I’ve always been about big goal races. I set my mind on a race, usually a marathon, and I train for that specific race for several months. It’s written on the calendar for months and I try day in and day out to get there.

After beginning my training 4 weeks ago with my coach, we briefly discussed having me race before Boston. Um, what? I felt a little out of my element because I knew the race he wanted me to run, and it was only several weeks away. My husband has had the Ocean Isle Half Marathon on his calendar for quite some time. It was his goal shorter race before he begins his Boston training. I had assumed for many months that I would go as a support system.

However, after my training began a few weeks ago Dan suggested I run it as well assuming we could swing it financially. It threw me off a bit, but I knew it would be a good opportunity to really see where I am at as we begin gearing up for Boston Marathon training (honestly, I can’t even believe I am typing those words on this blog).

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To be honest, the Ocean Isle Half Marathon was selected because it is mostly flat (aside from a bridge you have to cross twice). We knew the weather would be a little warmer too, which will be a nice break from this nasty cold spell that has come through recently.

It’s about a 4 hour drive from our house, so thankfully I was able to take a half day at work and head down so we don’t get in at some early hour in the morning. I was excited to see that they offered race day packet pickup, just in case something goes wrong and it takes us longer than expected.

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My husband has some really speedy goals for this half marathon and he’s been training since October/November, but for me it’s a different kind of race.

After we decided that I would be running the race, he asked if I wanted to run it for a training run or really race it. It didn’t take me long to decide that if I was going to pay the money and go all the way down there, then I was going to give it my all.

As far as goals for the race I don’t have a specific time goal. Yes, I want to PR (which I should be able to do assuming nothing goes crazy wrong). Yes, I want to give it everything I’ve got. The main focus for this race is to really see where I am speed wise and aerobically before I begin putting in the big miles in the upcoming months.

The pressure isn’t on quite as much for this race, but I still want to make sure I give it my full effort. I’m trying to just take this one and stride and see how my 3-4 weeks of training have helped me.

All that being said, my goals for the Ocean Isle Half Marathon are:

• PR in the half marathon (previous PR is 1:39)
• Run a smart and controlled race
• Negative Split the Race
• Enjoy it (seriously, I better smile at least once during the race)
• Relax

As you can tell, my goals are a little different. The speed goal is still there but I really want to focus on running a smart race.

My goal is to start pretty conservative and then if I feel good, I can pick it up the last half. That would in turn hopefully give me the negative split I’m hoping for. I would rather have a 30 second PR than blow up. Even in races like a half marathon, 5k, or 10k you can easily blow up if you aren’t smart about your racing strategy.

Most importantly, I want to have fun!

Here we go!

What is the next race you have on your calendar?

What is your favorite distance to race?