Over the weekend I ran the Indy Half Marathon at Fort Ben. This is the third time I have entered this race but it was the first time I did so as part of the official Pace Team. I have experienced pace groups from the perspective of the hopeful athlete before and I was excited to take a lead role this time.
I was assigned the 1:35 pace group. This equates to a 7:15 minute per mile average. I am currently training for a sub-3 marathon (6:52/mile pace) so I figured I could dial this in somewhat comfortably. I was nervous going in despite getting great advice from the pace team coordinator about pacing strategy and this course in particular. Overall I had a great time and I definitely learned things along the way. Here are my five big takeaways from this experience:
1. People will enjoy seeing you
As the race start approaches you will feel the group around you getting bigger. Some of these folks may strike up conversation or ask you questions. Others will just want to keep you in sight and feel the pull from the mini peloton you will create by nature of everyone’s shared goal.
As pacers we were encouraged to explain our pacing strategy to our group so they would know what to expect. This race has a few hills throughout, so we let folks know that we would be slower on a few miles and have to make up that time on the flatter sections.
2. People will HATE seeing you
As the race goes on, it becomes increasingly unlikely that anyone will join your group. Instead, you will start passing people who went out too fast. For some you will literally be the sign that their race is not going as planned. I heard a few distinct “Well, shit.” comments between miles 9 and 11 as struggling runners read the time on my pace flag. I wanted to say something encouraging when I heard this type of comment, but given how fast we would pass them I couldn’t offer an invite to join our group and a “keep it up” just seemed condescending – so I usually didn’t respond at all.
Tip from experienced pacers: When carrying a pace flag be sure to switch hands every mile or so. You may not notice it at first, but if you carry the flag in one hand the whole time it throws off your arm swing which in turn throws off your stride. You could end up overcompensating with your opposite leg and feel sore after the run.
3. You will do a lot of math
I obsessively looked at my watch the entire 13.1. This is not usually how I race and it definitely takes an extra mental toll. Normally my only concern is how I feel. I will adjust my effort according to that one piece of information. But when a group counts on you to pace them they expect two things. First, they expect that if they stick with you they will cross the line close to but not over the goal time. Second, they expect to do that with pretty consistent mile splits along the way. The first item I have no trouble with. The second one is a bit trickier. On longer races I usually go out fast and see how much time I can buy myself. This inevitably leads to a solid positive split on the back end.
Thankfully the race flags we carried had the cumulative time we should be at for each mile split. This helped simplify the math and also gave me data to share with my group. In addition to each mile split, I would update them with where we stood in relation to the overall pace. This helped everyone know the plan as it was unfolding. If they didn’t like that we were 4 seconds behind pace at mile 4, then they could kick it a bit and go ahead of us. I prefer to give this information in real time rather than to have anyone surprised in the event we needed to make up some seconds later in the race.
Tip from experienced pacers: Turn off your watches auto-lap feature. Instead, manually hit the lap button every time you pass a mile marker. This will keep you in touch with how your splits are adding up on the course and that’s what matters in the end. If you’re interested in those GPS mile splits – no problem – you will hear a chorus of beeps from the other runners in your group.
4. You will feel a bit like a badass
As a pacer you should be able to hit your target mile splits while still holding a conversation. You won’t be talking the whole time, but I think this is a good measure to make sure you aren’t biting off more than you can chew. You also don’t know how race morning will go, so if you end up on the struggle bus you should at least be able to muscle your way through it.
By contrast, most of the runners who join your pace group will be aspiring to hit that time – perhaps even as a PR. Now I realize running speed is all relative. I know guys who make me feel pretty slow at 13.1. But when you pace a group like this you can’t help but acknowledge your relative speed. It’s a good mental boost if you are training for something and need a little affirmation of your training efforts.
5. You will have a blast
I love the race environment. I love to run, spectate, volunteer, you name it. If you feel the same way then you will love pacing a run. It’s a great way to experience an event, meet new people, and help fellow runners achieve their goals. If you’re interested I encourage you to reach out to race directors and running clubs to find out who coordinates these groups and see if you can volunteer. You won’t regret it!
Finisher Medal from the 2017 Indy Half Marathon. Follow us on Instagram @irunyourrace