There are a few races I try to run every year regardless of what else is going on in my life. The Saugerties Half Marathon is one of these races (not that I ever remember to pre-register). It is held the Sunday of Columbus Day Weekend. This is a perfect time of year, a nice race, and a distance that fits into any lifestyle. As far as I can remember, the weather has always been picture perfect. This year it rained. I guess we were due.
My primary goal was to run negative splits. This may not be a very ambitious goal, but it struck me as the proper goal given my level of fitness. As we started the run down Market Street towards the center of Saugerties, I was surprised at how far back I was. The leaders generally start this run real conservatively, so the field was quite condensed.
We turn left onto Main Street, and run past the Saugerties movie theater and the Cahill Elementary School. Another left turn brings us onto Route 9-W running north, away from the village and Seaman's park and it's outrageous seasonal display of mums. A runner next to me has the sklishiest shoes I have ever heard. He seems to be working very hard, so I expect the sklishes will not be with me for long.
We turn off of 9-W to run through the Hudson River hamlet of Malden. Construction has left the road bumpier than usual. Given the wet pavement, this is probably a good thing. We head down the hill. In this direction, the hill doesn't seem too bad. As we climb it on the way back, the hill is considerable and where many races are decided.
I pass several runners through Malden, though still surprisingly far back. For the past few weeks I thought I had gotten my groove back, but this apparent sluggishness leads me to wonder.
Back on 9-W, we soon reach the 5 km mark. 22:14 is faster than I intended to run. That explains the way I feel. A number of runners are going to pay for this pace. Off of 9-W, we start the loop that is the heart of this run. I've left several runners behind, and have a runner or two pacing off of me. In the rain, visibility is very short, but I can see two runners in the distance. I am gaining on them, but very slowly.
Before we turn onto a wooded road, I stop for water. Nancy Celluch grabs some water and runs past me. I don't pretend to be able to run and drink at the same time. I catch back up very shortly. For this section of the run, Nancy seems content to follow me. We finally catch the first distant runner as we are crossing over the Thruway. I run this second 5 km section in 21:46.
I see the runner ahead of me look back as he turns south onto the Old Kings Highway. This makes me feel important. Last year this road was being paved. This year it is smooth, fast and unrecognizable. This is where we would have some of our best views of both the Catskills to the west and the Taconics and Berkshires to the east. Today there isn't much to see. It seems considerably more uphill than I remember. I keep getting strange tingly spots on my inner thighs, which go away as I rub or wipe my leg. Surely its not cold enough that I should be experiencing such sensations. After several minutes I realize what is happening. Water is collecting in my dense copse of leg hair. I am losing heat into these little pools. Picking up the pace seemed to be the best way to counteract these annoying sensations.
I catch the runner ahead of me just as we turn off the Old Kings Highway and head down a steep hill. we both blow off the water stop, and go through the 15 K in 1:05:49, giving me the third 5 km in 21:49. So far so good.
As we run together, we click off a couple of quick kilometers. With the ups and downs of the course, I try to avoid looking at splits every kilometer, but sometimes it is unavoidable. Though my 5 km splits are nicely even, my 1 km splits form quite the sawtooth pattern. I get water at the next station, figuring it will be my last.
We run back onto 9-W. This section is pretty tedious, but we need to get back to Saugerties somehow. I see one more runner in the distance. It would be nice to think I can catch him, but at this point it would require not only speed on my part, but rigor mortis on his part. Why should I wish that?
Finally we hit the turn into Malden. How I run up that hill will determine how I finish, and how I feel about my run. I run up the hill smoothly and strongly. This happens about half the time I run this race. I turn back onto 9-W, and yeah, glance over my shoulder. I won't be caught barring the unlikely event of a water landing. I run through the fourth 5 km section in 21:37. This is my fastest split of the day. Negative splits are in the bag, but I already knew that.
I turned off of 9-W into the development that leads us back to Cantine Field. There was a huge puddle at the entrance to the park. After an hour and a half of running in the rain, with about 300 meters to go, I still can't bring myself to run through that puddle, so I take this turn really wide. Gosh. I'm sure it added at least a second onto my time. I cruise the final straight and finish in 1:32:07, one of my better times for this course.
Steven Cangemi
Annandale-on-Hudson, New York