Charlotte half marathon race report
This was my last race of the year and I was hoping to have a decent showing. I knew the race would not include a PR due to the MCL strain I’ve been nursing since late October.
I think I just knew that this was not going to go well before I even left my house.
Short backstory: The knee was feeling better after only running 9 miles last week in order to try and let my knee heal. I was feeling good in all my short runs this week and feeling confident.
By Thursday night I had a good migraine building. I think I knew then that this race was doomed from the start. Friday night I landed in Charlotte with an on time, no stress flight. I go to my cousin’s house with no problems and the matching shirts my aunt and I had made were a big hit. (We were Not Goldilocks and Papa, Mama, and Baby bears.) I thought I had covered the allergy issue with my cousin’s dog, and we were all ready to go the next morning. Well, except for the fact that I was suffering through day 3 of that stupid migraine. I knew before we left the house I was done.
We headed to the start at 7:00 for a 7:45 start. The gun went off and I started almost 5 minutes behind the start with my aunt, since I didn’t want to push my knee. By the time she dropped back at 1.5 miles, my knee was fine, but I was just congested enough (dog allergy) to no longer be able breathe, plus my head was pounding.
I pushed through the first 8 miles, taking a slow(er) pace and still thinking I might manage a 2:40 half, which considering the circumstances, was a great half time. By mile 9, I was so miserable, I was hoping to see somebody who would be at the mile marker and could get me back to the start. I have never remotely considered stopping mid-race before. (I thought of Heidi back at the Towpath marathon and decided if she could finish, I could figure something out.) So I walked.
At mile 10.5, I met up with somebody else who was struggling and we decided to walk the rest of the way together. At this point, I was planning on just getting that medal. I had a ton of money invested in this race (my first out of state race) and if nothing else, I was taking hardware and a shirt home.
At mile 11, someone on the sidelines recognized the front of my shirt (we had our family name + half marathon team on it) and asked if I was with Papa Bear and Baby Bear. I said that was my uncle and cousin, and turned so she could see my shirt (the not goldilocks one) and she cracked up. That laugh got us moving again.
At mile 12, we discussed running the rest and I said no, since I could finally breathe again. So we decided to run the last quarter mile and kept walking. We watched the first woman finish the full as we were plodding the last quarter mile to the finish. We managed to pull just enough oomph to speed up enough to finish under 3 hours. I was never so happy to finish a race, and I was so relieved it was over.
The upside to the race is that I held my own on a much hillier course (they were not steep compared to what I’m used to running, but I don’t have that many long hills at home) than even I’m used to. And it was the most beautiful race I’ve ever run. I could have just stopped and looked at the houses along the course for a whole week. I loved Charlotte, it’s a beautiful city. I found a shirt that I fell in love with at the finish. It has an elevation chart for the race on the back, and under the logo on the front it says “Flats are for sissies”. I love that, and I love hills in general.
I want to run Charlotte again, hopefully under better circumstances next time, and it was so great to have a day and a half to spend with my family. And I am so glad I didn’t give up and DNF. I would have spent the next year kic
I think I just knew that this was not going to go well before I even left my house.
Short backstory: The knee was feeling better after only running 9 miles last week in order to try and let my knee heal. I was feeling good in all my short runs this week and feeling confident.
By Thursday night I had a good migraine building. I think I knew then that this race was doomed from the start. Friday night I landed in Charlotte with an on time, no stress flight. I go to my cousin’s house with no problems and the matching shirts my aunt and I had made were a big hit. (We were Not Goldilocks and Papa, Mama, and Baby bears.) I thought I had covered the allergy issue with my cousin’s dog, and we were all ready to go the next morning. Well, except for the fact that I was suffering through day 3 of that stupid migraine. I knew before we left the house I was done.
We headed to the start at 7:00 for a 7:45 start. The gun went off and I started almost 5 minutes behind the start with my aunt, since I didn’t want to push my knee. By the time she dropped back at 1.5 miles, my knee was fine, but I was just congested enough (dog allergy) to no longer be able breathe, plus my head was pounding.
I pushed through the first 8 miles, taking a slow(er) pace and still thinking I might manage a 2:40 half, which considering the circumstances, was a great half time. By mile 9, I was so miserable, I was hoping to see somebody who would be at the mile marker and could get me back to the start. I have never remotely considered stopping mid-race before. (I thought of Heidi back at the Towpath marathon and decided if she could finish, I could figure something out.) So I walked.
At mile 10.5, I met up with somebody else who was struggling and we decided to walk the rest of the way together. At this point, I was planning on just getting that medal. I had a ton of money invested in this race (my first out of state race) and if nothing else, I was taking hardware and a shirt home.
At mile 11, someone on the sidelines recognized the front of my shirt (we had our family name + half marathon team on it) and asked if I was with Papa Bear and Baby Bear. I said that was my uncle and cousin, and turned so she could see my shirt (the not goldilocks one) and she cracked up. That laugh got us moving again.
At mile 12, we discussed running the rest and I said no, since I could finally breathe again. So we decided to run the last quarter mile and kept walking. We watched the first woman finish the full as we were plodding the last quarter mile to the finish. We managed to pull just enough oomph to speed up enough to finish under 3 hours. I was never so happy to finish a race, and I was so relieved it was over.
The upside to the race is that I held my own on a much hillier course (they were not steep compared to what I’m used to running, but I don’t have that many long hills at home) than even I’m used to. And it was the most beautiful race I’ve ever run. I could have just stopped and looked at the houses along the course for a whole week. I loved Charlotte, it’s a beautiful city. I found a shirt that I fell in love with at the finish. It has an elevation chart for the race on the back, and under the logo on the front it says “Flats are for sissies”. I love that, and I love hills in general.
I want to run Charlotte again, hopefully under better circumstances next time, and it was so great to have a day and a half to spend with my family. And I am so glad I didn’t give up and DNF. I would have spent the next year kic