My First Half Marathon
Yesterday, I ran the Half Marathon distance (21.1km) at Footstock in Cochrane, AB.
The course was hilly with over 100m of elevation gain (see image). Moreover, at least 6km of the run was on a gravel road; it was by no means an easy run. Admittedly, I thought I was going to die/have to walk starting around km #17. Thankfully, I managed to push through, partly because I saw the person ahead of me dropping back (or was I speeding up?) and I thought I could pass him.
Results: I placed second overall and first in my age group with a time of 1:26:14. The first place runner was 2 minutes and 19 seconds ahead of me. I ran a 4:06/km pace. First place was a 3:59 pace. See full results here.
I wasn’t sure what to expect from this race. I’ve been able to run 4min/km paces in the past, but I wasn’t sure if my muscles would be able to maintain that sort of pace for a run. I’ve very happy with my result, although it certainly wasn’t an easy race. I repeatedly considered giving up or walking, since I knew the fourth place person was a few minutes behind me. It was only mental stubbornness that kept me moving forward
I chose to run without socks for the race and I got some major blisters—I should have added more corn starch powder to my shoes.
I don’t have a lot to say about this race. I am proud of my achievement and I am keenly aware than I need to keep working and improving my stamina and running technique. I want to keep pushing myself to see what I’m capable of.
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Leif, you are an incredible athlete, way to go!!
Thanks Ian. I’ve got a long way to go if I want to try to go up to the next level. See you at Coral Springs!
Quite the blog, impressive. I’m proud of your achievements
and wish you every success…(as long as it doesn’t cause your head to swell and increase wind resistance) big strong man like you should be able to finish the fence too!
Love Dad