It’s hard to believe that Kaiser is already here. Taylor and I registered all the way back in July – the day after Vineman Full Aquabike and the San Francisco Marathon to be exact. When I registered, I was in the thick of Ironman training and expected that I would be able to throw down my first sub 1:30 half marathon come February.

Months went by, Ironman Lake Tahoe was canceled, and I pivoted my running goals so I could focus on distance instead of speed. Running 4 marathons (5 if you count the double marathon I ran at North Face 50) between October and December slowed me down – literally, and by the time the holidays had passed, I was left with 3 weeks of quality half marathon training.

Fast forward to now – I’ve been logging solid speed workouts (400-800s at a sub-6 minute pace), quality tempo runs (low 7 minute miles) and long runs around a 7:45 pace. My biking and swimming are coming along, and I feel quite strong, but 13.1 miles at a 6:51 pace will be a tall order come Sunday. Realistically, I think there’s room for improvement over my last half marathon PR at The Town’s Half in August. Here’s what I’m shooting for on race day:

A-goal: PR – sub 1:35:xx. I would be happy with anything under my current PR – 1:35:xx, and know that I’m running well enough to go sub 1:35 barring a unforeseen issues.

B-goal: 1:33:xx. I claimed this on Strava and I know I could finish at 1:33:xx if I execute well. A 7:10 pace comes out to roughly a 1:33:50 finish time, and I’ve trained around this pace for my hard efforts – even on tired legs.

C-goal: 1:30. I decided that I’m going to follow the strategy that worked for me at the Morgan Hill Marathon: start with a pace group and make adjustments. I’m going to head out with the 1:30 group, see how long I can hold on, and then drop back to a comfortable pace if I’m too far out of my comfort zone.

Regardless of my finish time, I’m excited to run another classic SF race with Taylor and start the season strong.