Derby Festival Marathon/miniMarathon course changes

The mini won't start in front of Iroquois Park?!?! That's part of the changes they have made to the course this year to allow for EVEN MORE RUNNERS! I always enjoyed starting at the park and having the option of going into the woods to relieve myself one last time before the race starts, without having to waste time waiting in line at the port-o-pots! Oh well, I guess I'll have to look into running with a diaper.

According to the website, the races, which will begin simultaneously at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday, April 24, will now start near Iroquois Manor Shopping Center and will finish at Kroger’s Fest-a-Ville, a 500,000-square-foot entertainment venue located within Waterfront Park. The Marathon course will also include a slightly longer loop in Jeffersonville, Ind., with competitors running alongside the Ohio River. Don't worry, the races still go through the hills of Iroquois Park, so remember to put some hills in your training runs!

Combined entries for both the Derby Festival Marathon and miniMarathon were capped at 12,000 runners for the past two years. In 2010, the number of registrants will cap at 15,000 (my registration is already complete!), setting the stage for the largest annual day of road racing in Kentucky history! The 2009 races attracted runners from all 50 states and 13 foreign countries.

For a map of the new course, click here:

TODAY'S WORKOUT:

Run

Intervals! Yeah!

1 mile warm-up followed by 5 minutes of running drills (butt-kickers, shuffles, grape-vines), then it was 9 half-mile intervals with 1 minute rest between each. Here's my times followed by my average heart rate for each interval:

1) 3:33 - 154 bpm

2) 3:28 - 157
3) 3:28 - 161
4) 3:26 - 163
5) 3:29 - 166
6) 3:29 - 167
7) 3:30 - 168
8) 3:35 - 166
9) 3:34 - 169

Heart rate steadily increased throughout the workout, which is ideal. The 1 minute rest is not supposed to get you back down to a resting HR, just enough to allow you to breifly recover. I have no doubt that these times would be faster on a larger track...having to slow down to take a corner every 6-7 seconds is no way to keep up a good pace! Finished off with a half mile jog to cool down and then walked for another few laps. Covered 6 miles and the total workout lasted 59:52.

Swim

Started with around 8 minutes of drills (catch-ups, single arm, fist), then it was time to count 74 laps (1 mile).

1st half mile = 16:13

2nd half mile = 16:57

Mile time of 33:10

This time was surprising quick considering that I was completely wiped out after the running intervals. I was just moving along at a steady pace, focusing on form...maybe that's the trick!

Total workout including warm-up and drills was 2064 yards (1.17mi) in 42:57