November to remember...

November 2010 mileage: 46
November 2011 mileage: 60
November 2012 mileage: 46 (first time all year I was behind, I think)

YTD mileage 2010: 557
YTD mileage 2011: 746
YTD mileage 2012: 808 (WHOAH!)

Weight on October 31, 2012: 220
Weight on December 1, 2012: 218

My mileage went down, and honestly, it needed to. Something had to give.  Running was it. The that I lost weight last month, overall, is awesome.  Honestly, at one point I had gained 5 pounds (considering I only weigh myself on Saturday, that was not a fluke thing).

What was great was the Manchester Road Race.  For the first time ever, I earned a seed card.  Based on two different 5k times this year, I had been seeded in the "under 40 minutes" group for the 4.78 mile race.  As anyone that reads this knows, it's my favorite race of the year, but I rarely run it fast.  That's because there is a mass of humanity on the race course of residential streets.  Instead, I think of it as the best Thanksgiving Day Parade ever.

This year, with the seed card, things were slightly different.  For once, I wasn't competing with you-know-who.  But a woman at work was also seeded, and we run about the same paces.  She is younger, so I might have even accepted it if she beat me.  Besides, she waited so long to register that, despite earning a under 40 seed card, they only had an under 35 to give her.  So they did.

Anthony Famiglietti

So, the 2012 race was slightly different. For one, the great Amby Burfoot would be completing his 50th MRR*.  That would tie him for the most ever.  Secondly, there were some great runners in the field.  Actually, I should say, there were some Olympic caliber steeple-chase runners in the field. Anthony  Famiglietti, Donn Cabral, and Delilah DiCrescenzo (the girl from the song) ran.  DiCrescenzo won the women's race, in fact.  There were also some good, young American female runners, recent all-Americans Sarah Porter and Amy Van Alstine.

Sarah Porter

Donn Cabral

Third, I had no intentions of looking for bacon along the course (though if it was offered nearby, I wouldn't refuse).  Finally, with the seed card, I wasn't starting in the midst of the masses.  With nearly 15,000 registered runners, and numerous walkers and bandits, there were more people than the Hartford Marathon in a course that was a sixth of the size.

What did the seeding do for me? To start, it was the first MRR that I didn't walk during.  There are several bottle-necks that lead to complete stops/walks.  Also, the first tenth of a mile or so is a walk.  Not this year, I maintained a steady pace through the first mile, and only slowed a little on the killer hill of the next mile plus.  The entire time I was running, I was running with others from the starting corrall. The seeding system seemed to work.  In fact, as I passed the four mile mark, the woman that was right next to me at the start was nearby. We joked that we must've started in the right place, after all.

I wondered aloud if we would actually make the 40 minute cut off for another seed.  I don't know why. Last year, I ran a 45:00 even, for my best MRR ever.  Still, she reassured me that we had plenty of time.  Usually with a head full of doubt and a road full of promises, I don't quite get my goal.  Questions start to appear in my head.  This time, with her reassurance, I felt confident.  The pace felt hard, but not awful.

As I turned onto Main Street, and saw that big American flag, I knew I was there.  There's a few hundred meters between the corner and the finish.  Whatever was left, I gave.  When I crossed the finish, arms raised triumphantly, the gun-time clock read 39:49**.  I had earned a seed card for next year, and honestly couldn't believe.  Now, I had to just stay healthy.

Which is why, I immediately headed to the Army/Navy Club, to meet friends and family, and have a donut and an adult beverage.

Cabral finishes

Burfoot & Deena Kastor

Delilah DiCrescenzo winning

Men's winner, Aaron Braun

Stacey said this should win best costume

At the start...

Sarah Porter at the end of the race...Looks like she worked hard.

Mr. MRR, Amby Burfoot

*His book,  The Runner's Guide to the Meaning of Life was given to me by a former runner of mine at a time when I had barely started running. The way Burfoot described the MRR, and the fact that I was going to be at Thanksgiving at my in-laws that year meant that the MRR was certainly doable for me.  Despite the temps in the 20s, and the pounding rain, I fell in love with that race 7 years ago.  The people are great, and last year, even gave me bacon, as I ran a PR to the time.  Since that first race, the 70th, I've run each year.  If I can, I'll go for my own streak. Though 50 is QUITE a lot, I'm nearly 1/7 there.

**Official time-39:16!!!