of the north). So, I ended up with my last few miles around a 7:30 pace, which isn't bad given the circumstances, and I finished 13.2 miles (a half is 13.109 mi, but I figured I'd err on the high side) at a 7:19 pace, which is a little under 1:36 for the half-marathon distance. 

So, I beat Mary. I also beat my previous PR by 12 minutes (although, that was just a training run a couple years ago and I wasn't necessarily trying to run fast). I now have the posted time to beat. I doubt it will hold up, but that's what I had in me today.