This past weekend I had the chance to compete in the
Germantown Half Marathon. When I was
growing up there, we had the Mayor’s Cup 5K.
The half marathon is in its 14th year. This year it also served as the Road Runner’s
Clubs of America National Championship event.
I was very impressed by the event. Packet pick-up was a breeze and the pre-race
expo full of cool stuff. Race parking
was easy for the 1500 runner field. The
lines for the restrooms were not bad and the start line had corrals by
pace. The course itself was flat and
fast. All of the streets were blocked
off by the Germantown Police Department and there were 6 aid stations on the
course plus an unofficial aid station.
The course was line with spectators as well. I was amazed at how many people were at the
finish line. The post race festivities
were pretty good as well. I did not
stick around for the awards, but I did fill up on food and drink after the
race.
After the 2:31 at Ralston Creek, I did not know what to
expect in Germantown. Being sick on and off
for 2 of the last 3 weeks also gave me concern.
I started out feeling really good and was clipping off 9:30 miles
without much effort. I actually debated
trying to pick up the pace around the half way mark, but fortunately I had the
good sense to maintain my pace. I
eventually started to slow in miles 10, 11 and 12 and was planning on just coasting
to the finish. With 1.1 miles left to
go, I turned it back on with a 9:40 split for mile 13 and capped it off with a reasonable
finishing kick. I guess the lower
altitude and pleasant weather were enough of a factor to allow me to finish in
2:11.
I would highly recommend the race to anyone and am
considering making it an annual event for my calendar.
1 comment:
Great job!
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