Final blog: Going out on top

A victory to cap 2023 🏆

Lennie and I pose at the State Capitol post our CIM Relay race. (📸 credit: Spencer Alexander)

Any former teammate will tell you: I’ve always run faster with a baton in my hand. I rise to the occasion when others are depending on me. Think of it as loyalty in an athletic format.

I’m thrilled to report that Lennie and I — collectively known as Forever Rice Owls — took the victory in the Women’s Open division on Sunday in a time of 3:04:46 (more on the breakdown below). And true to form, I ran stronger and better than I ever could have if it were an individual effort.

As proud as I am of us, I want to take a moment to acknowledge the absolutely incredible women who blazed the 26.2 on their own, 360 of which beat us. That’s right: the two of us fit women combined would have been 361st in the individual race on Sunday. I got to see many of them as they ran past me — including some real life friends! My favorite newsletter, Fast Women (seriously, subscribe), shared some of their stories from battling back from injuries to postpartum PRs. The TLDR? Women distance runners are inspiring — and for me, it was a privilege to be a part of it.

And you never know — perhaps one day I will cross the line around the same time having run the full distance on my own.

I’ve reached my personal limit of how much I will spend with MarathonFoto this year, so thanks for dealing with the watermark, friends. (📸 credit: MarathonFoto)

As promised, this week I am sharing a race recap. I’ll share some insights into my thinking for 2024, including goals, races, and more. And, as always, I’ll conclude with some odds n’ ends. But first…

 📋 Total miles: 24.7

• Monday: 3.3 miles (easy)

• Tuesday: 5.0 miles (treadmill with Lever, intervals)

• Wednesday: Off

• Thursday: 3.6 miles (easy)

• Friday: Off 

• Saturday: Off

• Sunday: 12.8 miles (race)

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🏃🏻‍♀️ Race report

As of publishing, there are 76 photos attached to our shared bib number and 100% of them are me. 🙃 (📸 credit: MarathonFoto)

Lennie and my take on the relay? Highly recommend it. But I wasn’t sure that would be our mutual assessment when I heard about morning itineraries. Lennie took the first leg, which required her to head to Folsom, CA alongside the marathoners at 4:30 AM. I, on the other hand, had to travel half the distance to my starting point and my bus left at the reasonable hour of 7 AM. Truth be told, 7 AM felt a bit late to me and I tried not to get stressed out by the late departure. 4:30 AM, while early, is more my jam.

On the bus, I made a few friends (obvi). One woman saw my Rice hat and told me that she was on the track team in the 90s — how cool is that? I also talked with the people sitting around me, who started tracking Lennie on my behalf as I race without a phone and couldn’t do so myself. At the 5K, Lennie was running 6:18 pace (so fast!). As we exited the bus, my new friend Monica let me know that Lennie had hit the 10K in 6:16 pace. She gave me our updated half split and I got to warming up while most of my new friends settled in for an hour-or-more wait for their partners to arrive.

The logistics of the handoff was a bit amusing. There was a holding pen that you entered when you thought your partner was near. A guy would read off team names as your partner passed over a mat at the start of the exchange, which signaled roughly 1 minute until your partner arrived. Once they got to you, you exchanged an ankle bracelet secured by Velcro and then took off to rejoin the marathoners. When I heard “Forever Rice Owls” I was excited to go. As Lennie approached, I heard her say “I bonked” several times. As I took the timer off her ankle, I assured her that she far from bonked — her half split was a blazing 1:24:50 — and I was so proud of her. I even gave her a hug before I took off, which I was later told was both cute and a waste of time. Oh well.

These are my manual splits at each mile marker.

I knew at the exchange that we were the first women’s team to hand off, and I wanted to keep it that way. That determination, coupled with entering a race where everyone was running sub 7:00/mile pace, meant that I got out quick. I split my watch as I passed the 14 mile marker (.6 into my own run) and saw I was at 7:02/mile pace. Too aggressive! I then channeled the word “settle” for the next four miles. In practice, this meant whenever I felt things starting to get overwhelming or hard, I actively tried to be smooth, calm my breathing down, and make the effort feel easy.

For miles 18-22, I had planned to channel the word “focus”. This proved to be the right word for two reasons. The first: I was getting passed non-stop by people who were faster than me, a dynamic I knew to expect, but was still mentally challenging. I had to stay within myself and not get frazzled. The second: I was beginning to feel my heart rate creep up. While I was aware of it, I was trying to not expend any energy worrying about it.

The last bit of the race I channeled the word “strength” — and boy did I need it. At this point, my heart rate was well above 190 (and at the end it eclipsed 200). I could feel myself on the verge of being drained, but I was adamant I wouldn’t give in. I started negotiating with myself — “just make it to that stop sign” or “put a surge in to catch that person who’s struggling” — but I never backed down. I was rewarded with my last 5K being the fastest one of the day, a feat I am proud of given the circumstances.

I honestly find this chart a little alarming…

Let’s pause for a second to talk about my heart rate, because the 187 I averaged over the 1:37:09 I ran is notably high. The first and obvious question to ask is whether that number is correct. While there are limitations to the optical sensors for wrist-based heart rate monitors, both my Coros (new watch) and my Apple Watch gave off the same readings (and they both claim to be accurate). Ok, so assuming the measurement is right-ish, then we have to ask what 187 means for me. The so-called workout zones (eg aerobic, anaerobic threshold, etc) are calculated as either a percentage of max heart rate or lactic threshold. For max heart rate, the standard equation is 220 - age. I’m 37, so by that definition my max would be 183, which is clearly wrong and not so useful for me. I tend to use 205 as my best guess. The other way to establish zones is by using your lactic threshold, or the point at which your body can no longer clear lactic acid efficiently and it starts to accumulate in your bloodstream. This is harder to approximate unscientifically.

My Christmas present to myself is VO2 max and lactic threshold testing at UCSF’s Human Performance Center. I’m doing it mostly to satisfy my own curiosity. That said, I know that most of my easy runs are between 135-150, so at minimum Sunday’s effort was a big lift for me. Lennie, who is a world renowned sports psychologist, also told me that a marker of many elite athletes is the ability to will themselves to stay in higher zones for longer. I may not be elite time-wise, but my mental game on Sunday was on point.

At the end of the race, Lennie and I joined Matt and Spencer, both Rice track alum and fellow relay racers, for a post race beer. We all remarked at how good we felt — particularly compared to the marathoners in dire straits. The good vibes continue today. The half marathon takes a decidedly smaller toll on your body, which is a good thing to keep in mind…

A parliament of Owls 🦉🦉 (📸 credit: some nice stranger)

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🗓 2024 planning

It’s never too early for me to set goals for the new year — have I mentioned that I’m a Virgo? But in the short term my biggest goal is to rest. I intend to take two full weeks off, and then see where the spirit takes me for the rest of the year. 

In thinking about 2024, I am a bit conflicted about what I want. On one hand, having an ambitious goal for the last few months has brought more meaning and purpose to my running. Sometimes I drag my feet getting out the door, but throughout my entire marathon training every run (ok, probably just most of them) was the highlight of my day. I am so tempted to go bigger in 2024 to ride the momentum. At the same time, I got injured this year and it was a wakeup call that I need to vary my training and include more strength, mobility, and movements in different planes. I sometimes think about creating goals that will push me to be a better athlete, not just runner. With all this said, I am undecided about what I am aiming for next year and I am happy to let thoughts marinade, at least for the time being.

One input that may influence my goals is whether I get accepted to the Berlin or Chicago marathons. I hear back from both this week! I’ll be content no matter what happens, though, because if not those marathons, I can choose a local marathon or skip the 26.2 milers all together and start running more 5Ks, 10Ks, and halves — which is honestly a tempting proposition.

My last thought is most relevant to you, dear readers. I’ve loved writing this blog and, while I am happy to take a break, I am hopeful to restart it in some capacity again next year. When I am compelled to write, you’ll be the first to know.

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🧳 Odds n’ ends

Appreciating: Local[ish] races. The CIM is in Sacramento, which is 1.5 hours away from my home in SF. I got to pack loosely, had a leisurely drive up to Sac on Saturday afternoon, got in-and-out of the CIM Expo quickly, and spent the evening with friends. After the race on Sunday, I ate lunch with my crew and then drove back to SF to eat dinner and shower in my own home. After the hoopla of NYC, it was the casualness I craved.

Representing: Rice. My coach, Jim Bevan, gave Lennie some jerseys for us to wear in our race on Sunday. I didn’t expect that wearing the R across my chest would feel so meaningful, but it did. It may be my new race day outfit moving forward (so long, Hamburglar).

Meeting up the night before the race with fellow teammate-for-life, Marissa, who BQ’d in her marathon the next day. (📸 credit: Spencer Alexander)

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And with that, the 2023 season has come to an end. What a blast this has been for me! Thank you for your readership, your encouragement, and your support. I cannot tell you how much I appreciated every comment — here, in my inbox, in person — from someone who read the blog and told me something they learned, an insight they enjoyed, or that they were proud of me. I truly have felt so loved. If you have a chance to share a part of yourself or a passion you have in an ongoing way, I encourage you to try it. I didn’t know how rewarding this would be. And if you do, please let me know. I’ll be the first to sign up, follow, and/or cheer you on.

The biggest hugs,
Claire ✨💛