Des Moines Half Marathon - RunHalf Marathon


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Des Moines, Iowa
United States
IMT Des Moines Marathon
55F / 13C
Sunny
 		Total Time = 00m
Overall Rank = 670/4000
Age Group = M40-44
Age Group Rank = 68/221
Pre-race routine:

Arrived early, parked about 8 blocks away. The walk was a nice low-impact warm-up. Wandered around to get a lay of the land. Found the bag drop then started stretching.
Event warmup:

Light stretching, downed a Gatorade G1 pack 15 minutes before start. Wanted to use the restroom but the lines were too long to wait.
Run
  • 1h 49m 19s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 08m 20s  min/mile
Comments:

A week prior I was concerned I was even going to run the race. I had runner's knee flare up and I wasn't about to miss out since this was my first 1/2. I used KT tape and I'll swear by that product - I couldn't have finished without it! I still had my knee act up around Mile 6, but by Mile 9 I was 'comfortable' with the pain and actually had a better second half than the first half. I had enough left in the tank for a really strong final 400 yards.
What would you do differently?:

Next year (assuming I have no knee pain) I'll still go out at the same relaxed pace, but I'll pick it up sooner.
Post race
Warm down:

Got a massage since I had tightness in my calves, something I had never experience before. Great masseuse.

Event comments:

For my first half-marathon, I couldn't have asked for much more. The only downside with it being downtown is very little space to spread out and move around, stretch, etc. But good post-race spread, nice scenery and encouragement along the way. Looking forward to trying the full next year.




Last updated: 2012-09-04 12:00 AM
Running
01:49:19 | 13.1 miles | 08m 20s  min/mile
Age Group: 68/221
Overall: 670/4000
Performance: Good
Course: Extremely flat. Started out in downtown Des Moines, ran east into the sun towards the state capitol for about 1/2 mile before turning. Ran west, zig-zagging back through downtown and towards the two parks that the course went through. Finished up coming back through downtown.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
Physical exertion [1-5] 5
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4