The DONNA Race Recap

What a great weekend in Jacksonville Beach with Destination Marathons (DM) for the DONNA Half Marathon. I think Jill is going to write about the trip as a whole next week so today you are stuck with my race recap. 

Pre-Race Dinner and Auction

After our pre-race pasta dinner on Saturday evening at the Four Points Sheraton with DM, filled with laughter and great conversation, Jill and I snuck out with a perfectly executed Irish Exit. With our hotel, The Element by Marriott, being only a one minute drive away, I was able to achieve my first race goal of being in bed by 8 pm and asleep by 9 pm. 

Race Morning

The alarm was set for 5 am Sunday morning but I was fortunate to wake up around 4:45 feeling fully rested and ready to go. I laid in bed for those fifteen minutes thinking about how fortunate I was to finally be feeling fully recovered from the lingering affects of Covid that had impacted my running for much of the last year. I set a big goal for the race of going under 1:30 and knew that if I was willing to suffer just enough that it was within my grasp to achieve it. 

As my alarm went off at 5, I climbed out of bed and got ready for the task ahead. Having a hotel just a five minute walk from the start line made the logistics super easy. It’s a good thing considering we had a flight to catch less than three hours after completing the race. The hotel started breakfast early for us runners and we were fortunate to find many fellow DM guests and staff already there when we arrived. 

Heading to the Start Line

Heading out to the start line in 58 degree weather felt surprisingly chilly and the wind was a bit stronger than I would have preferred. With the course being primarily an out and back I knew I would have the wind in my face for the first half and hopefully a nice tailwind for the back half. 

We made our way over to the DM VIP tent in the athlete’s village for gear check and did our best to keep warm. The crowds were growing as start time approached and I was surprisingly relaxed. Usually when I am attempting to hit a big goal I have a lot more nervous energy. I wasn’t sure whether this was a good or a bad thing but would have the answer soon enough. 

With this being a little bit smaller race Jill was able to walk with me to the start corrals and hang out until about five minutes before the start. Having Fitz Koehler at the start line announcing brings an energy that is hard to duplicate and I was thankful to hear her voice.

After one final kiss for good luck, I handed her my jacket and made the last minute preparations. I recently started running with music so I made sure my AirPods were connected to my phone and my running playlist was ready to go. After tying my shoes one last time I stood at attention and saluted as the National Anthem was performed.

And We’re Off

There were no organized pace groups for a 1:30 half but I knew a few guys were shooting for that time as well. I figured I would try and stick with them thru the first half to have a buffer from the wind. And then the gun went off and that strategy went right out the window. 

Running a 1:30 half requires maintaining an average pace of 6:52 per mile. It’s not uncommon for me to go out a little hot and drop some faster splits the first few miles so I wasn’t surprised when I hit mile one in 6:40. I knew I would have a hard time maintaining that pace for the distance so I dialed back a bit and hit mile two in 6:45. I found myself alone without a pack and battling the wind so I locked in behind the guy in front of me for the next mile and clicked off another fast one at 6:40. 

5k / 10k Split

Coming thru the first 5K in 20:51 (6:43 pace) I knew I needed to dial it back just a bit. I was feeling pretty good overall and continued to find people to duck behind and draft off of. When I’m racing I don’t pay too much attention to the course and miss out on a lot so I can’t share much about the course itself. The next few miles clicked by and I hit the 10K mark in 41:20. This meant I covered that 5K in 20:29 (6:36 pace). So much for my plan to dial it back a bit. 

Half Way

Right around the halfway point I hit a short section where runners were going in both directions. It’s always a boost for me when hitting these sections. Seeing as I ran a majority of the race by myself, it was nice being able to cheer on those coming up behind me. My Garmin had me hitting the halfway mark in 44:33. Things were getting more difficult and I was starting to have some doubts that I could maintain that pace for the remainder of the race. 

15K Split

My pace had fallen off a bit as I came thru the 15K mark in 1:03:35. My pace had dropped off to 7:10 per mile for that stretch. I knew that if I maintained that pace for the remainder of the race that I would fall short of my goal. I’ve said this before that in every race I get to a point where I decide how much I am willing to suffer. I decided in that moment that if I was to fall short of my goal it wouldn’t be because I didn’t give everything I had. 

Racing to the Finish

I don’t remember much about the last 4 miles of the race. I was digging deep and working hard.  I think there was a church I passed at one point that was handing out communion and the crowds of cheering people were much appreciated. The last straight away was about a mile long and I could see the finish line off in the distance. Eminem’s Lose Yourself came thru my AirPods about this time. 

Perfect words at just the right time. I put the hammer down and ran as fast as I possibly could at this point. My Garmin had me doing the last .2 at a 6:23 pace with a top pace of 5:49. I could see the seconds clicking off the clock and I still wasn’t certain that I had done it as I crossed the finish line. Immediately after I bent over and put my hands on my knees. I felt like I was going to throw up and am very glad that I didn’t as Olympic gold medalist Joan Benoit came over and gave me a high five. 

The Results

Seeing the smile on Jill’s face shortly after let me know that I had hit my goal. It wasn’t the most perfectly executed race plan but I’m proud of my effort and super excited about the result. Turns out this was only my third time breaking 1:30, my third fastest half ever, and my fastest half since March of 2019. 

• First half – 44:33
• Second half – 45:17
• Finish time – 1:29:50
• 35/2305 overall
• 30/708 gender
• 1/69 age group

I want to say a special thank you to Mark Janik and the entire Destination Marathons team for a truly amazing VIP race experience.

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