Year 2025: A Tale of Four Half Marathons

 Hello, it's me! I just realized this is my first blog entry for the year...In 2024 posts I alluded to a mystery issue with my right hamstring that wouldn't go away. I finally got an MRI, which revealed I had torn the biceps femoris longus, (one of the hamstring muscles), and it had atrophied. When I asked how much of it had atrophied my ortho just looked at me squarely and said, "all of it". When he told me that the entire muscle was gone I was actually relieved because it was an answer to what was happening to me whenever I would start my run. It was like I had no control over my leg and I would run spastically, like I was going to fall. If I built up anxiety over it it would make it even worse. In my head I worried I had some weird muscle or nerve disease. Within a mile I would settle into a somewhat normal running gait, but it wasn't until I went to PT that they explained to me how my brain had to learn to connect to the other muscles now doing all the work. When I asked how long it would take to fix this problem they didn't have an answer, and now I know why. It's a part of my pre-run ritual now, and some days are better than others. I can see that it's more of an anxiety issue now, so my handling of it is getting better. (FYI I still do leg weights and other exercises to strengthen the compensating muscles).

Early in 2025 I ramped up to full marathon mileage and got a few long runs in, but my body felt too beat up, so I dropped down and decided to focus on half marathons, which worked out great! As much as I love running marathons I'm just not sure my body can go there anymore. 

Half Marathon #1: San Diego Half Marathon (3/23):

We're scared of THE ONE BIG HILL

Not that I need a race to entice me to visit San Diego, and if I did I would choose the La Jolla Half over this one (it is my favorite half), but overall this is a great half marathon. I chose this one because I was looking for a half marathon in March and came across it. The last time I ran that far south in the city was back when we did the inaugural Rock and Roll marathon back in 1998! It turned out that Jacky, who I run with, was also going to be running it, as she was in San Diego for work! It was still dark when we started heading towards the starting line and I didn't think I'd find Jacky, but when I came across the bridge she was standing on top of a concrete pillar and spotted me right away. At this point my anxiety was full tilt (this is something I never used to have, so it's very unsettling to say the least). There were too many people and no free space for me to do my pre-race jog ritual, so I explained to Jacky that she should go on without me, as I may have issues with the first mile, but she would not comply! The funny thing was the race started and we were immediately immersed in conversation so much that next thing I know we were well into the first few miles of the race with zero issues. It was interesting to run in this area, some of it familiar, but most of it not. Jacky had run this race before, so she knew all about the ONE BIG HILL, around mile 9, so she refused to leave me until she was sure I was going to be ok once we got to it. When we turned onto Washington street and saw IT I just laughed out loud. Outrageous! I told Jacky I would be ok and I'd see her at the finish. Heading up and up and up as far as you could see, I turned around and looked back and had my moment. God, I love running. Just look at where it takes you! From here the race got even better, as it ran through a very cool neighborhood called Hillside, followed by a sweet downhill to the finish. 

I'm not sure I'd stay downtown again (pretty sketch when there are hookers leaving your hotel pre-dawn with you), but I would love to run this race again! Bonus-it's San Diego, my favorite city!

Half Marathon #2: Jersey City Marathon and Half (4/13):

The trickery!

You can only get this shot from Jersey City!

I'm going to take the credit for finding this marathon for Toby and Robin (for their 50 state quest). It's not well known, as it's only on its fourth year. I was very excited about this one because Jersey City is directly across Manhattan via the Hudson river, so it's a relatively inexpensive way to tour NYC. Bonus! The course itself has mixed reviews, and I think that's fair. It's good, but not great. I think it could be better, and I anticipate improvements moving forward. First, the positives: no car needed! We stayed in a hotel within walking distance to the expo, start, and finish, and also right next to the PATH, which takes you across to NYC. The race logistics were easy. The race was well executed-no complaints! I loved the medals, as they have a hinge with a door, revealing an etching of the course. My favorite of the four I got this year. Toby and I spent the next couple of days touring NYC, which was a blast. The cons: the course itself has way too many turns, especially the full. Not only is it a 2 looped course, but the second loop runs in reverse. There are some hills, but overall I'm not sure I'd ding it for being too hilly, but keep in mind I only ran the half. The biggest disappointment for me was running in Liberty State Park. I spotted the Statue of Liberty just once, in the distance, and never again. Also, it's not a "park" park, just a rural, somewhat boring stretch of land. Maybe they call all areas without buildings on them parks up there? At any rate I was relieved to turn around out of there and back to the crowds along the course. The streets were in pretty rough shape. Lot of potholes and uneven asphalt. This messed with me a lot. There was an out and back stretch where I wanted to spot Maggie and Robin, but I had to keep my eyes on the road because  it was really choppy along there. The timing of all the turns never worked out to where I could see Toby, so that was disappointing too. 
Overall I would recommend this race! Don't expect scenery, but expect a lively, fun course!

Half Marathon #3: Revel White Mountain, NH (5/4):

Entire course was breathtaking

I am going to blame my 50 state quest for the reason why I chose this race. I had never run a race in New Hampshire. When Toby ran the Clarence Demar Marathon in 2022 I was injured. With 12 states to go marathon-wise I have resorted to finishing up the quest with halves. Toby was game to throw a half marathon run into his training, and Anil was running the full marathon! 

If you're unfamiliar with Revel races their schtick is they are ridiculously crazy downhill courses, which before Boston changed the rules, would help people run faster times to qualify for the Boston Marathon. The elevation drop in this particular race isn't as dramatic, as it's "only" a drop of about 2800 ft, and the half is a lot less than that. The course runs through the White Mountains National Forest, which is absolutely gorgeous! This is the second prettiest half marathon I have ever run! (No half will ever beat La Jolla, sorry). 

The one bad thing about this race is you have to get up painfully early, and when I say painfully, I mean for ME, which is beyond painful for the normal person. Like 3:00 AM. You have to load up on busses to take you to the start, where you're dumped off into a parking lot for at least an hour. Not to mention that it was raining, but luckily it wasn't raining too hard, and it wasn't freezing cold either. Toby and I went out to the street to try to jog around, but they made us come back into the crammed parking lot. When the race started I did have anxiety to deal with, as it was wet, but it didn't take long for it to go away, and I ended up enjoying this half the most out of the four. The downhill, at least for the half, was a definite advantage. My last mile was the fastest! I will say this. For the first time I had FOMO for the full marathon and if I could run another marathon I would really really want to do this one! After the race the three of us drove to Boston to spend the night before heading home, which was fun even though it was pouring rain the whole time!

Half Marathon #4: Visit Casper Marathon and Half (6/1):

yawn

Crossed just under the 4 hour wire!

True bad asses!

Wyoming....oh boy. As far as my short list of dreadful half marathons go, this is second, only to that nightmare in Odessa (maybe I should have packed my pink wig...IYKYK). We had to do it. We needed the state! Robin needed it too. Let's start with the positives. As far as elevation goes, it's the lowest in elevation for Wyoming marathons, at 5,000 ft. Everyone affiliated with the race, including the volunteers, were beyond friendly and enthusiastic about their event. I was seriously hoping it would rub off on me. Logistically, it wasn't too hard to get to, considering. We flew into Denver and did the 4 hour drive because after the race we spent a few days in Fort Collins, Colorado, visiting Bill and Ginna who had just moved there. Sadly, the town of Casper has seen better days. A one night stay there was enough! Choosing a marathon in June is always tricky, and sure enough it was going to be a warm one. 

We got bussed up to the start (yes I said up, because this course had hills, lots of them. None of them were too bad though. When we were jogging around before the start I decidedly did not have FOMO. I wasn't even sure I wanted to run the half!  I really struggled with this race, both physically and mentally, the worst battle to have! It heated up so fast and with no shade there was no respite from the sun's assault. I found myself walking a lot of the hills. My heart rate was beyond crazy. I caught whiffs of cow manure. I found myself cussing internally about not being able to find arrows for the path or not getting directed to turn left to split from the full. I was sick with worry for Toby and Robin. Usually Toby doesn't worry me, but he was battling a hamstring pull and watching him jog around the parking lot prior to the start wasn't comforting. I will say the finish area was lively and fun! They do a great job working with what they have! Anyhow, Toby and Robin did finish ok, and we hightailed it out of there to Colorado. Oh, and the color theme for their race shirts and medals was bright pink, which didn't go over well with Toby, but I liked it! The bonus of doing this race was that it led us to Fort Collins, where we were so impressed that we have decided to move there!

I'll try to post more on the regular, but half marathons just don't deliver as much material to work with, ha. I do have half marathons lined up for 2026, and I feel the urge to ramp up to marathon mileage and see how it feels. With regard to running future marathons I'll circle back to the question, "Is this how it ends"?  Will I answer definitively, or again with "for now"? 

Fargo Half Marathon June 1, 2024

 

Didn't get to run in and out of the dome this year!

Apparently I hit a nerve when I mentioned to this fellow finisher that we were leaving early the next day because there wasn't a lot to do in Fargo. He snaps back with, "Well there isn't anything to do in Dallas either". Ouch! and touche. He then continues to tell us how he and his wife are heading out to some national park, which is over 300 miles away...and in Minnesota. Why are we talking to this old fart, I'm thinking, why are we in this Buffalo Wild Wings parking lot, standing in the small strip of shade provided by the temporary Samuel Adams tent? This has got to be the worst finish line party EVER. As he drones on I am imagining his wife back at the hotel darning his socks. The one free beer we stood in line for is starting to hit me and I realize it's been awhile since I've eaten, thanks to the lack of food back at the finish line. I try not to go there, 2016, the last time I was here, where our post race finish included a pub crawl passport booklet, which, if completed, rewarded us with another medal. Now that was a party!

(Here is the link to my write up from that year...https://tntlinder.blogspot.com/2016/05/race-recap-fargo-marathon-may-21-2016.html )

That year we started and finished INSIDE the Fargodome with real food, like PIZZA. But this year...

Finish line "festival"

...And a sign saying "FREE BEER" with an arrow pointing to the Buffalo Wild Wings off campus about  a mile or so away...

Obviously I'm still processing my disappointment with the finish, especially since they promised it to be extra special, given it was their 20th annual, but really, this was my only disappointment with the race. Read on:

Toby and I flew in with just enough time to hit the expo and join Anil for a beer, then dinner. We tried to get served at an Italian restaurant, but as the case with most small towns they were overwhelmed with marathoners, so we went with our Thai food backup. It works every time!

Half for me!

Running the full

Race day morning: I'm still scratching my head as to why they changed so much of their race dates and times for each of their races weeks before the marathon. Inexplicably they decided to have the half marathon start 15 minutes before the full. What that means is the half marathoners got the singing of the US and Canadian national anthems, plus a tribute to their race director who was killed last year, but the full marathoners got zilch. Anil and Toby didn't complain about this like I would have...

I forgot how festive and heavily populated the streets of Fargo were last time I was here. I have to say it was a lot of fun. As I'm approaching spectators and see the little kids with their hands out to high five I start to reach out as usual and then it hits me....THIS IS HOW I GOT WHOOPING COUGH AND STREP THROAT when I ran Baton Rouge in January!!! I was so confused about how I got sick because we didn't fly to Baton Rouge and pretty much stuck to ourselves. But I did touch about 100 tiny hands that day...I'll have to carry hand sanitizer or something next time, because I really missed getting to do this. 

I wish I had more to say about the race, but it was over so fast, even ay my current pace. Yeah I had to stop and loosen my shoe and I had to take walk breaks near the end as it heated up, but there's no drama. I'm not sure why I miss the drama of the full. If I need a good cry I can watch "Marley and Me" again. I'm still missing the distance, but my body isn't, so this is where I am. And I LIKE running half marathons-don't get me wrong, but they're an entirely different experience for me. The funny thing is I never did run many half marathons until now, so mentally they seem to end before the "good, bad, ugly stuff" happens. 

Once I finished and changed into dry clothes I tried to find the FREE BEER associated with the ticket hanging off of my race bib. I started following the signs until I realized I was getting too far away to make it back to the finish line in time to see Toby finish.

a 3:14 finish

And then Anil

Toby and Anil had very positive things to say about the full marathon, as I did about the half, so I was confused when I read several negative race reviews.  Yes, there are a lot of turns, but it's flat, and mostly shaded too. They had some hiccups to be sure, so going forward I'm not sure if I would recommend this race, but if you're looking for a race in North Dakota, hmmmm. As for the town of Fargo itself; it is fun for a short while, especially if you like to drink. We managed just fine!

Went here TWICE

Fun and "Subterranean" 

Rooftop bar

Early flight out, bye Fargo, for real I'm not coming back!

Louisiana Half (and full), Baton Rouge, January 2024

 

Although I've already ran a marathon in Louisiana I would have wanted to run this one, but only if I could get over my "leg thing" that has been bugging me since last May. Whatever this ITB/hamstring injury is, I've thrown just about everything at it: massage, dry needling, cortisone shot...and yes it is getting better, but very slowly. "Racing" on it has set me back each time, so the best I could do was sign up for the half marathon and try not to race it, but take it easy. My longest run had only been 10.5 miles anyhow, so 13 miles was a bit much. To make it even more challenging I inexplicably got a huge blister on my ankle days before the race. I couldn't even wear a shoe with a back on it!

Exhibit A  No I don't have cankles: bad angle

As far as post race parties go this one is one of the greatest ever. Each participant is given 6, yes 6 tickets for beer or food, and it's not just beer, it's Abita beer, and it's not just food, it's gumbo and jambalaya. So I'm thinking if I start the race and it's not going well I'll just turn around and head straight to the finish, a win-win. Ok, onward to the race write up:

What's funny about the strange fact that the only people who signed on for this trip were the Murgi (AKA Kathy and Mike Murgas) is that the last time Toby and I ran a race in Louisiana (New Orleans), 24 years ago, was with the Murgi!

Just a tad younger then...

We decided to drive to Baton Rouge in the SUV, due to the incoming ice storm. We knew we'd be ahead of the storm before the race, in fact. we'd be in Baton Rouge as the storm hit Dallas, but at some point we'd have to encounter the storm as we headed home. We just hoped it was much ado about nothing...

We met up with the Murgi at the expo, which for a race of this size was a bit underwhelming, but I have long since lowered the bar on expectations. We still managed to find things to buy, and getting our race packets was easy. However, this is SO strange! They claimed we were on our own for providing a bag for bag check AND labeling it with our bib numbers with no means whatsoever to do so. We scrambled around the expo for masking tape and highlighters from the other vendors there. 

A cool setup for race photos 

A big plus with this race is the start and finish are in the same place, and within walking distance from the hotel, A+ on logistics race day morning. I said good-bye and good luck to Toby in the hotel room, since he was planning on staying there until just before race start! Me and the Murgi arrived at bag check shortly before race start, and get this: they had clear bags and sharpies available!! What the hell?

The Murgi were saying we were going to run together and I tried to explain to them the level of my slowness, which would involve walking the water stops and never looking at my watch. Kathy was still pretty sick and congested, but I wasn't buying it. I figured I'd be alone a mile into it when they realized how slow I was, so I kept my music with me. 

I just want to point out that this race is lively and fun! We ran through various neighborhoods, the LSU campus, and ending in front of the state capitol. Plus, it seemed like there were water stops at every mile! Even on such a cold morning there were tons of spectators out on the course. Not to mention the most alcohol hand-outs I've ever seen in a race in my life! The half marathon peels off from the full on the 10th mile, as they head east for even more of the same, which is good to hear, as some of the races tend to focus on the half and dump the marathon runners out into an afterthought...

Anyhow, I can't seem to shake the Murgi, ha! It's becoming apparent to me that Kathy wasn't bluffing. She is not feeling good AT ALL. Mike and I are in full on conversation mode, which is a great distractor for all of us. I haven't ran with people much due to my injury, so this is greatness. We are walking the water stops and the miles are clicking away. My leg is holding up, but more importantly my triple-wrapped bandaging on my ankle is holding up, so I got all that going for me, but by mile 8 I feel the need to start my walk-run to the finish and leave the Murgi. As I pass the porta potties I see Kathy popping into one, so they eventually pass me once more and I am within shouting distance at the marathon split to wish them good luck! From there I walk-run the last few miles to the finish, no worse for wear, finally, on my road to recovery!

Worst finish line photo ever--hey I have legs buddy!

I have enough time to retrieve my bag and change into dry clothes before walking back to the finish line to catch Toby finish. No time for a quick beer with this guy! He's been running well, so I figured I better be there before the 3:10 mark this time. Just as I pull out my phone, click on the camera and switch out of selfie mode there he is, coming up the road! 

3:10 with a smile?

It's his third fastest marathon, but within 13 seconds of his second fastest, precious seconds he lost while having to make a pit stop, and yes "that" kind of pit stop. The funny thing is there was a new roll of toilet paper with no obvious lifted starter piece, so he was ripping and tearing at it like a crazy racoon! Precious seconds right there! Anyhow, he's in great shape, post race, to walk back to the hotel to change and await the Murgi finish. 

I want to point out that their tracker system sucks. Totally unreliable and confusing as well. Notifying you the time it took for them to run from mile 13.1 to 20 is useless unless you care to sit down with a calculator. I was thinking if they stick together it will be around a 4:45 finish, based on what pace we were running together, but Kathy does speed up later in the race, so we based our return to the finish line based on a 4:30 finish to be safe. (Note: I didn't get a single notification on Kathy from the tracker).

When we got back to the finish line it was definitely warmer, but not hot, thank God, and before too long we spotted them both, yes, they were finishing together, which is pretty dang rare!

Onward to the post race party! Oddly enough we were told we only had one hour until the beer stopped flowing, so it was a mad dash to pilfer as many beers as we could. The gumbo was good, but the jambalaya was the REAL DEAL. It was amazing. When I asked what was in it, the guy's Cajun accent was so thick I didn't understand him. Maybe it's best not knowing...

Do I recommend this race? Yes I do! It's not pancake flat, but I'd consider it gently rolling, with only one rude hill on mile 25, or 12 for me. There are lots of turns. There are some pot holes or lumpy asphalt from tree branches in a few spots, but overall the streets are in pretty good shape. A January marathon in the south is tricky though! Had this race been just 2 days later it would have not happened due to the ice storm!

The rest of the trip was great fun, but cut short on Monday, as we had to leave in the morning to deal with the ice storm between us and Dallas. No way around it, although we tried!

Fun? no, but it was an adventure!

Charlevoix Half Marathon (and full), Charlevoix, Mi, June 2023

 

I've had this race on my list for years. I've always wanted to make a bigger trip out of it to include visiting a lot of the sights of northern Michigan, including a day visit to Mackinac Island. Luckily we were able to get a rather large group involved, which made the trip even more fun! If you've never been to northern Michigan you must go there! It is gorgeous! Anyhow, on to my race write up...

The Charlevoix marathon and half marathon are out and back courses, primarily run along a pedestrian path called the Little Traverse Wheelway, which runs parallel to Lake Michigan. There were a little over 400 full marathoners and about 600 half marathoners for this year, their 17th year of running!

The expo was set up near the famous drawbridge along the water. They had a ton of race apparel for sale, but their purchasing process was sheer madness, so I didn't bother to buy anything. Actually, I have so much race stuff...the race shirt we got was ok enough for me. 

Luckily, the entire race runs north of the bridge, which lifts every half hour!

This was weird-the race didn't offer a bag check on race day! I could not understand why, as the race starts and finishes in the same area and they had plenty of green space for it. For some this may be no big deal, but we had 4 marathoners and 3 half marathoners, with 3 others acting as support/cheer on the course, so we had a logistical puzzle trying to figure out what vehicle to put our bags in that would be at the finish when we all finished. Parking was a bit of a challenge too, with no valid guidance from the race officials. Even the link to parking on their web site didn't work. Mike Murgas found a great spot close to the race though, so it all worked out fine. 

The full marathon started at 6:00! Toby, Laura (LSP), Jamie, and Kathy ran the full. Mike, Jedonna, and I waited 30 minutes later to start the half marathon. It was a crisp, cool 40 degrees!! 

This was yet another marathon that I had signed up for, only to drop down to the half. (Is this how it ends?). I lost my mojo after Nebraska and the arrival of the heat back home. I'm glad I dropped, because I pulled "something" in my leg, and it was bothering me pretty bad by the time we got to Michigan. Like Alaska, there was no way I was going to miss out on running this! 

The man who sang the National Anthem for the full had to leave, so they didn't have a singer for us, but the announcer asked for a volunteer and this guy got up there and sang it beautifully! And we were off!

The first 3-4 miles zig zag through a quiet neighborhood in Charlevoix, which turned out to be my favorite part of the race. Once we got on the path, I don't know, it was less great. The path was in great shape, and often times tree lined, and other times offered glimpses of water, so there's nothing specific to complain about. (Although you could hear the highway running next to it). I like bike paths, especially asphalt ones. (This one did have a wooden bridge stretch though, ugh). I think what it is is I don't like to be on them for a long time. I start to get a little claustrophobic, or maybe bored? Anyhow, we remained on this path all the way to the turn-around point, and the same was also true for the full marathoners. 

It got very clustery as we got closer to our turn around point-saw Jedonna and Mike, did a turn around in a space of about 2 feet-hilarious, then back we went. My leg pain started kicking in more, but still "runnable", at least until near the end-I think I started walking a little around mile 11, but not too much, just up the hills where it hurt the most. Before I knew it it was over, no drama, halfs are just plain fun! Having Amelie and George cheer me in was greatness!

Thanks Amelie!

I had less than 30 minutes to catch Toby finish, then one by one we watched the others come in. It was truly a great day to run!

Amelie had these made!

Age group awards were glasses

Stats:

It's strange who placed and who didn't-they had some super freaks in some of the age groups.

Full marathoners:

Toby: 3:16, 1st

Kathy: 3:57, 4th!!

Jamie: 3:51, 3rd

Laura: 4:52, 2nd (First was a 3:42!)

Half Marathoners:

Mike: 2:10, 10th (and he stopped for the bacon!)

Jedonna: 2:15, 4th!!! (would have won my age group!)

Me: 2:18, 3rd, (Just happy to be here)

I do love how I'm getting through my list even with half marathons. It's a long list, and I always thought it was longer than my marathon abilities...plus we are one step closer to Jamie's 50 state quest (this was state number #47!!!). I don't now if I'd recommend the full if you feel like I do about paths, but the marathoners said they would recommend it. It was pretty flat and you did have quite a bit of shade. Bring music in case you get bored though!

Lincoln Half marathon (and Full), May 2023

For those that don't know, my 50 state marathon quest has always been a back-burner of a plan, partly because I never wanted it to be a priority over running other marathons I was interested in, and partly because there were some states that I had very little interest in traveling to. I'm sorry if I offend anyone, but Nebraska was one of those states. The upcoming Charlevoix Marathon in Michigan (in mid June) is a marathon I have always wanted to run, but I've had so much trouble with heat that I was afraid I wouldn't survive the training (even in April or May I have had issues in the past). I figured if I could find a marathon 6 weeks prior to Michigan I could "piggy back" my winter training. (Runner's logic knows no bounds). So....looking back 6 weeks from Charlevoix was the Lincoln Nebraska marathon. Oh boy. Coupled with Southwest airlines credit from their Christmas debacle it was meant to be. Jamie already ran Nebraska so she was out, but Robin needed the state! Maggie and Toby signed on as well, so the promise of a pleasant Spring marathon was born.

At first glance the Lincoln marathon reads a lot like the Kentucky Derby marathon, where the first half is a loop around the city, full of vitality, and as the half marathoners peel off to the finish line the full marathoners are led out to a lifeless concrete path away from town. Looking closer, true, there's a lot of concrete out there, but most of the out and back stretch is along a road, parallel to the trail, with some residences or businesses, so it's not as desolate as Kentucky, and the turn around is along Holmes Lake, which is actually quite pretty. Still, if the sun is out, this could be considered a death march, as there is very little shade. 

We lucked out with great spring weather this year, so in that regard training went well. Still, I had some inconsistencies with my long runs. Once or twice my back flared up. It's hard to get a handle on what I can get away with these days. Short answer is not what I used to get away with. I had so little confidence that I was on the fence about running the full marathon the whole time I was training. 

Flash forward to the week before the marathon and the "pleasant" forecast started taking the turn. Another hot one. If nothing else at least it helped me make a decision. Looks like I'm running yet another half marathon. (Note: My days of running hot marathons are truly over).

Onward to the race write up!

We flew into Omaha, had a quick lunch, drove to Lincoln, and went straight to the race expo. It was fairly small, but ok enough. I went ahead and changed my entry to the half marathon, although you didn't really need to, as they suggested you could change your mind "on the fly" race day and simply cut off to the finish line as a half marathon run instead. Mentally, I couldn't have that in my head as an option-I had to have my decision made before the race started. Also in my head though, if I miraculously felt great I would carry on to the full, so I would carry an extra gel or two...

The promise of an overcast day?

Race day morning it was about 60-65 degrees and cloudy. Not bad, but it was approaching 7:00 AM and the sun was already trying to break through the clouds. One thing we noticed off the bat with this race was how well organized it was. The race's start and finish took place on the University of Nebraska campus in and around the Memorial stadium. The National Guard were handling everything flawlessly. They utilized a porta potty set up I had never seen before. They took groups of 8 and shaped them into semi-circles with singular lines per grouping. So fast and efficient! (I know I know, it's the little things, ha). They placed our checked bags into numbered trash bins and wheeled them over to the finish area for later, and again, just right there with your bag as you finished. Flawless. We said goodbye to Toby right away, per usual, and eventually made our way back to our corral, again, an efficient system in place. It didn't take long for us to start and we were in corral D.

Maggie and Robin were gone right away. Initially I had a hard time deciding what pace to run. Should I run a "faster" half marathon pace, or maybe slower in case I felt good enough to go for the full? Well the debate didn't last long. With the occasional sun breakthroughs I was feeling it already. Decision was made to settle into a pace based on survival. Walk the water stops, drink two full cups, repeat as necessary. This was going to be one ugly race...and I was only talking about the half!

I would have really enjoyed this race if I wasn't suffering so greatly. They had live music everywhere! And all the bands sounded great! Maybe it was my brain trying to get me to stop running, but I could have easily hung out and listened to these bands. And talk about spectators! I don't know how many kids I high-fived for power (I'll try anything). I saw the same lady 3 times with her boom box and her poster boards, "Don't Stop Believing", "Ain't nobody going to break my stride"...They could have used more water stops, but the ones they had were amazing, and even included cups of ice! There was only one two mile stretch on a concrete path out near a freeway that was desolate, but even then people were driving by, honking, and yelling out the windows. It was that friendly and positive. Still, after mile 8 I found myself taking walk breaks. Hello Mr. Sun. An ambulance rushed through us to a guy lying off to the side, which was unsettling, and a true demotivator. I don't want to die, or end up lying in the grass thinking I'm dying! Walking is good. People don't die by walking. Ok good, it's not Toby, move along...

Nearing the finish, I'm shaking my head at the thought of continuing past the finish line. NO WAY. In fact, I panicked briefly, thinking I had missed the turn, as my watch said 12.8 miles and I didn't see anything ahead. But the finish line was there, around the corner from an insulting little climb that felt harsher than it should have. Again, efficiency in full force with the post race gauntlet. Medal, water bottle, food items in a box, and then out to the finish area, where I hear my name being called out. Maggie!! We had a good laugh/cry about that experience! By then (9:30?) it was 75 degrees and not a cloud in the sky. Worry set in for Toby and Robin. 

Maggie and I had fun in the finish area. We had our picture taken together, roamed about and found cookies and pizza! We found an indoor restroom to change into dry clothes. We were getting close to the 3:15 finish time for the full so we headed over to catch Toby finish. I wasn't sure if he'd run faster than a 3:30 with the heat and with the after-effects of a massive allergy attack a few days prior, but he finished with a 3:21! 

We reunited with Toby and yes, he said it was UGLY on that second half, just beyond the pale, and he was SO relieved that neither of us had ventured out there. We pulled up tracking for Robin and watched the marathoners finish as it got hotter and hotter. Still, it was reassuring to "watch" her moving forward on the tracker. Toby miraculously recovered without his need to lie in a fetal position for 30 minutes. His recovery drink, whatever it is that looks like muddy water, appears to do the trick. Before too long Robin made her way to the finish! TOUGH! I touched her arm and it was HOT, so we all walked over to the baby pools at the medical tent so she could drop her body temp.

Toby's Garmin foot pod temperature thingy

Before too long we were finished with our Lincoln marathon experience (no beer), so we headed back to the hotel to clean up and venture out to see what else Lincoln had to offer. Their Haymarket Square had some great breweries, a great coffee chop, bakery, restaurants, and campus grounds to explore. It was a fun little town! 

In short, I highly recommend running this race, but the full? I'd say only if the weather was cooler, and even then with the caveat that you have to lower your expectations for that second half. 

After the fact I had a bit of melancholy. It was yet another marathon I didn't run. Not that it was the wrong decision-just the realization that I may not ever run another marathon, which is an ongoing internal battle I've been having lately. I've always accepted the idea that I couldn't run marathons forever, but I always thought the decision would easily come to me and it would be conclusive. Well it's not. I'm still trying! The heat has arrived and Michigan is on the horizon. We shall see...