13 Plus Miles

A Half Marathon…

That’s what I mostly ran tonight on the Strip in Las Vegas with about 35,000 other runners from all over the world.

I had left it up in the air if I would try for the full marathon, even though I had signed up for the full. The full marathon leaves the half marathon course at 11 miles. The full marathon has a very tight time on it because they have to open back up the Strip and if a runner is falling behind, they divert them ahead and still give them credit for running a marathon.

I was not in good enough shape to really run all 26 miles and still about twenty pounds too heavy, but was going to give it a shot if I made that first 11 miles in a decent time.

I did decent. I set a personal record for the 5K with the first 5K of the run, and set another PR for the 10K, but it wasn’t enough.

I was just two minutes (in 11 miles) too slow. Not kidding. That close.

They were just blocking off the road where the marathon left the Strip for the first time for about three miles and then came back on before leaving again. Me and about five other marathons around me tried to get them to let us go, but they just pointed down the Strip.

So I just decided to go ahead for the half marathon and try to do the full again next year. I had run most of the first 11 miles, so mostly just walked the last two, enjoying the music and the lights of the Strip while walking up the middle of it.

Kris and Steph and Val were at the 8 mile mark where the course passed Kris and my condo. And then over a mile later I came back by. Kris paced me for a few blocks toward the downtown area and then paced me back the same two blocks on my way back out of the downtown loop.

Thanks Kris and Steph and Val for all the support! Meant a lot to have you guys there cheering me on at that point. More than you know.

And I got a class act by the folks running the event. I expected to get a half marathon medal because that was what I finished (almost 40 minutes ahead of my previous best half marathon time, and that was with walking most of the last two miles. That’s right a new PR almost 40 minutes better. Guess I am getting in better shape. (grin))

But since they were the one that diverted me off the marathon course, they also gave me the marathon medal. I didn’t run a full marathon, but a class-act gesture. I don’t count it, but I did hang it on my wall. (grin)

I also got another medal for doing both the 5K yesterday and the half marathon today. Below is a picture of me with the 5K medal, the ReMix combo medal, and the half marathon medal I earned tonight.

Now to drop this weight, get in better shape, and make that full marathon next year when I am 70 years old.

So here is a picture of the medals I earned this weekend. (grin)