My first half-marathon: DC’s National Marathon
Much of the winter I spent training for a spring half-Ironman distance triathlon.
Due to a confluence of events (death of fiance’s father, buying a home and moving, etc) I missed too many weeks during my peak training period. So, I bagged the race.
At the same time, my boss, John McIntire had coordinated a “train for a half-marathon” program at our work. We identified two spring races, and recruited over 10% of our staff to participate!
So, that was an awesome fit. The half-Ironman included a 13.1 mile run, so I figured if I can’t do the tri, I might as well see how well I could do at the half.
The first of the two races with the National Marathon.
Other than the annoyance of this race’s name having changed at least 30 times during the winter, the course, the weather, and the run was outstanding.
There is a marathon option, and I may definitely consider this home-town run next year unless Charlottesville is an option!
Here’s the results, I’m pretty happy!
Plc Group Group Gun Chip Pace
157 25/226 M3539 1:34:24 1:33:36 7:09 William Gross 38 M 3853 Chevy Chase MD
There were a total of 2,637 runners, putting my finnish in the top 6%.
I guess cross-training all winter with biking has helped :)
I think biking increases my foot turn-over, and definitely increased overall muscle fitness in the legs.
Bill