I've spent the better part of 2018 focused on my own running goals: in March, my first trail half; in April, a half marathon PR; and last weekend, a PR and 15 minute BQ at Monumental Marathon.
All gave me a huge feeling of satisfaction and accomplishment, but none hold a candle to this past weekend when, for the second time, I had the privilege to pace the 2:00:00 group at the Richmond Half Marathon.
You see, while running is indeed an individual sport, there is no denying that along the way, we all get help from others. From training partners, from coaches, from family, from other runners we meet on race day, and from random strangers who we see for 2 seconds on a course as we run by. And many people look to a pacer to help settle their nerves and guide them to a personal best, a Boston Qualifer a first time finish at a certain distance.
I won't ever forget Stuart - the amazing pacer who helped me to my redemption BQ at Wrightsville Marathon in 2016. It is no exaggeration for me to say that without him, I wouldn't have done it. And in large part, he is the one who inspired me to try my own hand at pacing.
Arriving to the corral wearing a pacer shirt, you feel a huge responsibility to the people around you. These people are pinning their hopes on you and putting their trust in a complete stranger to help them achieve goals that in many cases, they set months and months ago and have been working toward since.
 |
| Corral DA with fellow pacers Kevin and Eric |
Weirdly, for me, the weight of responsibility to others is energizing. I can't pace myself worth a damn, but when I know there is a group of runners relying on me, it is a whole different story. It's almost freeing to not be inside my own head, worried about my own performance. My only thoughts are centered around what can I do to make sure these guys achieve what they want to today. How can I help distract them when they're struggling; how can I make sure they keep going; what self-depreciating story can I tell to make them laugh and forget that they're running; what can I say to inspire them to push that much harder in the last two miles? How can I give them the confidence to keep going?
This year, we had a large group of strong runners with us. We spent the first miles setting the comfortable easy pace, telling jokes, learning about the runners with us, handing out advice both serious and silly (serious: look at at the ground right in front of you when you're going up a hill instead of at the top of the hill. silly: alternatively, pick a pace booty in front of you to stare at instead.)
 |
| Mile 3 along Broad Street |
As we made our way through the course, my fellow pacer Eric and I could sense that we had some really strong runners with us who were capable of picking it up for the last two miles. We conferred with our other two group leaders and they agreed to keep even for the 1:59:30 target while Eric and I would drop the anvil at mile 11 and take whoever was feeling good with us.
I ended up with a half marathon virgin Jay, who I had been checking on like a mother hen throughout the race, and a group of about 5 more who dropped the pace in a big way. As I did last year I collected more runners as I went, encouraging all those around me to push it to the sub-2:00 - maybe a bit too enthusiastically as I was too busy yelling at everyone else to watch my feet and stepped in a pothole around mile 12 on Grace Street. I nearly bit the pavement, but recovered thank goodness.
As we flew down the 5th Street hill to the finish, nothing was more exhilarating than watching my runners cross that line in 1:56 and change. And nothing better than the sweaty hugs, high fives, and first bumps from dozens who came through as I waited for Eric, Sonja, and Kevin with the main body of the group to come through. So many thrilled as they finished their first, or PRd in a huge way.
What an honor to play a small part in helping them get there.
What freedom and joy to get out of my head and run for others.
 |
| Post race with fellow pacer Kevin. Success! |
No comments:
Post a Comment