LaPorte By the Bay Half Marathon

This was not a new race for me. In fact two years ago this race was my very first half marathon. Yep, this is the one that started it all. Sort of. If you've ever read or heard me speak about my first half you know that it was the race that made me think of quitting running. I am hardly the girl to let one bad experience make me throw in the towel. It was such a mentally exhausting run for me that by the time I got back to the hotel room I looked a ghost, just a shell of myself as my husband put it. In fact that moment was the very first time my husband was supported of anything that had to do with me running, he liked the idea that I was quitting. I think to him he was thankful that this phase had run it's course and things could get back to normal. He could get his fat wife back, the one who was more than willing to spend the weekends baking him cakes and cookies until we both weighed 2000lbs.

I have thought back and gone over that race in my head 100's of times. I think my training was solid. Other than not really knowing how to run hills I had followed my training plan at least 90%. I had run the other two races in the series, which I thought had given me a glimpse of that bridge running was about. I had practiced my nutrition and hydration and kept to my plan for the entire race. So what went wrong. I wasn't dressed right. It had been cooler the week leading up to the race, this is December after all it should be cold. So I geared up with and long sleeve and capris. What I didn't plan on was that it was near 80 at start time. 

LaPorte medal circa 2012

I was way overdressed and bound to failure from the start before the the other things happened. I started with a great 10k. Problem with that is that I had expended all I had before the bridge and just getting up that first side of it.  By the time I had made the turn around and was heading back up the bridge it took everything I had left. I was bargaining with myself. Running light post to light post to just keep going. When I came off the bridge I was maybe 2:10 in and I lost my mental game. I thought based upon my 10k times I should be able to finish in about 2:36, well that number was out and as I started walking everything else about me deflated. I was going to fail. That was the only thought in my head. I was going to finish but I was failing. Game over. I finally crossed the finish line at 3:00:54. And I cried.

For about a week I couldn't get that out of my head. Another week later I set off trying to wipe that time off my half marathon stat. 2 years later here I was going back to LaPorte again, giving myself a rerun on a race that has haunted me. 

Only today was completely different. Once again the weather had been colder the week coming up to race but I spent the Saturday before the race with my eye on the weather. First 55 and rain, then 60 and clear. So I packed every possible combination.

My only goal for the day was to come in under that 3:00:54. It was not destined to be my faster half. No way with the Fred Hartman bridge on the course was I going to run under 2:30.

I spent the first few miles listening to the crowd around me. I got the biggest chuckle when a few ladies behind me, who may have been talking to themselves out loud or maybe not, said really LOUDLY "go ahead and pass us we'll pass you back on the bridge." Honestly that pretty much sums up the best way to run this race, easy to the bridge and then full throttle on the way back.

Fred Hartman Bridge

I kept it easy to mile 5 and then hit the bridge. The best thing happened as I hit the top of the bridge around mile 6, it started to rain. It was cold and it was perfect and it helped me haul ass to the backside of the bridge. Mile 7 and 8 were back on flat ground which was fantastic. At mile 9 I passed a local hero who carries the American Flag, running for team RWB, at every race and for the first time ever it looked like I might finish ahead of him. That. Never. Happens. I pushed my butt back up that bridge.

Mile 10 coming  back down the bridge I let it all out. After I downloaded my watch I learn I had actually managed a 3 minute interval under a 9 minute pace. I felt great. I had tackled the bridge without any extra walk breaks and the finish line was dead ahead of me. After a quick pit stop. I crossed the finishline at 2:45:23, a good minute per mile faster than my first half. WINNING!!

So now why you should run this race?

#1 this race and really all of Running Alliance Sport's 6 races are the most organized races EVER! Smooth easy packet pick ups, even on race morning, clear, easy to follow race directions and always, something they pride themselves on, an on-time start (What happened in Galveston was a fluke and I am sure it won't ever happen again.)

LaPorte 2014 Swag

#2 if you're into swag they have it. Hats and gloves and shirts and ice packs, personalized bibs, the works!
#3 on course support. Every few miles tables of water and gateraid and lots of enthusiastic volunteers cheering you on and port-a-potties. I have run half's where there are potties on the course at certain aid stations, here they were at every aid station.
#4 There is something magical about hearing your name announced as you cross the finishline. It's a tough thing to do with close to 2000 runners but they manage it. If you have never heard you name as you cross the finish, it's amazing.

#5 After race party. The music keeps on playing and the party keeps on going. There is never a shortage of food or drinks not just for you but for your entire support crew. This year there was sausage, fresh made hot soup (perfect for the cold weather), pizza, fruit and beer, sodas, water, what ever your pleasure.

#6 Most races would make you walk back to the start-line where your car is (oh, parking, tons of close parking near the start-line) not here RAS has a number of vans shuttling runners back to either the parking lot at the beach or the lots at the high school.

All 3 race medals

Half Marathon Medal

#7 for all you bling whores, the medals. LaPorte is also part of the Texas Bridge Series (2 10k's and this half) and if you run all 3 races you get a 4th medal for completing the challenge. This year it was a spinner and the 3 medals from the series fit together to form a star and they all have some sort of moving part to them.

Series Medal