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Race Result

Racer: Holly Gannoe
Race: Myrtle Beach 1/2 Marathon
Date: Saturday, February 19, 2005
Location: Myrtle Beach, SC
Race Type: Run - Half Marathon
Age Group: Female 30 - 34
Time: 2:46:34
Overall Place: 1602 / 1812
Comment: Great Race, Perfect Weather and a PR of a different kind



Race Report:



Myrtle Beach 1/2 Marathon - FEB 19, 2005

Short version:

Catherine Gannoe, Sharon, VT, 2:42:34
Heather Gannoe, Myrtle Beach, SC, 2:44:15
Holly Gannoe, Arlington, VA, 2:46:34

a beautiful day, a great course, and a good way to spend an early morning in February!

Well I still don't have a chip time for this race but I do have a clock time. It really won't matter in the end, since the time will still be over 2:40:xx.

When I think back to this race 20 years from now, it won't be some clock time I will remember, it will be remember because it was the first time the three Gannoe sisters ran a road race together and it was a first 1/2 Marathon two of them!

VERY Long version: Go Sister Run!

Go
Sister
Run!

That is what it said on the back of the three long sleeve shirts that I had made for myself and my two younger sisters. The front had our individual names. These t-shirts served us all well on race day, providing plenty of encouragement from fellow runners, volunteers and spectators!

Let's start with some facts:

1. Cathy, the least trained sister (& the youngest at AGE 20) finished first in our little group of three, without use of GU ...

2. Middle sister, Heather, (AGE 23 and former track runner, 100m sprint) ran with me, ahead of me (for a bathroom break) and then ran 2 miles to catch up with me (when I missed her at said bathroom break) and then inquired about what her qualifying times might be for Boston because this distance running stuff was fun!

1. I am the only sister who properly trained for this race (Thanks Coach Debi!) with an average of 15-20 miles a week over the last 9 weeks and I still managed to finish last. (AGE: 34) The penguins are coming for me!

The race:

The Myrtle Beach 1/2 Marathon started along with the full Marathon. There were about 5,000 people total, including Relay teams. The course is flat and the temps were perfect. The start at 6:30 saw temps at mid-30F but as soon as the sun came up, it warmed up to a pleasant 50-55F. Excellent!

Being the seasoned racer in the group, I did my best to give my sisters as much encouragement as I could. I helped them pick the right layers (shorts, long sleeve dry-tech shirts and a light removable wind jacket for each of us) and suggested a plan of attack for the race, which was: 11:30 pace Run, walking only water stops (every two miles) until it was too much and then we will break it down into 6/1 run/walk splits to the end. The GOAL: 2:30:00

My sister Cathy, youngest, informed Heather (middle) and I that she would be running until she couldn't run any further. Her theory: "If I walk, I won't want to run anymore." She planned to jog slowly during the water stops, assuming that Heather and I would catch up to her.

Heather was content with sticking with me and the plan. She had done some training and kept finding herself stuck at 5-6 mile long runs because she couldn't seem to keep going at her normal pace of sub 7:00 miles. When I had suggested that she try running a little slower, like maybe 9-9:30, her long run jumped to 8 miles! She figured at my pace, she would have no problem running the full distance even though she had never done anything longer than 8 miles.

We started out great. Solidly running 11-11:30s for the first miles. Heather and I lost Cathy at the second water stop at Mile 4. Seems that too many people were getting in her way and she would sprint past them, all the "jogging slowly to let Holly & Heather catch up" thrown aside in favor of passing others. My only concern was that I was the "Gu-keeper" for the day so Cathy was without any additional nutrition besides what was provided at the water stops. She managed just fine not reverting to run/walking until she got to Mile 9 and started having some knee pain.

Speaking of GU: a funny highlight. Heather (middle sister) had never tried GU but was willing to trust me when I said, "It will help and we'll take them at miles 4 & 8 with water, you will see!" So there we are at mile 4, GU packets in one hand and water in the other. I failed to tell Heather about the consistency of GU. Simply said, "It's not food, it's energy .. Just suck it out and swallow some water."

So Heather opens the packet, takes a mouthful of Sonic Strawberry and promptly said:

"Ew... It's sticky and goopy ... How do you eat this stuff?"

(Picture tall, fit blonde surfer girl running with string of GU running from her mouth to the packet in her hand .....)

I thought I was going to trip over myself, I was laughing so hard!

After two more attempts to empty the packet, still complaining about the consistency, she finished the packet of GU.

20 minutes later Heather said, "Hey, I feel pretty good right now, I think it's that GU! I guess I will go ahead and try another one at 8 miles."

Miles 4-8 were golden miles. We had a LONG 4 minute wait at the Port'O'Potty's just past mile 5 (no we couldn't wait) and passed an ambulance crew doing CPR on a Marathon runner who, I am happy to report, survived and is recovering thanks to the quick action of a fellow runner who stopped to help him before the ambulance got there.

Mile 9 brought the beginnings of the "BIG THIRST" for me. I had plenty of water the day before (or so I thought) and was grabbing a cup of water or PowerAde at each stop but suddenly I myself thirsty and parched. Heather, needing another PortO'Potty stop, ran ahead, saying "Meet you at the next rest stop". I reverted into 6/1 run/walk mode .... Just looking desperately for 13st Avenue, Mile 10 and WATER!

I found Mile 10 and water but not Heather. Thinking that she felt good and decided to keep moving forward, I did the same. It wasn't until Mile 12 just before the next water stop, that Heather caught me. As it turns out, neither of us saw each other at the water stop and she waited about 10-15 minutes for me. She even began to back track until a Volunteer noticed and asked her "Why are you going the wrong way?"

"I'm looking for Holly," my sister said.

"Oh Holly, Maroon shirt? Go Sister Run? You missed her, she came through here at least 10 minutes ago."

Heather then proceeded to pick up the pace and by all accounts, ran two miles at a 8 minute pace and caught me just before the Mile 12 stop.

After drinking multiple cups of water at the last stop, Heather and I rolled on to finish our last mile. I watched as my sister quickly pulled away from my pedestrian pace of 12 minute miles to finish the last mile of her first 1/2 Marathon. I took my time, enjoyed the last mile and pulled in about 2 minutes after Heather at the finish line, where she and Cathy were waiting.

While Cathy (youngest) claimed upon finishing on Saturday that she won't run another 1/2, she started asking a lot of questions when the topic of a Rock-n-Roll type of half marathon came up in conversation the next day, saying "A Band every 1/2 mile or so .. Now that might be cool ..."

Heather (middle) has already started talking about doing some 10Ks and another 1/2 to see just how fast she can go.... She also started innocently asking me what I thought the qualifying times for her age group (20-24) might be in Boston ... HEHEHE ...

As for me ... It was a great day and while I didn't get a PR or reach my time goal of 2:30, I finally found something that I could share with my sisters that has nothing to do with our 13+ year age difference and has everything to do with having fun together, no matter what time we each crossed the finish line!

If you made it this far, thanks for sticking with the story!

Holly G.