GF and I made the trek a bit after 5:00 for the early 6:45 start. I was thankful for the early start as the sun came out and it warmed up quickly not too long after I finished the race. The half marathon started and ended in Medina's downtown square. The added bonus was the fantastic farmer's market that was up and running by the time I finished. GF and I had a blast at this event.
I had no real goals for this race other than finishing under 1:45. My body is very beat up after the ridiculous amount of racing I've done this year. I really should back off but it's just too much fun! I met up with a few other Half Fanatics prior to the race which was also fun. Finally, I lined up near the 1:50 pace team and we were off.
Miles 1-5: This race was billed as tough and hilly. The hills were mostly rollers and the first half of the course didn't present any problems. The first two miles were actually downhill and I took off at a good pace. I had a slight issue with my watch as I had forgotten to delete some previous data, so my splits start around .1 to .15 into the race as I had to clear data. I felt very good during the first five as we made our way around the north end of town and made our way in a semi-circle to the east side. We ran through plenty of nice residential areas and the roads were blocked off. I started off well and immediately began thinking of a sub-1:40 race. Here are the first five: 1 (7:27), 2 (7:02), 3 (7:15), 4 (7:13), 5 (7:30). The splits are fairly consistent but I knew the second half of the course would be tougher.
Miles 6-10: We continued along the east part of town and I remembered what I had seen on the course map. This course had more turns than any other half marathon I've completed. It was constant turning and it was very difficult to hit all the tangents. I felt like I did an excellent job, but I do hope they tweak this course next year. The longest portion was on a small bike path for roughly 3/4 mile or so. I was still enjoying the course, though. I was right where I needed to be as I wasn't being passed nor was I passing many runners. The residential areas were pretty and the few people who were out were very supportive. However, I was starting to feel the rolling hills and the humidity late in the course, as you can see from my splits. Here are the second five: 6 (7:23), 7 (7:32), 8 (7:22), 9 (7:20), 10 (8:28). Mile 10 was a rough one, but I was still able to get to 10 in about 1:15.
Miles 11-Finish: I was really slowing down and sprinkling in some walking breaks at times. A few runners were near me so I focused on beating them. I knew I had a good time in the bag, but I really wanted to hit my sixth sub-1:40 for the year. Here are the last few miles: 11 (8:10), 12 (7:52), 13 (6:58). I was able to pass two runners and actually had a great thirteenth mile. I cruised to the finish in a terrific 1:38:46 which was good enough for 31/886 overall. I saw GF as I approached the finish and sprinted over to give her a high five. The pictures from the race are great as you can see the exact moment I spotted her and grinned.
Surprisingly, I placed in my age group at 3/48. This is only the third time I've placed in my age group for a half and the second time this year.
Thankfully, I am taking a two month break from half marathons and will focus on some summer 5ks. GF is training for her next 5k, but she's been feeling under the weather recently. She still churned out a good three miler this morning and I think she'll surprise herself next Saturday. We're going to focus on a July 4th 5k for her next PR attempt.
Next race: Kingwood 5k- Mansfield, OH
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