Same Time, Same Channel

Hopefully Bonnie, Dale, and others will chime in here. But here is my race plan (also doing the half), assuming I feel good and rested on Sunday... 1 to 1.5 mile warm up w/ a few strides before the race. Mile 1 9:30-10:00, Mile 2 9:30, Mile 3-5 9:15, and thereafter 8:55-9:10. Of course, those are not "real" paces because the course is full of hills, a few steep ones in the first miles, rolling hills in the middle, and really bad one at mile 12 and then downhill to the finish. So they are more like "feel of" paces.

My .02 dollars - for what it is worth (probably less than .02 right now) is to warm-up for a mile or 2 (strides are good - I have been doing a Jack Daniels suggestion lately and running hard for 1/2 mile instead of strides, but whatever). I would not have a "plan" - I would just run by feel. Personally, and this doesn't work for everyone but it is the only way I can race well, I always use the first mile marker as a way to ensure I am not going to fast and don't worry about how slow it is (I am almost always 10-15 secs slower than my average pace on the first mile or two of a half-marathon). At every mile I reassess how I feel and either speed up or slow down to accomadate how I am feeling against how much longer I have to run. My worst races are ones that I either go out too fast or try to maintain some sort of "goal pace" -- because it detracts from trusting your body and how you are feeling (which is the most important aspect). For you, I would not go out any faster than 9:15-9:30 min pace for the first couple of miles -- this will feel easy, and that is good. If you are feeling good you will naturally speed up and then you are golden. My 'good' 1/2 marathon's have felt pretty easy until about mile 6 or so and felt 'bad' at mile 11-12.

People are different though -- so the start off slow and finish strong approach does not work for everyone. Sometimes you have to use some "trial-and-error" to see what works for you. It is easier for me to use this approach because it is how I train ...

Another approach advocated by Greg is to have an A and B plan. "A" being the plan if it is a perfect day and you feel strong and "B" being the still a good race but things (weather, nerves, etc) aren't ideal.

Think of this as a "test" race for the marathon. That way you can just go out and see what you can do and learn from things that go right or wrong.

You already have great advice from real runners and college professors, so all I can say is have fun! If the wind is at your back be a kite. If it's in your face be a pea. If you're going up a hill be the little train that could and when you go down, let the hill determine your speed (never fight it). That said, you'll be fine little grasshopper. Good luck!