The Baltimore 1/2 Marathon

We had such high expectations for this race. We were going to train hard, run the whole event, and set a PR. Where none of these things happened, it was still a great day!

The weather was wonderful, food plentiful, and the support staff could not have been better. After waking up early (0500), Tom drove us to Baltimore, where we found my new favorite Starbucks (corner of Eutaw and Baltimore) and sat for 2.5 hours watching the 5k and sipping coffee. THIS IS IS THE WAY TO START RACE DAY! Forget those dark parking lots filled with Vaseline and Portable Potties, we were in the lap of luxury.

At about 0915 we worked our way to the start line where Patty and I started out too far ahead in the crowd. This was a problem. We really like to start slow and pick up the pace at about mile 4. Rather, we were forced to run fast in the beginning (think running with the bulls) which was a little concerning. I also needed to stop twice early in the race to fix a sock problem, causing us to loose time. Patty and our new friend Jessica (we met her on mile 2) were troopers and waited for me, loosing several minutes. Regardless, the course seemed fast, and it was a lot of fun. The best part? 24oz of beer at the finish line. Forget those ridicules shot glasses that we got in Nashville, Baltimore treated us well, and clearly recognizes the importance of liquid carbs while changing your shoes in a parking lot. Thanks Bud Lite!

Today I am feeling really good, thanks to an 800mg Ibuprofen and Tom's willingness to do all of the driving and thinking yesterday. Patty and I are in the process of setting future course goals, and hoping that we can find time to train (this new Job does not seem to support disappearing for 2 hours mid-afternoon to circle the tidal basin). Would really like to run a full 1/2 in the Spring (no walking). Anyone want to join us?