About a week ago I ran the Murfreesboro Half (also known as the Middle Half) for the fifth year in a row. The best part about it is that I always go with a few of my friends. That always makes getting up at the crack of dawn a little easier. Registration for this race was over four months ago. It fills up in just hours so if you want to run it, you have to register the day it opens. What I didn’t know when I registered was that I would be in Philadelphia the whole week before, flying back home the night before the race. I am not going to lie, I was dreading it and even slightly considered not going. I had planned to be at my friend’s house at 5:15 which meant leaving at 4:45 and waking up at 4:15. Thank goodness for Jenifer and Ashley because meeting them helped me motivate myself to go.
Gearing up for the Middle Half
The weather was extremely cloudy to begin the race. It looked as if it was going to rain at any second so I came prepared in my Nike Dri Fit hat. (A necessity for running in the rain!) I chose my Saucony Rides over my Brooks Glycerin because they are a little lighter and with the potential for soggy shoes I wanted my shoes to be as light as possible to begin with. I also kept my clothes light weight with a dri fit tank and shorts. I made it about 4 miles with no rain and then it rained consistently until the end. It was a good rain though, not too terribly hard. (And nowhere near as bad as the Country Music Marathon two years ago.) I felt so much better this race than the Women’s Half two weeks prior. The weather during the Women’s Half was sunny and a little warmer. Probably due to the fact that the majority of my miles are run in the dark, I feel and do so much better in overcast or even rainy races. I finished in 1:37 and was second in my age group out of about 275 and 11 the female out of about 1300. My finish time was two minutes slower than when I ran the race last year. Last fall I was coming off of my fastest full marathon ever at the Nashville full. I had worked the hardest I have ever worked and I am trying to build back up to where I was. My goal is to qualify for Boston again and go back to Boston in 2016 for the 120th anniversary. I will try this December in Memphis and if that doesn’t happen I will try again in the spring.
There isn’t a ton of spectators in at this race, but there are definitely some. And of course at any race in the rain there isn’t as many people out. (Which is totally understandable!) The shirts are always great at this race. This year they were gray and yellow and it was a half zip. I love half zip pullovers for running. You can layer to wear running in colder weather or where them alone when it isn’t as hot. However I do have to say I was a little let down by the runner’s food at the end. Normally Jim N Nick’s is at the end with some bbq tacos and the amazing rolls they have! Last year they also had mini Gigi’s cupcakes!!! They were amazing and it was such a great surprise! This year….totally different story. There was neither of those things there. There was Domino’s pizza and some not so great donut holes.
We were soaking wet and freezing cold after the game. We almost passed completely on the food but grabbed some fruit and donut holes for the road. Aside from the big bummer that I didn’t get my Jim N Nick’s…….I loved the race and would do it again in a heartbeat.