Hello, this is Emily- my first blog on the site! Saturday, I ran in the See Jane Run Women's Half Marathon in Alameda. It was a 13.1 mile run through Alameda and along the water near the Oakland Airport. My friend Kate came to visit from North Carolina, and we met up with another fellow lady sailor from Dartmouth to complete the team. Adele, Kate and I all coincidentally wore red shirts, so the "red team" was easy to spot on the course. Brian also came to the race as the "super support team," and he carried all of the pre-race warm up clothes as well as a big red cowbell to cheer us on.
The race started at 8am in Alameda. The weather was a little overcast and cool, but not too cold. The bathroom line wasnt as tough to navigate as usual, but the first thing we did when we arrived was get in the long line! After some announcements and an "80's warm up" (dont ask), the race was almost underway. The ladies lined up and the gun went off shortly after 8am.
Kate and Adele have recently run in marathons, so they were ready for the big race. I've run in 3 half marathons before, but recently I've only run a maximum of 8 miles at a time, so I was a little anxious to add the additional 5.1. The first few miles went by quickly. The three of us havent seen each other in a few months (or years?) so we were chatting and catching up for most of the race. We got some funny looks from the other racers who werent quite sure how we were able to keep up the conversation while running a half marathon...but, I'm sure our conversation was entertaining for them!
The course went down through Alameda and along the water most of the way. Other than a small footbridge, the course was relatively flat with no major hills. There were 7 water stops along the way, each with GU energy gel, Powerade and plenty of water. I looked at my watch at mile 7, and we had been running for 1:01- not too bad. We stopped at almost every water station, and around mile 8.5 we decided to get some GU to keep us going. We continued to push on at about a 8:30 minute mile pace. Surprisingly, all of us were able to keep up with each other and run almost effortlessly until around mile 11. I had to put my headphones on and listen to my ipod for some motivation towards the end of the race, but the other two kept their ipods wrapped up and enjoyed running music-free.
There werent a lot of fans along the course because it was an out and back, and it was hard to get to some areas of the race, so Brian ended up reading a magazine and enjoying the nearby park while the girls were working hard in the race. The last half mile was through the park near the start. Kate pulled away from us right at the end. Brian was waving the cowbell and taking many embarassing pictures of the worn out "red team" coming into the finish line. Kate, Adele, and I finished 9th, 10th, and 11th (in order) in our age group, with a times of 1:53-1:54- averaging just over an 8:30 min/mile!
The end of the race was fille
d with goodies. There was plenty of Smart Water, Powerade, and bagels, fruit, granola, etc to give some energy to the ladies after their run. One of the main reasons all three of us ran the race was the enticing chocolate and champage that was promised to be served at the finish line. All competitors were given champagne glasses filled with chocolate, and we eagerly went to the champagne line for a much deserved celebratory glass of Barefoot Bubbly. After getting as much loot as possible from the celebration expo, we made our way back to the car to head home.The race overall was a great experience. There were plenty of water stations, great goodies at the end, and the course was along the water and flat. The weather couldn't have been better- not too hot and not too cold. If I can, I'll run again next year (and Brian might even be one of the few men to register)!
