It's not the heat, it's the humility

What does it take to knock me twenty minutes off a half marathon goal? Try 80-degree heat and an inordinate amount of humidity.

I was aiming high this past Sunday in Wilmington, NC. I had trained pretty well, and at altitude. I figured my average 7:15-mile would magically shrink down, closer to 7:00 as I dropped in elevation and got pumped up with race-day nerves.

Well, that didn't really pan out. It was a hot beast out there, and I was feeling it, bad, by mile 6. I was moving along at a nice clip...when I was running...
I ended up taking several walking breaks along the course, mostly at water points. I admit this without shame. I'm just happy to have finished, really. My chip time of 1:50:05 earned me 123rd place out of 1,102 finishers. That shows you how much the heat actually affected the entire pack.

Near mile 12, I passed a runner who was just about to collapse. Other runners were first-responders to her aid, telling her to sit down, sit down, as she mumbled incoherently. I felt bad for not stopping, but I had no means of helping her, and I was in a rough spot myself.

By the end of the race, I was thoroughly dehydrated. I did my best to drink enough water/gatorade to refuel, but it took a good 24 hours before I was at 100%. I probably would have done better if I had begun the race fully hydrated. I'm not used to drinking so much, living in a dry climate. That's something to learn from, for my next race.

Looking forward, my next half is going to be in either Key West, Florida (January 31st); or Myrtle Beach, South Carolina (February 13th). Then there's the Shamrock Half Marathon in Virginia Beach, VA in March. Gotta keep on keepin' on-