Dallas Marathon Half: My Favorite Day In My Favorite City

Marathon weekend is one of the best weekends in Dallas, Texas.  It isn't the Boston, New York, or Chicago Marathon - but Dallas, with all of its quirks and flaws, does a pretty good job showcasing the city and welcoming runners on race day.  This has been a favorite weekend of mine for many years, way before I even knew that I would be a runner someday.  Mr K and his cousin Brock have been the driving force behind the legendary Dolly Parton Hills water stop for more years that we have been married.  The Dallas Marathon (formerly White Rock) became even more special to me when it was Mr K's first marathon in 2008 and my first marathon in 2011.  I have run the half every year since 2008 except for 2011 when I ran the marathon and 2013 when it was cancelled due to the great ice storm that had us all "entombed in ice." The race has changed names once and the course and venue have changed more times than I can recall, but it seems as if the race is finally starting to find its groove.  The current half course is my all time favorite, it starts to trend downhill a bit after the halfway mark and it highlights some of the best parts of the city.

This guy is pretty famous.

I was pretty much on my own on race day as none of my immediate friends were running the half, which was fine with me, I enjoy disappearing into a crowd sometimes.  December in Dallas is unpredictable, at best, and we have seen all kinds of weather for this race.  It wasn't too bad this time - in the 50s - but super humid and with some pretty strong winds.  The race has associated itself with some running super stars over the last couple of years and Meb, Deena, Desi, and Ryan were here again.  It was a special treat when Meb said a few words to us before the race began, he is one of my favorites!  The National Anthem was sung by a Dallas police officer and it reminded me of that terrible night in July.  I made my heart happy to see these same streets filled with so many people and such vibrant energy.  Good will over come, y'all.

It was my third time running this course so I felt familiar with it and put a good game plan into action: get off to a good start, stay steady through the hills in the middle, pick up speed until the end, run the last mile hard.  I have gotten into the habit of racing largely by feel and just checking in with my watch when the mile splits chimed.  My first mile was the slowest before settling into a pace in the lower 9:00s - perfect start.  The timing mat for the first 5K is just before uptown and I hit it at 28:28 (9:10 avg).

I love Dallas. 

There is a nice downhill just after mile 4, heading down Turtle Creek, but then the next 5K through Highland Park is the hilliest section of the race.  It is also one of the most beautiful sections of the race.  The trees were vibrant with fall colors and the stately homes on Beverly Drive were beautifully decorated for Christmas.  The sights are almost enough to keep my mind off the hills...almost.  I knew that I wasn't going to be flying up any hills here, the plan was to stay steady on the ups and conserve energy for the final few miles.  I crossed the 10K timing mat somewhere in here at 56:33 (9:03 avg) - picking up speed and almost halfway done!  K2 and Jessica were working the RAW aide station around mile 7 and it was nice to see some familiar faces and get a quick hug from K2.

The next section of the race takes us down Greenville Avenue and it is my favorite part of the race. I'm certain that the spectators here are having more fun than me, the energy there is terrific!  There was also a live drum line, pretty sure I would be more efficient if one of those followed me through life.  And any day that I can high five a Mavs Maniaac is a good day in my book.  There is also a mental boost here as I know that the hills are done and it is literally downhill from here.  The 15K mark is somewhere after Greenville and I hit it at 1:24:23 (8:58).

I made the TV broadcast again! (Thanks for the screenshot, Lulu!)

The hoopla of Greenville starts to fade pretty quickly, but there was a good crowd around the marathon split.  I was feeling pretty thankful that today was not my day to take that left turn.  The streets looked wet from the heavy humidity and the wind heading back towards downtown was pretty strong.  The final three miles or so back to the finish are probably my least favorite of the course.  The scenery isn't pretty, the crowd is sparse, and I'm just ready to be done at this point.  Who knew that the random mariachi band playing "Feliz Navidad" could pick me up so much at mile 10 of a race?   The race planners must know what a beat down this section can be because they had installed speakers blasting upbeat music through this section. I probably looked like a crazy lady screaming out "so good, so good, so good" during Sweet Caroline, but it sure helped me power through those desolate miles.

My race plan was to run the last two miles as fast as I could, so I was both looking forward to and dreading mile 11.  The fast finish and LOFO (last one, fast one) plan always sounds like a great idea on paper, but isn't all that pleasant when the time comes to execute the plan.  But no guts, no glory - right? Mile 11 felt like it took roughly 100 years, but in reality it was closer to 8 minutes and 13 seconds.  Last mile, it's go time MK.  I almost always feel like I'm failing miserably during LOFO because it is just that darned hard.  The race finish line was within sight of the Reunion Tour and I desperately searched for it on the horizon.  Mile 13 came in at 7:54, bringing my pace from 15K to the finish to 8:19. Finally the finish line was within sight and I glanced at my watch and saw that I could get in under 1:56 if I just kept pushing.  I crossed at 1:55:53 - a course PR by a few seconds. Another solid day of running, I'll take it!

After the race I found a spot on the lawn and enjoyed a free beer while listening to Hard Day's Night, local Beatles cover band.  I enjoyed watching the happy runners mill about and I soaked in the good vibes and energy.  Running is my favorite, Dallas is my favorite, it was a good day.

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.