dislvr74 - congrats on your half. Awesome job for not training as much as you would have liked. Way to go!!!
I participated in a small, hometown half-marathon yesterday in Wynne, Arkansas. I used this race as a training day for the Goofy in January. I had no expectations other than to enjoy the small hometown flavor and to get my steps in. Here are a few highlights of the event:
Packet pickup and pasta dinner:
The dinner and packet pickup the night before the race were held in the local community center. The walls were lined with pictures drawn by the local elementary school children welcoming the runners. The pasta dinner featured homemade food from the locals. Very nice.
Race Day:
The race started at the local high school and ended in the football stadium, which I thought was nice. We had access to the showers and bathrooms in the gym before and after the race - another plus. Much nicer than having to line up for the porta-pottys. After the race, we were all treated to a nice barbeque and pizza lunch. This was held inside the school cafeteria. Very good!
The Course
The course was an out and back course, some of it on a major highway. There were cones separating us from the vehicles. We had to walk/run on the shoulders and much of that had a little slant....not very comfortable.
There were water/gatorade stations (and portalets) at every mile. Many of these stations had fruit and pretzels. At the half turnaround, Gu packets were given out. Nice!
The Race
Usually, the starting temp at the race is in the upper 30's and ends in the low 60's. However, the starting temp was in the upper 50's and the high was expected to be in the upper 70's. It was windy at the start so the temperature felt a little cooler. I knew it would get warm rather quickly once the race started, though. I had on my WISH short sleeve shirt and I used one of those mylar race blankets to shield me from the wind. I was kind of surprised of the number of people who wore long sleeve shirts and jackets to the race. I knew most of them had made a mistake.
This was a small race. I'm not sure how many people signed up but there were less than 400 finishers - 216 for the half and ~160 for the full. Before the race started, I looked around to see who I might be "hanging" with. Most people appeared to be very fit. I figured then that I would be "hanging" with myself. Ha!
The race started and I was left in the dust after about the first quarter of a mile. I turned around and saw no one behind me. After the first mile, I really wanted to quit. I just wasn't feeling the love of the walk. I convinced myself that I needed to continue to get my steps in. I wasn't going to worry about the time; I just wanted to get the miles in.
After about 2 miles into the race, I started jogging for 30 seconds, every 5 minutes. I kept this up for about 5 miles. I managed to pass a few people that started out too fast and were starting to slow down. Plus, it was getting quite warm. I saw several people trying to roll up their sleeves. Many had tied their jackets around their waists. I knew they had made a mistake.
It was quite windy at the first of the race but it calmed down as we made our way through town. Once we got on to an open highway, the wind picked back up and it seemed to be at our back and to the side. Coming back, the wind was in our face. This made it very difficult to walk and run in.
I gave up the running around mile 7. I walked faster than I could run at that point. The wind was so fierce; my neck and shoulders stiffened up. My legs felt like led. The game became a mental, as well as a physical force for me. I just kept telling myself that it's all about getting the steps in...don't worry about the time.
I managed to pass a few people along the way....especially toward the end. The wind and heat knocked many people for a loop. I, surprisingly, was able to keep going through it all. When we got back in town, the wind calmed down a little and I was able to jog...a little. Toward the end of the race, the Wynne High School ROTC cheered us on. Very nice!
As I entered the football stadium, I managed to jog for a minute to the finish line. I was quite surprised to see my time at 3:09....a PR for this year (not a personal PR, though). My neck and shoulders really hurt, my feet were killing me and my legs still felt like led. I could barely walk to the gym but I had finished and I was thrilled!
A lot of people were affected by the wind and heat. Very few, if any, had a PR for the day. The wind and heat made this marathon (and half) a difficult or rather, a more challenging race.
Volunteers
The volunteers for this race were awesome. They really appreciated us coming to their town and hoped we would come back next year. Very nice.
Timing chips
There was only one mat to record the chip time - at the finish. I was kind of surprised that there was not one at the beginning. I was at the back of the pack so I think my start time was around 30 seconds to a minute after the gun went off.
Trophies
Oh, wow! There were some big honking trophies given out at this race. This is probably one reason why people like doing it. Trophies are given out 5 deep for every age division within a gender division. The first place trophies looked to be around 3 feet high. All the others were around a foot tall. LOTS and LOTS of trophies were given out. Sadly, I was not a recipient but then again, I did not expect to be.
Medals
Medals were given out for every finisher. The problem is that the same medal was given out to both half and full finishers. There was nothing to distinguish the two. If I had completed the full, I might be a little disappointed.
Reflections
This is really a race for dedicated runners and walkers. Many people really like this race and do it year after year. It served my purpose well - to get the steps in. The out and back made it somewhat boring for me. Plus, I'm used to some entertainment and frills; there were none. But, again, it served my purpose well. The volunteers made it worth while for me!
wellesleyprincess - if you need more details, let me know!
GO! WISH Team GO! 
