Seattle Half Marathon: A Recap

It was an absolutely gorgeous day for running in Seattle today. A bit foggy along Lake Washington, but overall, a great day to run. The Hoffmann family gathered at some weird hour of the morning that I tend to avoid and set off for 13.1 miles.

There were a lot of racers out there today and between the full marathon walk which for some reason started 10 minutes before the half marathon run, it was a sea of people heading down Fifth Avenue.

My foot injury did not rear its ugly head during the run, but I defiantly felt the affects of not being able to train for a few weeks prior to the race. After some big hills and some foot pain (just from it striking the ground over and over again, nothing big) though I was exhausted. This was at about mile 9. I kept trying to get through the wall, but my legs didn't respond to that very much. By mile 10 I was walking and not at a fast pace. My dad was with me the whole time, so he's probably feeling good today. We ended up running the last 1/4 mile which was good. I crossed the line at 3:15. Not the pace I was looking for, but I wasn't at my peak either. I'll take a bit of time off, join a gym and get back to it in mid-December.

At any rate, I have a medal and another t-shirt, plus some sore muscles. Wonder when I get to do it again?

Alan

A new goal...and a gizmo

My sister and Dad completed the San Diego Marathon earlier today. Afterwards I sent my sister a congratulatory text message, as that was her first marathon. In her response she thanked me. Then asked "Do you want to run the Seattle Marathon in November?"

Yes. Yes, I do.

I have a quasi goal of getting fit for this blog. I say quasi goal because, well, what defines fit? I've lost five pounds so far. Direct me to the nearest Aircraft Carrier. I have a "Mission Accomplished" banner ready to go. Now, I have something to shoot for. Its not just get fit...its get fit for a half marathon.

I may have mentioned that I have tangoed with the Seattle Half Marathon before. The very race that made me shy away from running for awhile. Its time for round 2. I have my eyes set for the day after Thanksgiving, where myself and who knows how many fellow tryptophan ODers will be out in force on the Seattle streets.

I'm excited. I have something to build for. Before, it was "go run for two miles, get a little work in, just sweat a little." Now, its "work towards building up miles, get stronger, gain more stamina, prepare to run triumphantly into Memorial Stadium."

Yup. Its going to be awesome.

In the meantime, I've got a new gadget. Its an Omron HJ-112 Digital Premium Pedometer, which is a fancy way of saying "badass step counter". My mom gave me one of these once, and it promptly got lost somewhere Hopefully it doesn't happen with this one.

I heart gadgets, and if a regular feature of this blog is me reviewing things...I will be a happy blogger.

Alan