So, the main focus of the training in the first half of the year is on the triathlon middle distance. On May 22nd I will start at The Championship Challenge Samorin 70.3 so why not celebrate my half marathon debut at the VCM as a "training competition". It wasn't until March that I decided to register.
My alarm went off at 6 a.m. on Sunday. 2 rolls with homemade apricot jam and a cappuccino were on the menu. Coffee with milk 3 hours before the competition is my secret weapon to get a booster before the competition.
At 8 o'clock I drove to Vienna, warmed up for about 15 minutes, went to the toilet one last time and then waited for the starting signal at 9 o'clock sharp. I met a few friends and familiar faces in the first starting block, we exchanged our competitions Strategies and then it started. The field was still a little slow at first, but then it stretched out and I found myself in a perfect group. We set off at a 3:20 pace and leveled off at around 3:25 for the first 5km. In the direction of the Praterstern and further along the main avenue, everything went like clockwork, I felt better than ever. Then on towards Karlsplatz, a slight headwind, but my slipstream tactic was perfect. We turned into the left wienzeile and there was a real wind. Always around 3:27/3:28 pace, the pace was maybe 3 seconds too fast for me and I had to let a few of the group go. The slipstream was gone and the long straight towards Schönbrunn became longer and longer. I turned right towards Mariahilferstraße and according to my watch I was walking with an average pace of 3:30 up to that point. But the km boards on the side of the road didn't match my watch and I was a good 300m behind. So I was missing valuable seconds to stay under my planned 1:15h. Down towards the MQ and past the museums, I headed towards the Ring, where I was able to increase the pace again. Finally, I crossed the finish line in 1:15:54, just in the 1:15. nevertheless, my watch showed 21.56 km instead of 21.09 km. Nobody knows exactly what is right now, but if I trust my watch, I ran the 21.09 km in 1:14:20 and thus well under my target time. The atmosphere was amazing and my debut was definitely above my expectations. I'll be back. Half marathon is awesome.
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