2014 SHAMROCK RUN 15K PREVIEW

I am super excited for the Shamrock Run this Sunday! I think it will be a very good test of my fitness and the progress I have made in the last year. Last year's preview is more about the race in general and the history and craziness that is Shamrock. So if you are interested in that, click right here. The short version of the story is, the 15k route of Shamrock used to be called the Cascade Runoff and it was quite the big deal and attracted top tier running talent. Now it has morphed into the Shamrock Run, a crazy event with 35,000 registrants over three race distances.

One of the things I am most looking forward to this year is running with my watch. This is a course that you have to "manage" and vary your mile times if you hope to hit your best time. Last year I just ran based on feel and I think I ran the first part a little slow and the hills a little fast, which pooped me out for the downhill finish. So this year I'll be checking my pace more often. I'll also shoot to arrive earlier than 5 minutes before the gun so I can get into the correct corral, unlike last year, when I was lucky to make my way up to the 8-9 minute corral before the gun went off.

The course can be broken into three parts:

Part I: Downtown Three: This is the first 3.5 miles or so. You can see where these end based on the elevation chart... see the spike around 3.75 miles? That's the start of the second part. This first part though is ready for attacking. The first two miles are pretty dang flat. The challenge here is getting out of the crowd and finding a good line. Mile three is uphill on Broadway but this hill isn't too bad. A gradual incline that can be managed. My target paces for these first three miles are 7:05, 7:05, 7:20.

Part II: Terwilliger Terror: The good news is this part lasts only about 2.5 miles. Those 2.5 miles are hell though. After a steady incline mile on Broadway, Terwilliger hits and hits hard. That first hill is the worst and really takes it out of you. Then a series of "slightly downhills" followed by "even more uphills." That is the one saving grace of this climb... there are "breaks" that allow you to somewhat catch your breath (okay, not really). I remember that half mile stretch of straight uphill (ending at about 5.6 miles) almost killing me last year.

Mile time goals for this section are varied. Mile four, which includes the tail end of Broadway and the first terrible hill should be about 8:20. I think mile five should be easier with its rollers, so 8:10. Mile six 8:15.

Part III: Flying Down Barbur: Right almost smack dab at the mile six marker you are rewarded with downhill for pretty much the final 3.33 miles. Aside from a slight uphill around mile 7 (if I remember correctly, this is running onto a onramp "flyover" type deal) the course is pretty much downhill. When it first goes downhill it's almost too steep to take advantage of, but after that it is a more gradual decline that begs to be attacked. And attack I will. I hope my legs have gotten stronger over the last year and I can better attack these final miles. Last year I was a little wiped at this point to really take advantage. Mile times for these final three are hopefully 7:05, 7:05, 7:05. Anything below that is gravy.

GOALS:

"A" Goal: Sub 1:11:00. The mile times listed above are basically goal times if I am trying to his this goal. Kind of a best case scenario thing and pretty ambitious. If you add up all that time, assuming a final stretch pace of 7:00/mile, and a course ran of 9.50 miles, it's 1:11 on the nose.

"B" Goal: New 15k PR at 1:12:20. I can live with a new PR, although if I don't get my sub 1:11, I'll be very focused on a sub 1:12. So even if I PR at 1:12:05, I'll be a little disappointed.

"C" Goal: My "A" goal at my first 15k last year, which was sub 1:15. For whatever reason, if I'm just not feeling it, I'd still like to come in under 1:15. I'll be disappointed, sure, but this is still sub 8:00/mile and the course is notoriously hard. Live to race another day.