Worst race/run?

[kevinspradlin]

Easy. An unspectacular 10:58 pace in the RRCA Club Challenge 10-miler in Columbia on Feb. 26, 2006. Overall time of 1:49:40, placing 421st out of 436 finishers. Last mile was so bad I couldn't walk straight - and yes, I was walking. A female runner who'd already finished helped me over the last 5,000 feet.

I had been taking a variety of prescription medications for a severe headache that hadn't gone away for about 3 months prior to the race. After the first 200 meters of the race, I was lightheaded and I KNEW I should drop out then. But I didn't ...

I sat in the HCC gym for more than an hour afterward, and then moved to my car for another hour, before I could felt safe to drive home. It was a tough day all around... For the record, that was my first run of 2006 ... This was also about 6 months after setting my 10-mile PR (66:40-ish).

No. 2 worst: Jan. 5, 2003: Uijongbu, South Korea. Temp: Minus 5 degrees. Road course covered with ice and snow in the mountains on the outskirts of the city. Trying to tag along with 3 very talented runners. Calves tightened up at 80 minutes, finished the 15-mile run in 1:54:41 (7:39 pace) but did NOTHING the rest of the day excep tlay on the couch and play PS2.

[frojoe23]

I think my worst run was this past summer on a 95 degree night in August. Jordan Davis and I met at the Canal and i agreed to tag along on a tempo run. It was horrible - I think that I kept up for one mile in about 5:20, then the next one, I was like 5:45. After that we made the turn and I was done! I had to walk for a stretch, then felt like I was going to crap my pants. That went away and I started "running" again. I finally saw Jordan headed back my way to regroup with me - and we jogged at easily 9 minute mile pace. Then I had to stop - felt like I was gonna blow chunks, but instead it came out of the posterior end.

I remember finally getting to my car and feeling very light headed and actually almost going down in the parking lot. Jordan was deathly afraid for me to drive home. I don't know how I ever managed to even get in my car - I'm guessing it was severe dehydration, because I got home and drank a bunch of Gatorade and felt fine within the hour.

I'm going to have to think on the worst race, though. I think that for me it was Chicago Marathon in 2006 - my debut. I ran 2:35 which is fantastic, but there was so much hype about the race and so much pressure I placed on myself to hit the Trials Standard that after 10 miles, it was a death march. Not because I was running horribly, but because I knew that the standard was no longer within reach and my mind was just not in it anymore! That feeling is especially horrible the last 13 miles when everybody is passing you and the only people you are passing are the ones dropping out - the place that I really wanted to be!

[kw]

Worst race: The Bull Run at Hereford my Junior year of HS (Fall 1997?). I carried around a box of tissues prior to the race- not a good sign. I ran in a crappy time and had trouble breathing while running "the dip" for the second time. I had to walk and I was crying because I was upset that I couldn't run it... which made the breathing thing worse. I went to the doctor the next day and found out I had bronchitis and a sinus infection and shouldn't have been running in the first place.