Last weekend I ran my 3rd Half Marathon in prep for my Full Marathon in November. These half races have taught me something new each time and bring new experiences I should have before my larger goal of the full.I arrived in Baltimore Friday afternoon and hit the expo before my hotel. Why do race organizers feel the need to run you in a zig zag back and forth the whole damn expo to get your needed race bib and shirt? I always feel the need to get all my stuff first and THEN I do shop and visit the vendors. I hate they make you do that dance. Anyway on to a nice dinner at the Inner Harbor with friends from my running club and then to the hotel for rest and race prep.
The Full Marathon started at 8AM and the Half at 9:45 so I slept in a bit and walked toward the race start hitting a street that the full marathon runners would be coming down. I was able to catch the wheelchair racers and the Elite runners on the way to my start of the Half.
The city/crowds are great for this race. Many people along the course to cheer you on.
My race started and the sky was a bit overcast and windy. Rain drops and wind started a bit harder around mile 3 but SO DID THE HILLS! Holy moly I had really only ran flat courses till now. It seemed like every turn was another hill. I didn't plan on a PR seeing these conditions.
Baltimore has a guy that has been passing out Gummy Bears around mile 23.5 / 10.5 and from
there it's pretty much down hill. When I hit that point I was happy to enjoy a hand full of those bears and laugh for the last few miles seeing the streets covered in the colorful things!
I ended up finishing at 1:57:44 ... 9:00 pace. My prior PR in Philly was 1:57:30 so I was only off a little bit which makes me happy considering the challenges. 1900 / 7813 Overall so withing the top 25%!Next up ... 26.2 in Philly November 22nd!
Here are a few pictures. Pardon the "proof" markings :)
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