Mercedes Marathon - RunMarathon

I was honestly suprised at my sub-3 time. leading up to this race, i'd slowed down all of my runs for fear of reinjuring my hamstring that I had pulled several months prior. I was thinking 3:15 - 3:30 was more realistic. This was a training run for a longer race in South Africa that I'm doing on Easter weekend, so going in I had decided to just do this as a 'training run' . Of course that all went out the window at the start when I got the competitive juices going. I changed my plan and decided to just run based on how I felt. Went out completely too fast but it felt easy so I decided to just not look at my watch and go by feel. Never really experienced the difficulties I've had in the past during a marathon. I was wearing new shoes that I had never worn before and they felt great. Although the temps were 22 at the start and 11 degrees with the windchill, I loved the cold weather. It kept me from over heating and I think was the reason for having a good day. My favorite part of the course was the Highland drive area. Very pretty part of B-ham where you run by 3 parks and a golf course on a tree lined residential street. Many turns, but also many long straight aways. Most water stations I've ever seen on a marathon course too (22 in all)

Nothing really-

Ate a banana and drank some fluids and then went inside Boutwell Auditorium where a band was playing and they had Jim and Nicks bbq and beer (free)!!! Best post race I've seen at a marathon.....


Nothing- went much faster than expected...


The last few races I've run were Rock and Roll races. This race blows away/destroys them in terms of the bang for buck, course choice and organization. They really take care of the runners at 1/2 the price for entry. Awesome race and highly recommended.