Renaissance Half Marathon Race Report

I'm amazed that I agreed to do this race. Back-to-back weekends with 2.5+ hours of testing my endurance in high heat and humidity would have seemed unlikely for me last year. Now it's not such a big deal, (now that it's over).
Everyone participating was fairly warned about the dangerous heat situation. We were all urged to prepare ourselves and keep hydrated during the race. I thought I did a good job of that, but even Coach Kay Vee conceded it was almost impossible.
Packet pickup for the race was Friday, an expo-type scenario at the Renaissance shopping mall, an upscale commercial development still under construction in some aspects. I arrived at the expo around 2pm and found Kay Vee's hubby Richard hard at work, passing out T-shirts and overseeing the volunteers who were putting together and distributing race packets. I hadn't intended to volunteer, but Richard hinted that they were short-handed, so I offered to help out for a while. A while turned into about 4 hours, but it was a thoroughly enjoyable experience. The other volunteers were fun, and seeing faces and names of the hundreds of participants was very interesting.
Back to the race...
KV advised a 10 minute run, 1 minute walk pace for me, and the run was to be slow. For me, this was a training and survival race, not a competition. I admit I was a little worried about the heat.
The race began at 6am. It was already feeling hot as the mass of people shuffled through the starting chute and over the timing mats. I ran as slow as possible, but just fast enough to avoid getting passed by people actually walking. There were many walking since this race was a Marathon Makeover deal. (Marathon Makeover is an organization that will let you pay them to drive you off the couch and into a long term training plan ending with a marathon. Lots of folks change their lives dramatically this way. Others, as I noticed during the race, do it once and revert to their former selves, but still come out to cheer on their friends.)
Most of the race was uneventful - no chafing issues thanks to Skin Sake, plenty of water in my hand thanks to Kay Vee's orders and water stops about every mile. The volunteers were great, even offering to fill my bottle for me.
Between mile 8 and 10 there were some bothersome hills to climb, and I ran the first ones but had to walk most of the others. I found myself passing more and more runners as the end neared. I was certainly not fast, but apparently more able to extend my runs and shorten my walking. My 10/1 pace degraded to about 2 minute/20 second series of bursts until I was on the home stretch frontage road. I finished strong and feeling pretty good about myself.
Kay Vee and her friend were waiting to see me finish and all seemed well. I drank a bottle of water and stopped to talk, then set off to the car to freshen up. As I walked, I could tell things were not right; my vision was darkening around the edges, and my left calf and foot were trying to cramp. I recognized the problem and kept my legs moving to sustain my blood pressure. I threw some stuff in the car and abruptly walked around a truck and into a trailer hitch. I thought I was certainly going to pass out then, but the pain must have kept me conscious. Fortunately, the damage was minimal to my knee, and I kept moving.
I made it back to the crowd and found people who would be able to identify my body if necessary. I was told my lips were blue at one point, but I gradually recovered. I hung out for the awards with Melanie, Holly, Bo and some others, and my good spirits returned.
And so passed another memorable event, and hopefully valuable conditioning for upcoming weeks.

January Again

Of course I've been busy since Thanksgiving, and lazy, and training for a marathon in February that I've decided not to do. I had such a good time punishing myself for two half marathons that I decided enough was enough. Now I can look forward to a fresh new year, get back on the bike, work harder on swimming, and level off on a comfortable running routine for me.

In early December I ran a half on a cool day and felt good afterward. The 2nd Mississippi Blues Marathon (and Half) was not so comfortable but a lot more fun.

I'm running slower than last year and I don't mind. I'm running for fun and health. On a 7 mile run Saturday, I overtook a local legend - Murray - 80 years old. He does 3 to 5 miles 3 times a week. He had just moved to the neighborhood and I recognized him from having seen him at many 5Ks. I slowed (only slightly) to run with him and listen to his story. In case you runners weren't aware, the reason you get slower in your 70's, according to Murray, is that "your lungs draw up and you can't get as much air". I'll accept that. I'll be happy to be alive at 80, but if it's still possible to run at that age I'll do it.

I'm reminded by our friend how much many of us admire and respect those who lived their lives in a different age, how their lives were shaped by different experiences long before our birth. They have wisdom in their words and example that is sometimes hard to recognize. After they've passed from this world, we think how lucky we were to have been a witness to their greatness, and maybe hope to be so admired when we are gone.

I need to mention that Wifeunit and I joined a team of 25 or so dedicated local birders and thousands across the U.S. and participated in the Jackson area Christmas Bird Count. It was our first time and a great experience. We were in 8 groups covering a huge area, 3 in our group. We counted more than 60 species while the total for all Jackson groups was slightly over 100 species.

Also, I must highlight the superb effort of Wifeunit at our annual New Year's celebration. She volunteered her talents as Conductor of the first performance of the Mississippi Gulf Coast Eight-Piece Party Horn Orchestra. Brava!

Mercedes Half Marathon

It must have been an omen. I chose another back roads route to our destination and we spotted a Bald Eagle circling overhead about 5 miles into Alabama.

We spent the Febraury 9th & 10th weekend in Birmingham, Alabama for the Mercedes Marathon. What a fun race this was! We had great weather, 35 degrees and a clear sky to enjoy a tour of downtown Birmingham and the surrounding neighborhoods. It was really exciting to take off running without any idea what lay ahead - really a fun adventure. I only ran the half marathon, and I didn't get a PR, (2:18) but this course was not flat. Check the website for course maps and elevations if you're interested. I hope we can do it again next year.

We stayed at the Redmont Hotel, a restored, very old building with some interesting history, and at least one toilet that didn't work very well. The race host hotel was full, but the Redmont was only three blocks away from the start. Packet pickup, race support, roadside cheering and water stops were great.