Dallas Marathon Half: My Victory Lap

I knew coming into this half marathon that it would not be about speed.  I had just run the California International Marathon 7 days before and had not recovered enough for a fast half, but marathon weekend is one of my favorite weekends in Dallas and I was not about to miss it.  I have run in this race 6 times (the half marathon 5 times and the marathon once).  It would have been 7 times, but the epic ice storm of 2013 had other plans for us.  I missed marathon weekend more than I thought I would last year and I was so happy to get back to work this year.  I still can't believe that it happened and I gained a new appreciation for all of the money lost as I wandered around the race expo.  So much merchandise with the race date and year on it - what a waste!  As an incentive to get the 2013 runners to come back, they promised we could have our medals from last year once we finished this year.  It is one of the most beautiful medals that I have and it certainly has a unique story behind it - I'm glad that they let us have them.

2013 and 2014 medals

I had a pretty terrible race experience in 2012 - there was a traffic jam, a scramble to find a parking spot, a parking ticket, lost debit card and driver's license, and an awfully paced run on a hot and humid day.  It would be hard for me to do any worse than that this year and I was ready for a "do over." I had a better plan for parking and arrived at the race approximately 2 hours before it started, that alone felt like winning to me!  I was able to take care of all the pre-race business, drop my bag with the bag drop people, and find my friends in my starting corral with great ease.  Keith, Ninja, Fiona, and I had a great time chatting while we waited for the starting gun.  The Dallas Marathon brought in some huge names for this event - Ryan Hall and Meb were taking part in the relay, and Sarah Hall and Deena Kastor were each running the half marathon.  I was hoping so hard that I would cross paths with them, but it was not meant to be.  After the fireworks and the elite start, we were on our way.  I love the start line of the Dallas Marathon - such an amazing energy! I could tell right away that my legs had no pep in them and I decided to settle in and enjoy the day.  I was pretty thankful that I was not going for a fast time today because it was so humid and a little bit warm, the exact conditions that usually cause me to struggle.

In the corral with Ninja, Fi, and Keith (picture: Jessie)

I can't say enough about how much fun the half marathon course was this year.  Due to construction and various City of Dallas issues, they have had to revise the course quite frequently.  The 2012 edition of the half marathon course left much to be desired....pretty boring and with a mentally defeating mile out and back before making the turn for the finish line.  The only highlight was running over the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge, but the neighborhood before and after that was not very exciting.  The 2014 course took all of the best parts of the previous courses and put them together.  It really was like a parade through the best parts of my favorite city.  As we ran out of downtown, a construction worker was standing on an overpass yelling his head off for us.  I love the energy!

Happy Runner (Picture: Jessie)

We headed out through Deep Ellum and over to Turtle Creek Boulevard. Several of my friends passed me during this section and I also spotted Heidi and Brian cheering.  One of the reasons that I love this race so much are all of the familiar faces that I see along the way.  It was such a stark contrast to the week before when I was marathoning in California and Mr K was the only person that I knew.  After running up Turtle Creek we made the turn and headed into Highland Park - always a pleasure running on Beverly Drive and I'm so happy to see this area on the course again.  The stately mansions are decked out in their best Christmas decorations and many people come out onto their yards to cheer.  I spotted Heidi and Brian again somewhere during this part of the race, they were navigating the course like champs!

We were nearing mile 7 as we exited Highland Park and I had my eye out for Byron as I knew that he was working the aide station in the area.  I found him at the end of the line and paused to chat with him.  He reminded me that I needed to be running smart (which I was) and told me that he saw Ryan and Sarah Hall run by earlier in the race.  It was a thrill to know that I was running the very same streets that some of the best American runners were running.  That is the beauty of our sport - first place or last, we are all on the same streets, facing the same course.

Post Race Bling Pose with Mary and Keith (Picture: Mary)

I moved on from Byron and focused even more on having the most fun.  The best part of the course had to be Greenville Avenue - one of the best spots in Dallas on any day with all of the bars and restaurants.  Lots of spectators gathered on Greenville Avenue and some of the restaurants were open too.  It provided a huge burst of energy and I made sure to take in all the sights and sounds as I ran this stretch.  I called out to spectators in costume, I thanked volunteers, and I stopped to talk with friends.  It was such a nice change from the structure and careful attention to pacing that marathon training brought for the previous 16 weeks.  On this day I ran for the sheer love of running.

Favorite Race Picture Ever (Picture: TPG)

Somewhere around mile 9 the marathon took a left turn away from the half course and this is where I found my panda, also known as TPG.  You might recognize her from the DRC Half a few weeks back.  She jumped in and ran with me for a minute and so that she could snap a panda selfie - you can tell from my smile that I was having a blast.  The last couple of miles were probably the least interesting on the course and we even covered some of the same ground that we did in the beginning of the race.  I spotted Heidi and Brian one more time and turned my thoughts towards finishing.  I did not have the usual "oh my gosh, when will this be over" feeling that I usually do during a half marathon - my sense of distance was still a little bit different after running twice as far the week before.

Finish Line Smile

I could hear a helicopter and sirens in the final mile, a sure sign that the marathon winner was not too far behind me.  I was having a blast, but I did have a goal to finish before the first marathoner.  I could see a couple of TV monitors and I knew that he was not too far behind as I could see him passing the same landmarks that I had recently passed.  Turns out he reached the finish line about 2 minutes after I finished my race.  I crossed the finish line with a happy heart and a big smile in 2:12:29. This is about 15 minutes slower than a "typical" half marathon time for me, but I was quite pleased with it.  I felt as if I had just taken part in a 13 mile party in running shoes.  I was so proud of my city and of my fellow runners - it was a great day!  Two years ago this race left me frustrated and disappointed, and one year ago the cancellation just made me sad.  It is safe to say that I made amends with the Dallas Marathon Half today.  I always said that the White Rock Marathon held magic, but that magic seemed to disappear when they changed the name.  The new magic may look a little bit different, but it was magic just the same.