A few weeks ago I ran the Austin half-marathon. It was an interesting experience. While I had my slowest half time to date, 2:12 (14 minutes over my PR), I'm reasonably satisfied with that time, given the challenges involved that day.
This was my first race outside the cozy confines of the Metroplex, but it was still familiar territory as I grew up in Austin. And with my parents still living there, I was looking forward to a bigger cheering section than my usual (and much-appreciated!) 2-man crew. So, it seemed like a good first away race.
The plan was for Kevin, Daniel, and my parents to cheer me on at the finish line...at least, that was the plan up until 4am on race day, when Daniel woke up screaming, vomiting, and running a high fever. At that point we made a new plan for Daniel to sleep as late as he could, with Kevin staying home with him so my parents could come out to the race. I never got back to sleep so I went into the race on an hour less sleep than planned.
I had been a little nervous about the parking situation for a race this size, given the lack of public transportation options, so when my mom graciously offered to drop me off I was happy to accept and got dropped off just a few blocks from the start line. It was fun to walk around the Capitol grounds before the race. I always enjoy the pre-race moments surrounded by other runners, knowing that we all worked hard to get to that moment and enjoying the chance to see a familiar location in a new setting.
A few minutes before the 7am start I made my way to the start line. Unlike the White Rock Marathon, Austin doesn't put runners into corrals and do a wave start, but the runners self-seed according to expected pace and then do a mass start. I was a little skeptical of this arrangement but to my surprise it worked quite well. Despite the 14,000-person field, I crossed the start line only 5 minutes after the gun went off-23 minutes earlier than I crossed the White Rock start line. Maybe White Rock could learn something from that.
We started out heading north from the Capitol then made a few quick turns so that we were headed southbound on Congress. One of the things I really like about big races is the opportunity it provides the runner to see parts of the city in a new way. When else can you run down the middle of a major street like that? I passed the office building where my dad's firm was for over 20 years, then its new offices, and several others I remember visiting from my summer spent working as a courier for Trammell Crow. Then we went over the Congress bridge and past the eclectic shops on South Congress, which included some gentle but steady uphills.
While all of the sightseeing was great, trouble was brewing. I was beginning to feel IT band pain on the outside of my left knee by about 3 miles in. I had started out intended to stick with the 1:55 pace group but quickly realized I needed to ditch my time goals to make it to the finish line. So I slowed down a little and felt better.
Around 5-6 miles in we turned and headed back north on South 1st Street, giving back the elevation we had just gained in the first part. While it felt easier, I think this part was harder on my knee as the downhill portions work the lower legs more than the uphills. For one stretch I had a really uncomfortable stitch in my side, but that passed and I carried on.
Once we reached the bridge over Town Lake to approach downtown again though, about 8 miles in, the wheels came off. My knee was killing me. I'd try to run but only get a few steps before the pain forced me to walk. I had the briefest thought that if I was going to drop out, this was the place to do it where I could
But then I remembered the amputee I'd seen earlier in the race. He had a prosthetic leg and would take a step with his good right leg then swing the prosthetic left leg into place, step after step, mile after mile. That guy would have given anything to trade places with me. So if he could do this race on one leg, I could certainly do it on two. I wonder how many people he inspired just by his presence that day. And with this race being sponsored by Lance Armstrong's Livestrong foundation, I saw many runners wearing signs designating them as cancer survivors or listing the cancer patients they were running in honor or memory of. I thought of my friends who have survived cancer and how if they could battle through cancer and its painful treatments, I could finish this race.
Fortunately the crowds were heavy in this section and I was going slowly enough that many of the watchers saw my name on my bib and called out encouragements to me by name. That was pretty nice....I felt like I owed them at least a few steps of running for that. And whenever I passed a kid in the crowd I'd make sure to give them a high-five, and I hope someday when Daniel's out cheering me on that other runners will do the same for him. With a heavy dose of walking and stretching, I made it through this leg and turned north on Winsted and headed for Enfield.
I knew that Enfield included a few more small hills then one huge uphill, and I was prepared to walk all of it if need be. But somehow I got my second wind and flew up the hill, passing many people on my way up. Even though I live in an area called Las Colinas ("the hills") my training runs are all pretty flat so I don't get much opportunity to practice hill work, but I discovered that the uphills were easier if I leaned into them and moved my arms like I was pulling myself up a rope. I pulled my way up Enfield and my knee and I were still getting along okay. After that I knew the finish line was just a little over a mile away, so I kicked it into high gear to finish strong.
I was already over 2 hours when I hit the big hill so I knew my chance for a PR was already gone, and probably even the chance to beat my White Rock time of 2:08. But I'm proud of my 2:12 finish time even though it's well below my planned pace. I didn't finish that race because I was fast or having an ideal day, I finished because I had the determination to do so. This finisher's medal was hard-won and one I'll enjoy showing Daniel one day and telling him about how I earned it.
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