Half Marathon

As some of you know, I've been training since January to run the Allentown half-marathon with Mike and Jill Harris. Some intense hours at the office in February and early March put a bit of a dent into my training regimen, but I came back strong in the last month and a half and was up to 5 mile regular runs and 9-11 mile long runs in the last few weeks. This Sunday was the day of the big race, so I headed over to Allentown on Saturday afternoon to load up on carbs and enjoy some quality time with the WasserHarrises before the event. As it turns out, the Wasserclan was also celebrating Jill's 40th birthday, and I was honored to be able to help her ring it in (albeit a bit early; it's actually today, so Happy Birthday again, Jill!). 

I have to admit that I was a bit anxious before the race; I had been training for the last few weeks on a treadmill to spare the impact on my knees, but treadmills are woefully inadequate at simulating outdoor running. The drive to the course didn't do much to allay my fears, as we went up and down innumerable hills after leaving the Wasserman estate. Still, once we got there, the energy from the crowd and the other runners, the beautiful weather and Mike and Jill's company/enthusiasm helped me relax a bit. I can't say that I looked forward to the run itself, but at least I was looking forward to getting it over with!

The first fifteen seconds of the race were great; sixteen seconds in, however, I realized I had to go to the bathroom again.  Of course, at that point I was running in a crowded field of about 3,000 people, so pulling off to the side of the road wasn't exactly an option. I ran about five miles before finally making a pit stop, which was possibly the most efficient bathroom break I've ever had in my life. I made a few other pauses along the way, mostly to scale some ridiculously steep hills (or recover after running them), but all things considered I was relatively pleased with my split of 10:31 per mile.  Considering that during my training I had been running 10-minute miles, I thought I did a fairly good job of keeping right on my pace (especially if you take off the time lost to the hills and waiting for the bathroom to free up). 

On the ride back to the Wasserman abode, Mike and Jill mentioned that there is a "rock & roll" half-marathon in Philadelphia in September that is supposed to be fun (live music at every mile); I told them I would need a few days to see how my body handles this latest challenge before moving on to the next one! All things considered, though, I feel fine. Aside for some minor chafing (thanks, Body Glide!) and some soreness going up and down stairs (no surprises there), it wasn't bad at all. I might be tempted to run another one, if for no other reason than to give me motivation to keep running regularly. In the meantime, here are some highlights and pics from before and after the race:

- Mike pulled a "Vanderpool" and over-ordered Italian food for the pre-race dinner (yummy garlic knots);

- there were musical acts along the course at various spots which made it fun, although the Frank Sinatra impersonator wasn't exactly ideal running music;

- miles 6 through 9 were truly lovely, both in terms of how I felt and the scenery along the course;

- best sign along the course, at about mile 10: "Your feet hurt because you're kicking ass!";

- there was a steep incline to get into the high school track, where the race ended, followed by a long stretch around the track itself; ironically, the lady in front of me had on a shirt that read "It's the darn 0.1 at the end that kills you"; and

- after the race Mike and I went to Waffle House to undo all the benefits from the running; we each got a big bowl of Bert's chili, hash browns (Mike got a double order country-style, which means covered in white gravy, while I had a triple order scattered, smothered (in onions) and covered (with cheese)) and a waffle.  Mmmm, Awful House waffles....

Before the race

After the race (with medals!)