The
14th Annual Key West Half Marathon, which included an Inaugural 5k
this year, is a small town event that
runs
the outskirts of the island. Key West is about 2 miles x 4 miles, making this a
perfect sized island for a half marathon! 1115 runners showed up with 673
participating in the half marathon.
The
race festivities included Packet Pick up with just a few items for
sale/donation, a Pasta Dinner for an additional fee, all you can drink free
beer and usual race snacks at the finish line, TONS of giveaways in a raffle
which impressed me with a lot of Island Tours/snorkeling/dinners, etc, a free
chocolate key lime pie on a stick, and a traditional breakfast for an
additional fee! Now if you ask me, for the increase in registration (I believe
it used to be $45 and is now $85) one of those meals (the pasta dinner or
breakfast) should have been included. The race started and finished at Dante’s
with the beer provided by Schooners, both two popular bars on the island.
The
few days leading up to race day, I managed to come down with a cold, which led
to a sinus infection, which left me with no voice on Friday morning. I took the
day off and prayed for a quick recovery. Didn’t happen. Saturday we left at 5am
and my voice gradually declined.
My
new running buddy Barbara and my Jack Russell Molly came along for this 8 hour
road trip, and boy am I glad I didn’t have to do it alone! We couldn’t have
asked for a smoother ride. No traffic, nice weather, no cops amazingly! Before
I could blink, we were on US1 in the Keys! We made a pit stop at the Islamorada
Fish Co for lunch and to soak up the gorgeous views. I quickly realized how pet
friendly this trip was going to be. This was Mollys first long distance road
trip…well technically first vacation… and I was unsure on how she was going to
act. She was a perfect angel and everyone loved her! Key West is such a dog
friendly environment! I got to take her to lunches, and shopping and exploring
the town and no one thought twice about you having a dog!
We
made it into Key West by 3p, got checked into the Hyatt and cleaned up, and
hurried over to Race Packet Pick up. We got our cool fitted shirts, and was
excited they were selling the HydroPouch! I knew the 26.2 with Donna next month
was going to be utilizing these, so I was excited to see they were selling them
cheaper here. I would be able to acquaint myself with it before the big 26.2
race day. After we got our goodies, I asked where I was to pick up my
‘voice’….I was told it would be waiting for me at start!
We
quickly raced over to Mallory Square to catch the lasting beauty of the
infamous sunset. With drinks in hand, we scurried around town looking for carbo
loading pasta. We ended up back at Dante’s for their pasta buffet for the
runners. Not the best of dinners, but hey, it ended up being free after all!
We
enjoyed some key lime ice cream, a few more drinks, some live music, and then
called it an early night to get some much needed rest before the next days
early start.
Unfortunately
my voice was not at start, but fortunately, I wasn’t feeling too bad,
considering I had been sick for 4 days now. I knew going into this race, it was
going to be a small town race. However, I was a little disappointed on the lack
of a Starting line. I don’t know how many times I had to tell people there WERE
standing at the starting line! Lol. There was no national anthem, nor pledge of
allegiance. I don’t even remember hearing something getting us started
(gunshot, alarm, etc). I just remember people started moving. I was waiting to
cross the starting line mat before starting my Garmin, but soon realized there
was no mat. I then realized everyone was going to be timed using the same
starting time. This leads to very inadequate timing, but I guess we were close
enough to the front we were only off by a little over a minute. Still. Would be
nice to have accurate reads.
Barbara
and I started off quickly together, but I soon realized I wouldn’t be able to
keep her pace, as I was getting one of those annoying cramps on the side of my
calf. I had to stop and walk at MM1…which also did not have any water set up
yet?!? Flashbacks of Milwaukees Rock n Sole ran through my head! Oh please
don’t let this be another repeat of a hot day with no water! Temperatures were
already warming up, and the sun was quickly rising. It was planned to be in the
80s.
Luckily
right after that was the infamous Southernmost Point Buoy so I stopped, took a
picture and did some stretching. Stretching didn’t work. It never does, you
just cannot stretch this area adequately. I continued a slow and steady
run/walk. Frustrated already, I tried to convince myself it was OK, since I was
sick anyways and shouldn’t be pushing it. MM2 my knee started hurting.
Already?!? Man, did this sickness really messed up my body!
MM3
the cramp had finally left and I picked up an awesome pace and was able to
maintain it for longer distances. MM4 my knee was barely an issue and I was
able to pass several people that had passed me earlier. I felt good. I felt
strong. My breathing was right on. The views were gorgeous as we got to run
along the ocean for a good distance. I almost wished the race had started an
hour earlier, so we could have been at this point for sunrise. (maybe we would
have if I ran fast?! LOL) Later, I would wish it had started an hour earlier
because the heat had gotten absolutely ridiculous! Who knew it got Hot in Key
West?!?
Leaving
the waterfront, we ran down the congested road that goes into/out of Key West.
Traffic was completely stopped and it was not fun to have to breathe the
exhaust fumes. I soon learned that the traffic was stopped because of the
runners. We had to cross the intersection! I gave a wave as I pranced in front
of both directions of traffic, yelling (or trying to yell) ‘Thank you’!
The
volunteers were great. They did an excellent job keeping the cups off the
ground. Most were of a retirement age…I guess that’s a lot of those who live in
Key West…so they didn’t have the most enthusiastic cheering that I am used to
at say the Rock n Roll events, but their comments and motivation calls were
still right on. I was disappointed that none of the stations had the HydroPour
set up for the HydroPouch I just purchased! I didn’t think about it until about
mile 4, but I started just going straight over to the jugs myself and pouring
in the water or Gatorade. I was happy this race was starting to be part of the
Green Running, but you cant half ass it. At least have someone ready at each
station holding a jug to pour into our bottles if you are not going to utilize
the Hydro Pour. It did make me feel awesome to have less of a carbon footprint
during this race and knowing I will for future races. I know I can easily go
through 3 cups of water per station at these races because they are so small
and/or not full. Having the Pouch, it is just the right amount of liquid to
make it to the next station.
A lot
of the race was on the sidewalk, and the sidewalks were quite beat up. You
definitely had to keep your head down and at attention the entire race. I even
witnessed someone fall right in front of me. This is not the fault of the race
coordinators, but still something to know.
At
the half way mark, we were still heading away from the start/finish line. We
even had to do this weird loop at a school during mile 7-8. It seems they could
have extended the race more downtown instead of outside the city in this
awkward location. I would have loved to have run along Mallory Square, or down
Duval, any of that area, or even up and down the cross streets by all the bed n
breakfasts would have been more beautiful.
The
last stretch of the race from MM 10-13 was brutal. The sun was completely up
and it was hot. There was not a cloud in the sky and the sun was blaring. There
was lots of walking, and lots of talking to myself. I even considered walking
the rest of the miles in. My body was just exhausted. Sickness really just
takes a toll on your energy. At about that point, I was pacing with a gentleman
from DC that mentioned my tutu and asked if I was with the other pink tutu
girls. I said no but glad to hear there may be other girls running for the
cause. I told him about the bra lady I was with and explained our cause and my
mission.
That
was just enough to give a me swift kick in my butt to get me moving again. I
wasn’t going to let this cold conquer me. Yes, I went into this race, the last
half marathon of this mission, wanting to PR and wanting it to be my best race
ever. Yes, I was disappointed when Barbara was able to keep a pace that I
wanted to keep, but couldn’t. Yes, I was jealous when she passed me at the turn
around point and I still hadn’t caught up. But I realized I cannot control
life. I cannot control outcomes. I cannot control anyone else. But that doesn’t
mean that I have to give up completely. I have to keep going. I have to give it
my best for ME. I have to give it my best FOR THAT DAY, no matter what life has
handed me. It may not be my best ever, but I can still be happy and proud that
it was the best I could do in the moment of time.
I
turned the corner and reached the approach of the finish line. I saw Barbara
there staring down the street looking for me! She yelled and waved me in. I
smiled, happy she was there. Its always good to have someone at the finish
line, which has been so rare this year. I was so proud of her for finishing and
for beating me. I picked up the pace and made it to her, and to my surprise she
started running with me and we crossed the finish line together! Even though I
had just run 10 other half marathons this year, crossing this finish line, I
was over whelmed with a sense of accomplishment.
13.1
miles- 2:37