Shamrocking - Day 2 - Anthem Half Marathon

Photo Credit to Lisa McIvor

Sunday morning brought an early wake up call.  Luckily I had a great parking spot (thanks to Russ's amazingly generous friends!) so I didn't have to worry about where I was going to park.  I was still 10 blocks from the start, but I was only a couple of blocks from the finish.  Bonus - it was FREE!

I worried about my outfit for the whole 30 minute drive.  I was wearing a long sleeved shirt, a short sleeved shirt over top, capris, tall Shamrockin' socks, and my green Sparkle Light skirt.  The temperature said 50 degrees and I was rethinking the long sleeved shirt.  I made a game time decision to keep the long sleeved shirt, ate my banana before I got out of the car, and then made my way to the start.

Walking those 10 blocks is always and adventure on Shamrock morning. There are 2 ways to get there.  If you walk right up Pacific Avenue, you will get to the start.  However, gear check is on Atlantic.  I don't ever check a bag, so I didn't need the detour.  As usual, I made a friend on the walk.  I also ran into (like literally...who would have thought I would find her) an old friend from high school and college who I follow on Facebook, but I haven't seen in years.  We did the whole, "See you at the race" thing on Facebook, but who would have thought it would actually happen!  I needed to get to the very front of the corrals at 6:30 for a Half Fanatics picture followed by an MRTT picture, but the porta potties were line-free.  You know the rule - if porta potty is a choice, you always take it.  No line + toilet paper is as close to running heaven as you can get.

After that, I made it to the meeting spot and found my people.  We took one of the pictures (yay Moms Run This Town) and my two friends and I headed way back to corral 9 for the start.  We tried to hit the porta potties again (another rule - go early and often), but the lines were too long.  We got into our corrals and waited for our start.

Before we actually get into the race, I need to tell you that I just was NOT feeling it.  I didn't have my usual pre-race dinner and I was irritated about that.  My usual bagel had mold on it and I was irritated about that.  My knee was twinge-y and my tape wouldn't stick and I was irritated about that.  I wasn't feeling it and I had no idea how this race would go.

I had two of my MRTT running mommas who were hoping for the same-ish goals for the race.  We ran Crawlin' Crab together in October and they are great running company!  We took off and headed north on Pacific Avenue.  We started our 2:1 run/walk intervals pretty quickly...about a half mile in.  Our pace was decent, but we made a silent agreement pretty early on that we were going to  have fun.  We had a time in the backs of our minds, but we had FUN in the front.

You may remember from last year's Shamrock post that our spectators are the best!  You may also remember that I really don't like beer.   This year, however, it didn't matter.  We were going to maximize the fun and that meant beer stops.  I took a cup, thanked the givers, and gagged it down.  (No, really...gagged it.  I don't think I finished the cup...party foul, I know.)  There were 3 stops on the way up to Shore Drive....we hit all 3!

At about mile 3, we made turn to the longest 6 miles of the run...Shore Drive onto Ft. Story.  Unlike last year, these miles were fun!  We did some family planning together....who needs a new baby in their lives and when.  We talked about our kids and our jobs and our lives.  We laughed a lot.  All of a sudden (no, really), we turned into Ft. Story and the wind started.  We didn't want to fight the wind, so we walked more.  Right before the lighthouses, we made a new friend.  She is a Half Fanatic from Rhode Island....amazing lady.  She hung with us from mile 8 until about mile 10.

Mile 10 brought us out of Ft. Story and back to the party in the North End.  3 beer stops going up means 3 beer stops going back.  Yep, we hit all 3 again!  Here was also where we saw the pink elephant.   Here's the proof:

Michelle said, "Hey, is that a pink elephant?"  We stopped to document it.

We slowed down a bit at the end.  We fought the wind and sore feet, but after the wind tunnel to get back to the Boardwalk, we could see the finish.  Right about mile 13, we passed a girl that had passed us a mile or so before.  I tried to get her moving...she worked too hard earlier in the race to let us pass her now!

 We crossed the finish line together at 3:08:07.  (Funny story - my husband and Michelle's husband were standing beside one another at the finish line.  We tried to tell them to talk to each other and they wouldn't.....Men!)  It was a great day!  Slow running, but a fun time.  Probably one of my favorite race experiences so far!!

After we finished, Lisa and I went with our other MRTT friend, Melissa, to get some lunch.  This was another highlight of the day.

Then we made an appearance in the party tent while we were hanging around to see my BRF finish her first marathon!  We waiting in the cold and wind, fending off finish line spot stalkers and strollers and this obnoxious lady with this sign that kept blowing in our faces.  And then, she came!  We had the loud group beside us cheer her on too!  She did it!  She finished a full marathon!  She's awesome.

Next up - April Fool's Half in Atlantic City on April 6