Well, the time has finally come – this is the weekend of the Skinny Raven 1/2 Marathon. I’m actually feeling pretty good about the whole thing at this point. My longest run so far has been 12 miles, so (barring any injuries) I’m not too worried about actually being able to run the entire 13.1 miles, it’s just going to be a matter of how long it takes me.
I’ve run parts of the course at different times, but not the whole thing, so I know at least somewhat what to expect in terms of hills and all that. It’s a relatively flat course along the Coastal Trail in Anchorage. About 3 miles in, the 1/2 Marathon veers off towards midtown, and then turns around near the University, while the full Marathon continues out to the very end of the Coastal Trail and back.
Estimating My Finish Time
Based on my recent runs, I’m hoping to finish in just over 2 hours, probably about 2:10. My super-duper-I’d-be-so-happy-if-I-actually-did-it goal would be to finish in under 2 hours, which I think is doable for me, but I’ll definitely have to be “in the zone” for it to happen. It’s my first 1/2 Marathon, so I’m really not putting too much pressure on myself to have an amazing race, just to finish and have a good time.
I’m also hoping to have a chance to meet Sam from Operation Jack, who’s going to be in town to run the full marathon. If you’re not familiar with Operation Jack, Sam is running 61 marathons this year to help raise money and awareness for autism (his son, Jack, has autism). It’s a great cause, and I am immensely impressed by anyone who can run a marathon every freaking weekend (and then some) – for an entire year.
My High School Reunion
Because of my awesome scheduling abilities, I scheduled my first 1/2 Marathon on the same day as my 10 year high school reunion. I am literally going to have just enough time to run the race, go home to shower and change, and then head straight to the reunion. I actually did realize this when I signed up for the race, but since they’re pretty few and far between up here, I had to take what I could get.
I’m not one of those people who looks back on high school as if they were the best days of my life. For the most part, I’ve kept in touch with all the people I was friends with and cared about. But there are also a number of my friends who immediately moved out of state after graduation. While I’ve kept in touch with them, I haven’t actually seen them in 10 years – so there are at least a few people that I’m looking forward to seeing at this reunion.
Do you have any big plans for this weekend? Did you go to your own high school reunion?
Brandon, I can’t wait to hear about your first 1/2 marathon! You are going to do great!
My class has yet to hold a reunion, granted it’s not my 10 year yet. I doubt I’ll go – I didn’t really associate with anyone in my class, and the people I’ve kept in touch with, I know too much about already via Facebook! 🙂
Dude. You’re going to crush this thing. The adrenaline and the ‘pack mentality’ will give you wings, I am sure of it. I ran my first half back in May twenty minutes faster than I projected. TWENTY-MINUTES.
Can’t wait to read the recap.
Good luck!
Best of luck on your first half marathon!
I just missed my 20-year reunion. From the recap, it sounds like there was about a 20% turnout. Sounds like we’re similar on this subject though. There are a handful of people I’m still good friends with, and the rest I haven’t seen or heard from in 20-years.
I didn’t go to my 5 year, didn’t have a whole lot of interest…but I still have time to have actually accomplished something in life by the time my 10 year rolls around, so I think I’ll head to that!
Good luck on your half! You’re going to rock it!
I can’t wait for the recap (with pen in hand to make notes) and to see how awesome you’re going feel when a few short months ago, a half marathon would have been the last thing you planned on doing before your reunion.
My 10 year was 2 years ago and I never heard anything but once again I do talk to those I was/am friends with and the others picked on me and I have no desire to see them thin or heavy. Have fun!
[…] many weeks of planning and training, yesterday I ran my first 1/2 Marathon. As I wrote in my preview post, my realistic goal time was 2:10. My “dream” time was to finish in under 2 hours, which […]