As I was preparing for the Jackson Hole Marathon, race-day being September 2nd, I was putting in some good miles while feeling good at a nice pace! It helped being Springtime finally and having the trees full of green leaves and flowers blooming everywhere!
Whoaa Hoaaa! I LOVE RUNNING when it finally gets warm and nature is ALIVE!!
I really needed and wanted to do an actual race before I traveled out west so I registered and ran the Poughkeepsie Walkway Half Marathon on June 11th! It was a great race! Really good organization, beautiful location at Marist College and the race itself was an out and back over the Walkway Bridge. I’m not crazy about out-and-back runs, I like loops or point-to-point runs better, but with the bridge being the portion you get to run across twice, it made it nice. It was very hot and humid on race-day. At the start the temperature was already in the 70s approaching 80 and the high for the day would eventually top out at 91, just shy of the record of 95. The race was, and is, a cup-free race, which means you bring your own refillable bottle, fold-up cut, etc, while they will have containers of water or energy drink. But, because it was sooooo hot, I think they erred on the side of caution and ended up having actual cups for the runners at the aid-stations. It was just too hot and that can be dangerous.
I felt I was prepared for the race and the heat, as I had been running my mountain-mile run in the days leading up to the run… in the heat. My mountain mile run is a mile that is all uphill, with an elevation gain of over 800ft. It isn’t easy! It will whip anyone into shape! This is definitely a Well-Fit workout in the heat!
I left early in the morning to make the drive. Beautiful start to the day at 5:45 a.m.!
Arrived to see already a ton of people volunteering and working the event. The volunteers were wearing t-shirts, which read on the back, giant lettering of HOW CAN I HELP YOU? So very helpful!!!
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Here we go, running toward the Hudson River you can see in the distance!
Crossing the bridge! It’s probably very funny to see a runner take selfies during a race. I know I most likely look ridiculous. This year is the first time I’ve done so because… now I have my blog! Plus, I’m not really an elite runner so I run for fun! And for me to not be having fun and taking it all too seriously would, in my opinion, look a much more ridiculous than trying to get a selfie with the views. So here I am, running at a nice 7:30 pace in a half marathon at mile three (3) across the Walkway Bridge, the longest elevated pedestrian bridge in the world, with the Mid-Hudson Bridge in the background! Very hot and very humid and having fun!
Little better view of the Mid-Hudson Bridge. This Walkway Bridge used to be a railway they made into a pedestrian walk!
Did the first run across, made the turn-around now on our way back across the bridge and eventually we’ll be on the bike path and in the shade!! Much needed at this point!
The sun was blazing!
My first mile I started out a little slow overthinking the heat. My mile time was closer to 8 mins. But then I realized I was fine and brought it down to 7:30 through mile 6.
I was getting super hot so I dropped my pace back to high seven’s after mile 6, and stayed there through the finish of the race.
Ahhhh, much better in the shade! It was during this part where my key to my car was bothering me. I have a remote button but it’s bulky so I instead attached my key to my shoestring. I haven’t done that in so long, it was not a good idea. It was stabbing me in such an uncomfortable way, I kept having to pull over to the side, untie my shoe, fix it, and go again. I even lost it completely at one point. So my pace dropped down in mile 8 and more so in mile 12, but still kept it around that 8 minute pace.
By the end I was pushing it, this nice girl came up beside me and encouraged me to keep going! So I did and I finished strong!
Finished and feeling good. They had some great finish-line post workout food. Chocolate milk, fruit.
I left as soon as I was rested enough so I could get home and there on our street was some of the men having a busy Sunday. Lawn mower Dads! Kali helping Daddy! Nico is running around somewhere!
Since Kali was with me in most of my training runs being pushed in the jogger, I put the medal on her. That, and because she’s cute!
