Melbourne & Beaches Music Half Marathon

Bill Rodgers

I decided to get out of the Midwest for a few days and run the Melbourne & Beaches Music Half Marathon in Florida.  Training for this race was very difficult as this was my first time trying to train through the winter.  I don't know how much you know about winter in Ohio, but it makes training outside almost impossible at times.  Hello indoor track!

Keith Brantly

I flew down to Melbourne the day before the race and was very surprised by the expo.  For a smaller race (about 1200 in the half) it was a very well done expo!  I didn't buy much besides a 13.1 key chain and various trail mix concoctions.  What made it for me was the opportunity to meet several USATF Hall of Famers!  I met and chatted with Zola Budd, Bill Rodgers and Keith Brantly.  Unfortunately, I couldn't stick around long enough to meet Frank Shorter.

After the expo, I headed down to Ft. Pierce as I was staying with friends down there.  It's about an hour drive down there, so I got to enjoy the sights of Florida (as opposed to Ohio).  I was up at about four the next morning and was surprisingly ready to go!  Felt even better after having some coffee and Try Chips during the drive to Melbourne for breakfast.  Getting to the race was a breeze as I found parking about two blocks from the start and the gear check, port-a-johns, and water were only minutes away.  And the weather was perfect!  At the start it was about 58 degrees and overcast with a light mist.  The weather needs to be like this for every race.  After going through my warm-ups it was finally race time!

I can't compare this race to any others in Florida, but I was very impressed.  The first five miles went quickly (though I found it strange that we had a quick left hand turn within 100 meters of the start) and was on very flat terrain.  We ran through some smaller communities and the crowd support was wonderful for a smaller race.  The congestion wasn't bad either, even though the marathoners and half-marathoners started together.

Now...there is one bad thing about the first five.  You can see the first of two bridge crosses in the distance during those first five.  These bridges are very steep and quite intimidating.  I noticed that I wasn't the only one stealing a glance at the bridge every so often.  We began our ascent right at mile 5.  I knew that if I just took it easy, I would be fine.  The crossing felt like it took forever, but everyone made it and began the descent, which I also took very easy.  I did see a few people flying down the other side.  They probably paid for that later on.

Miles 7-11 were very uneventful.  The course support was great, but it was one long straightaway with little view of the water.  These are the important miles where I either shut out the pain by paying attention to the music from my iPod, or I'm aware of every mile.  Despite my training being very so-so, I was able to get lost in the music.  Arcade Fire, the New Pornographers and the Pixies were able to get me through this race.

At mile 11 we had the second bridge crossing.  I stopped at the aid station here for a quick Gatorade and started this second crossing.  This one was of course rougher than the first, but still not bad.  Great views of the water definitely helped.  After that it was a quick jaunt through town and to the finish.  I admit, I played to the crowd during the last few hundred meters.  I just ran 13 miles, so I'm having some fun.

Final time- 2:01.11

I was pretty happy with this time.  Especially since I had a minimal amount of training and this was my first longer race since the Spinx Run Fest Marathon in October.  The post race party was a blast as there was plenty of food and drinks available.  The atmosphere was phenomenal!

Next up: Last Chance for Boston Half Marathon in Dublin, OH on Feb. 27.