Who Am I?

I am an avid runner and have been running since I was 15 years old. I began running low to medium distances while on my high school track team, running the 800 meter and 1600 meter races (I was a sub 5 miler and a 2 minute 800 runner). In addition to the track team, I also joined the cross country team. After high school I still wanted to run and decided to start doing road races. I have probably ran a couple hundred 5k races (16.29 PR)along with many 10k's as well. In 2009 I decided to step up my game and try to tackle my first marathon. I will be honest; the only reason I did this was because my father ran a few and I wanted to show him that I could do what he did. I trained poorly for my first one and regret it. If you are going to run a race, train like you want to win. I still continue to run marathons and other distances as well, and every race is a chance for me to better myself.
I started this blog to hopefully communicate with other runners and to shed any knowledge I may have about the sport that can help other runners. I believe running is the best sport and can be a great stress reliever. I encourage all runners to spread the word of our sport and show people why running is so good and why the community of runners has such great people. You can follow me on twitter @byrne1324 or find me on facebook- Shaun Byrne

Sunday, May 3, 2015

The weekend that was the marathon

It has come and gone just like that. Marathon weekend was supposed to be a weekend of all high's. Instead it was a weekend with ups and downs and an old injury coming back out to say hello.
The weekend started on Friday with the expo. I originally was told I would be working the DICK'S booth, but never heard anything from my contacts so I made arrangements to work the BattleFrog race. Friday morning at 8:30 I received a text asking if I was working for DICK'S. Since I was under contract with them I decided to work for them. Half way though the day I decided I wanted to talk to people about running a great race so I ended up going to BattleFrog for the remainder of the day. Saturday morning was the 5K for the marathon. I went down to the meet up at 7:30 and got to talk to a few people, but I was trying to focus on the race and making sure I stayed loose. My plan for the race was just run a easy race and try not injure myself.  As I stood in the starting gate all I could think of was "man do I have to piss." As the gun went off I was hoping it would pass, but it got worse and thankfully in the Northside I passed a port-o-potty and was able to relieve myself. I got back on track and cruised in at a 24:51. I felt great and I ran a smart race. I didn't go out fast and I held back enough that I thought Sunday was going to be the day I PR my half. 

Sunday: Race Day:  I woke up and I felt great. I kept telling myself "today is the day". I got down to the starting area a bit early so I could go stretch and use the bathroom in the SCRR room. I ended up talking to a gentleman that I have ran a few times with. We were both in Corral A and decided that we would pace each other. We both wanted to finish right around 1:30. As the race started I quickly realized that it was going to be hard to get around the crowd of runners. We found ourselves running with the 1:40 pace group for the first 2 miles. On mile 3 we made our move to break free and gain some time and that is when my old calf injury decided to show his ugly face. I felt my leg get tight and I had to tell my running friend to go on without me. I kept trying to talk to myself and say anything I could to make me forget about the pain. Once I hit the West End Bridge I had to walk. I was still holding a 8 something pace and kept telling myself "I am down but I am not out" I tried to get back into a groove but the tightness was getting worse. I ended up just walking a bit and running for the remainder of the race.  I finished in a time of 2:00:46.  Once again not a bad time for running injured, but not what I wanted. I feel like I just wasted 4 months of my best training cycle to have it taken by an injury. I am still okay with how I did and I am happy I was able to finish the race. I am not going to lower my head over this race or beat myself up. Sometimes we aren't dealt the cards we need. Today I got dealt a shitty hand but I made it work for me. finishing the race today was still good enough to get me my 3rd medal of the weekend for the Runner Of Steel Challenge.


I am hoping that my fellow running friends did better than I did. I noticed the weather was giving a lot of runners problems. Someone at the beginning of the race said "these are the perfect conditions for no excuses." Ummm I don't know how you can say that when most of us trained in artic temperatures for most of the training and it just so happens the hottest day to date is race day. The struggle was real. I saw people puking, walking, and just looking beat down.  I have come to realize that Pittsburgh is not the marathon you want to use to define you as a runner. You never know what the hell you are going to get. 

So what is on the schedule for me next? I will take a week or 2 off and hopefully this damn leg will finally get back to normal. I think the first race I am doing is the Gateway Mile in June. It's always a fun 1 mile race that is free, and it lets you see where you stand before the liberty Mile. After that I have a few more that I will post next week at some point. Hopefully I get to see you at one.

If you ran PGH how did you do? was the weather a factor?

10 comments:

  1. I'm sorry your leg started hurting again at the worst of times!! Ugh! I'm glad you were able to finish, though! I totally know the mindset of feeling like you wasted 4 months of great training. Can't tell you how many times that's gone through my own head. You're so right though about just getting dealt a shitty hand sometimes. Onward and upward from here, right? :) Congrats on getting through the weekend and finishing the Steel Challenge!

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    1. Thanks Nichole and thanks for tracking me.. Wish I would of gave a better show for you to track :(. You know exactly how I feel with the training be a waste. You need to do the gold jacket 5K in June on the northshore.. The medal is awesome

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  2. Ugh! Kudos to you for powering through. That's a long time to push when the injury flared so early in the race. I had a similar experience, but it was the sun and heat that got me. I started struggling early in the race, and it was all I could do just to finish. At several times I actually wondered if I was going to have to wait for the sweep van. No PR, but like you I'm not beating myself up over it. I'm still happy with my training, and there will always be other races.

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    1. I think anyone who finished yesterday deserves a round of applause, it was brutal out there. There is nothing anyone can do about the weather, most of us just weren't ready for it. Congrats on fighting through it all and finishing. There is always another race to get that PR

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  3. Ugh that sucks. So sorry the race didn't go as planned but your training was great and you'll get your goal in the next race! I agree that you can't let this race define you- it's hard as hell and the weather is always a huge problem! Runner of steel is a perfect title for people who finish, so great job!!

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  4. At least you got out there and finished! I have to say, I was kinda jealous cheering everyone on! You looked great when I saw you.

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    1. Steff when I saw you I felt great, it was a mile later that shit went wrong.. I even thought to myself she should be here next me running this thing.

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  5. Way to stick it out and finish! 9 miles is a loooooooooong way to go when you're injured, and hurting! Runner of Steel, for sure!! Hopefully a few weeks of rest will have you back and ready to go!!

    The weather beat the shit out of me! I spent a good part of the second half running until I felt like I was going to go down or throw up. Then I'd walk until it went away and start back up again. Rinse, and repeat for 11 ish miles. It was ugly, but I made it!!

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    1. That's all the matters, you made it!!! Amanda I know how hard you trained and how ready you really were. The weather was the one factor none of us could control. Walk away with your head held high

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