Well, the Avengers Super Heroes Half Marathon Weekend is finally here! I enter the half marathon feeling under-trained. I had a good start to the training and feel alright about the fact that I did get in runs up to 13 miles. My 13 mile run was a decent run and has lead to the goals I have for this race.When I started out training, I really wanted to try for a half marathon PR…maybe even a 2:30:00 or faster time. After this training cycle has come to a close, I know that time will not be happening. So, here are the goals…

• Goal A – Set a new half marathon PR – under 2:43:45

• Goal B – Set a new runDisney half marathon PR – under 3 hours

• Goal C – Set a Avengers Super Heroes Half Marathon PR – under 3:03:00

• Goal D – Finish in the upright position with a smile on my face

The Plan to get to Goal A is simple…I will run 20 seconds, walk 40 seconds for as much as I can. As I learned on my 13 mile run, I can do this. Also, if I need to occasionally run 20 seconds, walk 1 minute, 40 seconds, I will be fine.

Secondly, I’m going to limit myself to a few photos on course. First, will be Mickey’s Fun Wheel…

Second pic will be a castle shot like this. Only the course runs the opposite way. So, I’ll have to step off the course briefly for this pic.

Pictures of the Cos Players and maybe with them on walk breaks (depending on where they actually show up on course)

Home Plate at Angel Stadium…

If I’m under my half marathon or runDisney half marathon PR’s by enough, I might think about stopping for a pic with any of the Avengers who happen to be around the finish line. Of course, if I’m less than a minute ahead of those PR’s, I’ll skip this one.

Of course, I’ll end with this pic as always.

In order to keep pace, I’m going to get better at saying “Excuse Me,” “Coming Through,” or “On Your Left (Right)!” I simply cannot go with the excuse that the runners ahead of me are running slow, so I will run slow and wait to find a way to pass. I need to be a little more aggressive and keep my PR goals in mind I won’t get there by allowing myself to slow down due to a wall of runners who are going slower than me. Without the river trail part of the race, I think I can pull off the runDisney half marathon PR at the least.

My fueling strategy is to carry two bottles with Orange Gator Aid in them. If I’m on a walk break, I’ll take water at the hydration stops. However, if I’m on a run interval, I’ll run through the fueling stations. The plan is to get hydration every 2 miles (or less). I’ll also take a Cliff Shot Blok every 2 miles. I’m also going to carry a small bag of pretzels with me in case I have the lower calf problem I had on my last long run. I believe that happened due to low salt in my system. So, the pretzel should help.

As for a race outfit, I’m going with what I wore last year in the Captain America 10K. The only change is that I won’t be wearing he white long sleeves under the shirt. It’s going to be a much warmer day than last year. So, I don’t need to have long sleeves.

I set my half marathon PR at the 2013 Los Angeles Rock n Roll Half Marathon wearing a Captain America shirt. So, it seems like a good idea to go with Cap again.

I can’t wait to add a new piece of race bling this Sunday! For those that are racing, have a great time at the races this weekend!