Jacksonville Bank 1/2 Marathon report:
Saturday- we drove to Jax and did some shopping and too much eating (of unfamiliar foods- not smart.) Went to bed sort of early at the hotel, but woke up a ton at night both from anticipation and the insanely loud a/c. Oh, and then woke up to listen to the rain...
Sunday- put on shorts and t-shirt, WISH visor, rain jacket. Carried iPod and water bottle (from the hotel vending machine- do I look like a pro or what?!) The shuttle bus was right on time. We were at the race in the drizzle at about 6 a.m. It started at 7 a.m. Apparently it was a good thing I decided not to turn on the TV at 4 a.m. (in the interest of my family not killing me). Turns out there was a tornado watch (or so a possibly exaggerating runner told me). Dumped the jacket in my drop off bag.
Race start- there were about 3000 people between the half and full. They didn't really give us any instructions as to where to line up so I just got around the middle of the pack. The first couple of miles were crowded and slow... we ran down a busy street (cops blocked off our lane) and then into residential areas. The water stops were well maintained, and a few people came out to cheer. I was having a great time the first 2-3 miles. Somewhere around mile 7 the full people kept going and we turned around. The novelty wore off about mile 8. Mile 8-12 were fairly desperate (can you say BMZ
). I didn't stop (except at water stops), but my plodding slowed. Finally, we ran across a soccer field and on to a track to the finish line.
Pros: shuttle bus was right on time, volunteers/water stations were great (I drank from my bottle over about 12 miles, but also used the stops), bag dropoff worked well, it was pretty flat... rain stopped (although wind picked up).
Cons: I may be too spoiled by Disney- I NEED entertainment- it was sooo boring, HOT- seriously hot and humid (72 degrees and 74% humidity or close to that), T-shirt is horribly small and required the purchase of a men's version. Several women told me the same thing about the shirts. Oh, and they hand you your medal in a little bag- sure it's a bit cheesy to put it on your neck, but I want more presentation than just a baggy!
I told myself at mile 8 that I was never, ever doing this again after Goofy. I'm feeling slightly better now, but I'm thinking my new Goofy race pace is officially "10 minutes in front of the sweeper bus!"
My time was approximately 2:10. I was too tired to go look at the chip results. After taking a shower at the hotel, we drifted over to the Cheesecake Factory. I had a mood-improving Belgian Waffle with chocolate.
My stupid IT band started to hurt again, so I'm a bit limpy...
That's it. I'm glad it's over.
Especially considering the 20 miler just before it!!! Way to rock it!
