This morning we were up early to head downtown to Maggie Daley Park for the Chicago Spring Half Marathon. The forecast had been calling for rain, but luckily that changed overnight and it was mostly just overcast during the race. However, it was much colder than we had been planning for -- especially for spring. Temperatures were in the 40's, which isn't terrible for racing but is definitely on the cooler side. The course itself was a fairly unremarkable out and back along the Lakefront Path. The first half of the race heading south was fine, but as soon as you turned around and started to run north, you were running directly into the wind.
I went into the race knowing there was the potential for a PR but uncertain if I could pull it off today. Once I started running, I felt pretty good. My first several miles were at a good pace and I knew I was on track for where I wanted to be. But after the turn around, the wind did slow me down a little. It wasn't until I got to the clocks at miles 11 and 12 that I started to feel confident that I would get what I wanted.
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| Feeling strong heading out |
I finished the race in 1:23:36, which is over 2 minutes faster than my previous PR! Not only was I first in my age group (out of 207), but I was also the first male Masters finisher (out of 730). What excited me even more than the new PR is that this time qualifies me for guaranteed entry into the 2019 NYC Marathon! There are a limited number of spots available for time qualifiers, but I am hopeful this will get me in.
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| Finishing strong! |
I was also so happy that Mike decided to do this race. He finished his 4th half marathon and also set a new PR by almost 3 minutes! I was so proud of him. We both had great days, even despite the windy running conditions.
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| Celebrating our PR's! |
Congratulations to both of you!
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