Yesterday my BRF and I drove 4 hours to Spring Lake, NC to run the Halloween Half. It was the inaugural race in this location, but the medal was pretty cool, so we were a little excited about the adventure.
We left Chesapeake at 10:00am to drive down to Spring Lake (which is right near Ft. Bragg). We had an easy drive with very little traffic and made it to packet pick up at 2:00. Packet pick up, such as it was, was easy and quick. We got our bibs and our shirts and headed back to the car to fins something to do for two hours until the 4pm race start. (We found a Walmart and hung out for a while.) At about 3, we headed back to the complex where the race started. I changed out of my travel clothes into my race clothes in the car. (Note to all - changing into compression pants in the back of a car is NOT the easiest thing to do.) We found a real bathroom to take care of business (and fix my wardrobe malfunctions to make sure everything was compressed in the right places) and headed out to the chilly, blustery, RAINY start. We watched the kids run their little races, went back to the warm and dry bathroom, ran a little warm up, and then moseyed back to the start. We took our traditional pre-race selfie.
As is often the case, I ran into a Half Fanatics friend at the start area! She is also a Running Turtle and I see her at lots and lots of races!
At about 3:55, things started to get weird. Nobody was in the starting corrals. Nobody knew which way we were going, so everyone was just standing around. BRF and I took the plunge and made the decision to jump in. (Funny note....some others made bold moves too...they got into corrals on the other side of the mats. Two groups were in place, facing one another.) Finally, everyone got in the right place (our side was right, obviously!) and the gun went off. BRF decided that with the late start time, miserable weather, and fast approaching darkness, she was going to stick with me for the race. I wasn't thrilled about this at first because she is faster than me and I slow down even more if I am talking. I really wanted to just zone out with my music and my intervals and not really be all that social. She didn't care. She ran beside me for the whole race. She walked when I wanted to walk and ran when I wanted to run. If I talked, she talked back. Mostly, we just ran together.
We were running along when I noticed that there were no mile markers. I thought I might have missed the first one, but when there wasn't a marker at mile 2, the writing was on the wall. This experience might not rank up there as "best race ever." We went left and then turned around and came back. Then we went up, and turned around and came back. Then we turned onto a neighborhood street. We ran past a couple of people who were looking at us like we were crazy and we ran past some dogs who looked like they wanted to eat us. We then took a turn and saw the finish line. We turned and headed right for it. Then we ran THROUGH it. The Garmin said 3.1. We had crossed the finish line (for the first time) and still had 10 miles to go.
Things didn't get much better from there. We took off through the streets of Spring Lake, alongside the residents in their cars. The course was confusing. We ran through a parking lot. The course was a lot of backtracking. The volunteers at the water stops were supportive and enthusiastic, but the table was too far from where they were standing. Going through water stops was just awkward. It was getting dark pretty quickly and we looked up and saw the fire station right by the finish line. The Garmin said 10 miles. The finish line was right THERE...again and we were running away from it....again.
We headed back toward the main road...with the cars. Then we headed back to the road of barking dogs, which was DARK.....DARK.....DARK. (I was very thankful at this point that BRF stuck with me. We negotiated the confusing course together. We dodged cars together. We avoided dogs together.) As we came up the last hill into familiar territory, I knew something was terribly wrong. The Garmin said 12 miles. A half marathon is 13.1. I knew then that the course was going to be short. We came back to the familiar corner with the finish line in sight. This time, when we crossed it, the race would be over. My very first 12.3 mile half marathon.
Coach had sent a note reminding me to have fun and cross the finish line smiling. I got 50% of it. We had fun, but when I crossed the finish line angry. The clock showed a PR, but the race was short. I didn't run a PR pace. If the race had been 13.1, I would not have had a PR. The time would have been pretty respectable, on par with my most recent races, but it wouldn't have been a PR. If I upload this race to my Athlinks account, it will show a PR. Can I even count it as a half marathon. So many unanswered questions.....
We crossed the finish line and got our medals and a nice, cold bottle of water. When we looked around for the Krispy Kreme doughnuts and pizza that were promised (we won't even get into the beer and wine. Those are always fabulous, but at 7pm, I was HUNGRY!), we saw empty pizza boxes. The 5K runners had enjoyed the pizza. There was none left for the half finishers. Doughnuts were a wonderful idea, but there wasn't a single sign of them anywhere. We left in a huff and found something to eat on the way home.
So, I am sure you are wondering if anything went well. Yes. I ran a pretty strong race. It wasn't PR pace, but I was able to run my :90/:30 intervals for 12.3 miles. (We walked up the hills and walked a little early a couple of times, but I never changed the intervals. BRF keeps me honest. She indulges me just enough to make me think I am in charge of the race, but she pushes me to go when I probably would fade on my own.) I felt strong for the entire time. I wasn't tired or hungry, even with a 4pm start. (Thanks Coach Jamie for helping me fuel for a late race!) We met a Wounded Warrior at mile 9 who got injured and had to walk the end. We walked with him for a little while. He was amazing! We laughed and had fun together, which we haven't been able to do in a while. BRF loved the medal, but I could take it or leave it. Race support loved the shirt!
Clock time was 2:43. Really, if the course had been 13.1, I would have been at about a 2:50. It might have been a season PR, but it wouldn't have been an overall PR. I can't recommend this race. They have a lot, I mean, a LOT of kinks to work out before next year.
Next up - Disney Wine and Dine next week!
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