The Half Marathon

This morning I competed in the Waitakere Half Marathon. And I managed to complete it in a time of 1 hour 55 mins (approxiamately). I had hoped to do it comfortably in two hours so I'm pleased with the result, especially competing in a half marathon for the first time.

I enjoyed the event immensely, and will definitely take part in this event in the future. I was very happy with the way I ran; it was an excellent run and today's performance should hold me in good stead for the ultimate test on October 29th.

The best moment was definitely entering the stadium where the finish line was. The feeling of accomplishment surged through me as I did a final sprint around the stadium track. It was great to see the supporters cheering the runners on no matter how fast or slow they were, and hearing the loud music blaring away.

I did start pretty slowly, and saw many people pass in front of me from the outset. Once I got onto Lincoln Rd I started to pick up the pace a little. In the latter stages of the run, once I hit my straps and got into a good rhythm I managed to pass A LOT of runners. This was definitely a good feeling as I know that I won't be last to finish!

Also I was pleased with the way that I attacked the hills. A lot of runners struggle on the uphills, but for some reason I feel that I'm reasonably fast up the hills. I definitely have some sort of running style that helps me negotiate the hills comfortably. Equally so with downhill running; I tend to increase my stride and shuffle quitely down the hill for extra speed without my legs tiring. Most of the time passing other runners was on the hills.

If there was one thing I'm concerned about, it would be my start. I think I started a little too quickly, and probably picked up the pace too early in the run. This will NOT work on Marathon day, so I'll have to come up with a strategy to avoid this from happening again. I felt like I still had gas in the tank after the run, that is, if I didn't do a mad sprint for the finish. Let's see if that is enough to carry me through 42.195 km, come October 29th.

Overall I enjoyed every second of it, and will definitely continue to compete in events like these. The feeling of accomplishment that you experience once you cross the finish line cannot be described.