Notes
Paced Mary for the Half Marathon. It was an interesting and fun trip. We slept in the car the night before...we had the back seats down so our legs were in the trunk and out upper torsos were in the back of the seats. It was actually a lot more comfortable that it sounds. We planned on staying in a UMD parking lot. Mary had just fallen asleep and I was right on the edge, all of a sudden I see a super bright light. At first I didnt know what the hell was going on. Then I realized that a car had pulled into the same empty parking lot. I peeked out the window and sure enough, it was a cop; a minute later, he was shining his flashlight in the car. He told us we couldnt sleep there and could go anywhere but a UMD parking lot. So, we had to move...we drove around for a bit and ended up in front of some random house.
Before I knew it, it was 4:30 in the morning and we had to start getting ready.
We went to a nearby gas station and brushed out teeth, ate breakfast, and changed. Then we met Nate and Hannah @ Kirby Circle, where the shuttles left from. I was afraid they would ask to see a bib # or something to board the shuttle, but they luckily did not. We made it to the drop off point for the Half Marathon without a hitch. All of us had to go to the bathroom real bad and the line for the porta pottys were a quarter mile long. All of a sudden, we get to a point where they ask to see bib #'s, there were 5-6 people checking for #'s and I didnt have one. I was caught off guard and was a deer in the headlights. Before I could say something, Mary distracted the lady by showing her bib #, giving me just enough time to duck into the swarm of people going to the start line.
We weaved throu the crowd and jumped the fence to use the beach as a bathroom. Hopped the fence again and made our way to the front of the pack. As soon as the gun went off, it was like a stampede. I started behind Mary because she wanted to be right on the line and I figured that wouldnt be the best spot for someone without a bib #. I caught Mary a 1/4 mile in and ran with her throu 11.5 miles. Nothing too exciting happened. We passed Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble, saw a real Scottish bagpipe being played, and passed a lot of people. It was cool to see the crowds that lined the streets in each small town and even intersections. There were water stops every 2 miles, so I would take 2-3 waters at each, 2 for Mary and 1 for me. half the time I would just throw the water on her rather than giving it to her. They gave out water, Ultima, ice, and sponges. Two unofficial rest stops were Bloody Mary's and Beer, but I saw 'em too late and would have had to swing back for a cold beer. Instead, I ran on...hoping for another beer rest stop. The race went by a lot faster than expected. It was a fun experience and I plan on running it next year.