Philadelphia Half Marathon (Part 2)

Now that you’ve already read about Part 1 of the Philadelphia Half Marathon weekend that covered the expo, dinner the night before, and race day… I bring you the second part of my recap series.

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Freezing, but ready to go!

The Race

After waiting in a long line for a porta-potty, I finally made my way to my corral.  I made it just in time, because my corral was moving towards the starting line shortly after I got there.  It took us 21 minutes to cross the starting line, and I could feel the runners around me getting excited. 

Thank you Bryan for taking this photo

Mile 1 – Benjamin Franklin Parkway to Love Park: My feet were numb.  No, not from running but actually from being so cold.  I actually thought I may have gotten frost bite, but I’m dramatic so I knew deep down I was probably fine.

Mile 2 – Arch Street past Liberty Bell to Race Street: My feet warmed up quickly and I took my gloves off at this point. 

Mile 3 – Columbus Boulevard:  Gorgeous scenery running down by the water, but there weren’t many spectators cheering during this mile.

Mile 4 – Columbus Boulevard to Front Street: Don’t really remember this mile much, but I do remember that this is where my knee started hurting.

Mile 5 – South Street to Independence Hall: The crowds on South Street were amazing!  There were so many crazy signs that I could read to keep my mind off the pain.  One of my favorites was “You trained longer than Kim Kardashian’s marriage.”

Mile 6 – Chestnut Street to City Hall: Probably my favorite part of the entire race.  The amount of spectators was breathtaking.  SO many people were cheering on both sides of Chestnut Street.  Thank you to the random spectators who screamed my name to keep going.  It helped!  At this point I thought to myself, “This would be a great route for a 10K.”

Mile 7 – 17th and Chestnut to 30th Street: Spectators seemed to diminish around this mile as well.  Up to this point the route was really flat. 

Mile 8 – Drexel University and University of Penn: Hills and drunk college students.  Ran out of my Jelly Beans at this point.

Mile 9 – Martin Luther King Drive past the Philadelphia Zoo: I remember this mile being one large hill.  A spectator screamed to us that at the end of the mile there was one large downhill.  Also picked up a Clif Shot in Vanilla for energy.  Happy Happy Happy!

Mile 10 – Fairmount Park: More hills.  I’m pretty sure at this point I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to finish.  I took walking breaks from now to the end.  But… every time I stopped and started again my knee seemed to go in shock. 

Mile 11 – Please Touch Museum to the Schuylkill River: At the end of mile 11, there were 6 or 7 men and women dressed as women in spandex body suits dancing and cheering us on.  HILARIOUS.  It definitely made me smile and realize that it’s almost over and that I could do this.

Mile 12 – Running by the Schuylkill River: This mile was by far the hardest one.  I tried so hard to keep pushing, but my knee was basically giving up.  That’s the one thing I realized during this mile… I HAD this half marathon mentally.  I was ready to go, however physically my body was telling me otherwise.

Mile 13.1 – Heading to the Art Museum and Finish Line: The final mile was a blur, but it was all worth it.  If you were at the finish line, you probably saw me crying – not because I was emotional about finishing… but because my knee hurt SO bad.  The final .1 of a mile I sprinted to the finish line, which is probably why I’m in such pain today.

Crossed the finish line at 2:23:15.  Definitely NOT the pace I’ve been training at, but I am just glad to have finished!  I figure this gives me something to work towards. 

Up tomorrow: Post Half Marathon.

Talk to Me

• Have you ever done the Philadelphia Marathon or Half Marathon?  If so, what was your experience?
• Do you prefer 5Ks, 10Ks, Half Marathons or Marathons?
• Random question – What running gear do you want for the holidays this year?