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 Banana Chase 10K Race Report
Rickshaw
Runworks 2005 5M Racer
San Francisco, CA
Joined: 26 Nov 2004
Posts: 1157
Banana Chase 10K Race Report Posted: Sun Sep 17, 2006 1:46 pm 
What could be more fun than chasing after a bunch of giant bananas? With a marathon coming up very soon, I decided I needed to squeeze in some last-minute hard workouts to complement my meager diet of short easy runs. So I signed up for the Banana Chase race in San Francisco, chasing after a bunch of people in banana suits, with prizes to be won for beating bananas.

For some reason I'd thought it was a 5K, so I was a bit surprised last night when I discovered I was doing a 10K. No matter, the longer distance is better marathon preparation anyway. There were maybe 1000 runners out for the race this morning, on a rare warm and sunny day in the city.

Thanks to my paltry summer training, I knew I was going to have a slow finish time, so I didn't stress out too much. I started fairly conservatively, and just went by feel. I passed a lot of bananas in the first mile, and caught a couple more late in the race. Chasing them down was actually a lot of fun. I managed to maintain a pretty even pace of around 7:05/mile, and finished in 44:05. That's more than two minutes slower than my 10K PR (set just four months ago!), but it's still better than I'd feared it might be. I'm now cautiously optimistic that with a bit more last-minute training, I can turn in a respectable marathon time October 1st. Here's hoping!

Last edited by Rickshaw on Sun Sep 17, 2006 3:49 pm; edited 1 time in total
Rustyboy

LA, CA
Joined: 14 Dec 2004
Posts: 225
Re: Banana Chase 10K Race Report Posted: Sun Sep 17, 2006 2:00 pm 
Now THAT sounds like a fun race! Way to go on your time, especially considering your lower mileage lately. It should give you hope for the marathon to know you can dig deep and still manage a respectable finish! Unlike my triathlon this morning...

Our wave ran out into the Pacific, I dolfin-dived under one huge wave and was beyond the breakers and approaching the first buoy, when -

BLAMMO! Someone kicked my goggles off, and away they floated (probably to Hawaii by now). I swallowed about a gallon of water looking for them, and a lifeguard paddled over to look too, but they never surfaced, so I swam back in (a total of about 200 yards - yay me). Crap! Oh well, shite happens in a race, and another friend of mine had the same thing happen to her, and she had to swim back in and DNF as well.
Rickshaw
Runworks 2005 5M Racer
San Francisco, CA
Joined: 26 Nov 2004
Posts: 1157
Re: Banana Chase 10K Race Report Posted: Sun Sep 17, 2006 3:52 pm 
Wow, that really stinks! I've heard that the swimming starts in large triathons can be pretty chaotic and dangerous. I'd be pissed if I put a lot of training into an event, and then got knocked out just a few minutes into it.

Were you able to do the bike and run portion anyway, but call it a DNF for the day? Or did you just have to pack up and go home?
Rustyboy

LA, CA
Joined: 14 Dec 2004
Posts: 225
Re: Banana Chase 10K Race Report Posted: Mon Sep 18, 2006 7:54 am 
Thanks for the sympathy - I probably could have just biked and ran, even though I officially I DNFed, but I wasn't in the right frame of mind after that. I shrugged it off after about 30 mns, and then it became about hanging with my friends and wife in Malibu on a gorgeous, sunny, 75 degree day. All in all, it ain't so bad when that's how you spend your Sunday morning.

Of course, yesterday afternoon, I swam the distance in the pool and ran 2 miles on the treadmill at 8% incline (would have run the full 4 miles outside, but it got fricking HOT yesterday, and 2 miles is all I can stand on the dreadmill). This week, I begin my 50 mile training for January's race. At least if you get kicked in a footrace, there's no chance of drowning!

Is this upcoming marathon your last planned race for the season?
Rickshaw
Runworks 2005 5M Racer
San Francisco, CA
Joined: 26 Nov 2004
Posts: 1157
Re: Banana Chase 10K Race Report Posted: Tue Sep 19, 2006 10:12 pm 
Well you dealt with it much better than I probably would have. Good luck with the 50-miler training! Which race are you doing again?

Yes, Wineglass is my last planned race. I may do some shorter races around the holidays if the mood strikes me, but I'm mostly just looking forward to taking some time off. My heart hasn't really been into my running for the last couple of months, so it'll be good to take a break.
Rickshaw
Runworks 2005 5M Racer
San Francisco, CA
Joined: 26 Nov 2004
Posts: 1157
Re: Banana Chase 10K Race Report Posted: Tue Sep 19, 2006 10:16 pm 
Oh, and I checked the Banana Chase results: 9/38 in age group, 43/391 overall. Not too shabby considering.
Rustyboy

LA, CA
Joined: 14 Dec 2004
Posts: 225
Re: Banana Chase 10K Race Report Posted: Wed Sep 20, 2006 9:20 am 
NICELY DONE!

How does that make you feel about your marathon training?
Rickshaw
Runworks 2005 5M Racer
San Francisco, CA
Joined: 26 Nov 2004
Posts: 1157
Re: Banana Chase 10K Race Report Posted: Sun Sep 24, 2006 4:36 pm 
Better. But I'm not sure my 10K race will be as good a predicter of marathon performance as it should be, since I haven't done as much long-distance training. We'll see!
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