After running it in 2008 (1:36:59), 2009 (1:36:53), 2010 (1:29:53), and 2013 (1:38:44), today I ran the San Jose Rock ’n’ Roll Half Marathon for the 5th time

I like this race because it is very close to home and the course is flat and fast. The first goal was to erase last year’s time when I ran with a sore throat. My second goal was to beat my half marathon’s PR I set earlier this year in Santa Cruz.

The weather was beautiful, a bit hot for the season and for running with temperatures in the high 60s, low 70s. Once I had parked my car and was getting ready, I realized my GPS watch had drained overnight and was now out of battery! I had no other choice but run without a watch and HRM.

It made for a somewhat anxious run as I was missing the data I use to set and stick with a pace and effort. Not knowing my splits, I ended up mostly running ahead of the 1:30 pacer for 7 miles without being able to distance him. It was clear by then that I would not be able to PR today.

The pacer finally overtook me at mile 8 so I decided to stick with the group since that would then solve the pace issue. In hindsight, maybe it would have been good to just stick with the group from the start. Anyway, I stayed with the pacer until mile 12 where I accelerated to complete the last mile in around 6:30.

My final time is indeed not a PR, but it is still my second fastest half marathon ever and the fastest of the five San Jose half marathons I have run so far: 1:29:26.