Zooma Annapolis 2009 Race Recap

I did it. I completed my first Half Marathon. My secret goal time was anything under 2 hours, and I beat that! I finished in 1:53 with a pace of 8:46 minute mile! I was very proud of that. I also finished in 160th place! There were 1,100+ people in the Half Marathon race, and another 1,200+ people for the 10K. It was such a difference from the Philadelphia Broad Street Run where there were 26,000+ runners alone. I have to say that I enjoyed the Broad Street Run a lot better.  I am not sure if it was the Zooma course or weather or what. You have to like some raced better than others, right? I still look forward to the NYC and Disney Half Marathons coming up!

Here is my recap. Check out the route here.

Mile 1: I wore my trash bag for the first mile, and then threw it off to the side. I was trying to figure out how to get my Garmin Forerunner to work the lap function, while running. Did not go well, but made the first mile go by fast. I probably should have figured out how to do this before I got in line for the race, but that’s how I roll.

Miles 2-3: Going across the Severn River Bridge. I was prepared for this slight incline. It was nice to go over the bridge, but the bottom of the bridge was where the race ended, so it was rough to pass that by. Mentally I said, “See you in an hour and a half finish line!”

Miles 3-5: Sucked. My shoes were totally water logged. Definitely weighed me down. These miles were on a road, which went up and down, up and down. I was bored on the boring road, and the hills were rough. During these miles, I passed by mile markers 11 & 12. It was tough passing them by knowing I had so much farther to go still.

Miles 5-8: These miles were on the Baltimore – Annapolis Trail. It was through the woods, and there were trees on both sides, not much to look at. Luckily I had a fabulous Britney mix to get me through this trying time! Another rough part of this was that there were no spectators. Since it was in the woods/on a trail there wasn’t many places for people to go watch, but also, since the weather sucked, I am sure that affected any turnout.

Miles 8-10: We turned around at mile 8 point something and the we started to head back towards the finish line. I felt relieved to be making my way towards the end! I started to get very tired and my legs started to get sore. My shins were bothering me a lot during the entire race, but I just mentally pushed all that away. I made it to mile 10 in the same time as the Broad Street Run, so I was feeling good about that considering the Philly run was a way faster course.

Mile 11: Out of the woods! 2 more miles to go. Starting to get a little tired, and this mile was on the road again with all the ups and downs! Almost there!

Mile 12: Knowing I only had 1 (.10) miles to go I tried to pick up the pace, but my legs were struggling, and my shoes were very waterlogged, and it was just rough. There were more people on the road for this stretch, so that totally helped me mentally! Every step after mile marker 12 is a personal distance record for me, so that’s awesome too!

Mile 13: I see my family and friends in the crowd by the finish line, and pick up the pace to finish my first every half marathon!

Here are some pictures of me making my big finish:

Rounding the last corner:

Final stretch:

Crossing the finish line:

 

Here is the bride in running action. She did the 10K, her first race ever. She did awesome! The running picture is a re-creation of her actual race, since my mom missed taking her picture when she passed by! They were waiting for me and decided to have some fun!

   

Finish Line. Boo-Ya!

Here is my finishers medal. Its actually a necklace. I have to say, I like my huge  Broad Street medal a little better, but this will always have a special place in my heart to remind me of my first Half.

I do like the fact that it says the date on it. That is nice.

  

More race recap to come!