A Great Weekend

I have a couple good philosophical posts on the way, but for now, a bit of life as a runner in Montana…

Saturday, Julie and I headed up to Whitefish for the Two Bear Half Marathon. After picking up our race-packs we immediately made our way to Glacier National Park for a quick shot of nature and a sunset over Lake McDonald.


Then it was off to Michele and Cody’s (many thanks!) for the night before the big run. Rising early, we picked up some coffee and a bagel and made our way to the Wave fitness club for the bus to the starting line. Getting us to the start and lined out was at times a bit hectic, but with 160+ runners and a volunteer crew, such is to be expected.

We started off at 10am, 30 minutes behind schedule. After that though, everything went perfectly. My first three miles were in 6min 30sec each, due mostly to the gentle downhill and soft dirt road surface. Then at the 5 mile mark I was at exactly 35minutes, a personal best, but after that I slowed down quite a bit. From the start I was with the very fastest group of runners (about 6 or 7 leading out ahead of me and gradually getting out of sight) and for at least a few miles I ran with Adam, a fellow 20-29 yr age grouper. Around mile 9 he began to edge out ahead of me and I never managed to catch him again. He wound up finishing just over 20 seconds ahead of me to get second place in our age group.

Here’s Julie just yards away from the finish line. Look at those muscles!
And speaking of muscles – an 83 year-old marathoner comes across the line.
Me with my award for 3rd place in my age group (and my distended belly, where did that come from?). Other stats:

• 12th overall men
• 13th overall in the half-marathon
• Time: 1:39:18.4
• Pace: 7:35 per mile
• Pain: blisters on both feet (typical), some cramps, left knee feels old

Post-run: free beer and brats -probably where the belly came from- and a drive to Symes Hot Springs for a soak in its legendary healing waters.

Today I checked out new shoes at Runner’s Edge and got some tips for next week’s full marathon:

• Stick with the shoe’s you’ve got (it takes 2-3 weeks to break in new ones before a long run)
• Get dual-layer socks to cut down on blisters (bought a pair)
• Use Body Glide on feet to cut down on blisters

Additional thoughts:

• Go easy on the Heed (energy drink) – lots of sugar and the body needs more water. I think too much Heed caused my cramps, which are unusual for me.
• Go easy on the down-hills, picking up speed pounds the knees
• Enjoy to journey!

And now… an Icy-Hot on my left knee and otherwise feelin’ good…