Madison Mini Race Report
I’ve wanted to participate in the Madison Mini-Marathon since it’s inaugural run last August. Unfortunately, I was out of town during last year’s race so I was unable to participate. Afterward, I heard nothing but great things about the race. I definitely wanted in for 2010.
Several aspects of the race were appealing to me—the proximity of the start line to my apartment, the post-race party at the Memorial Union terrace, last year’s fabulous race t-shirts, and the timing of the event (just three weeks out from Ironman Wisconsin). All good reasons to sign up. So I did. And the race took place on Saturday, August 21.
Unfortunately, I had a bit of an injury scare the day before the race. I had raced my last Aquathon on Thursday night (which included a 5k run) and felt some stiffness in my left knee the following morning. By Friday afternoon, my knee was completely locked. I couldn’t straighten it and had trouble simply walking across the office. As you can probably imagine, I was worried sick all day—that I wouldn’t be able to run the mini. And more importantly, that my Ironman Wisconsin dreams would be crushed. But then a miracle happened. As the work day came to an end and I was able to get up from my desk and onto my feet, the pain subsided. By race morning, I was seemingly back to normal. It was time to get my run on. 
I’ve come to learn that race morning is infinitely easier when you keep it local. I literally rolled out of bed, got dressed and pinned on my race number, ate a piece of toast with peanut butter, and was on my way. I biked the few blocks to the Memorial Union and joined the masses of runners preparing for the start of the half-marathon. I had a lot of friends who were doing the race and was able to see many of them beforehand.
Although the race began at 7 a.m., it took a few minutes for us to actually start moving. The first mile was all uphill as we climbed Langdon Street (Greek row) toward the state capitol. I wasn’t sprinting, but was running at a good pace and weaving between packs of runners. As we rounded the capitol, we passed by the farmers’ market before heading down State Street. I felt winded from the Langdon hill, and hoped I hadn’t taken it out too hard. My goal was to run the race as hard as possible, while keeping a pace I could feasibly maintain for 13.1 miles. I’ve had first hand experience with taking a half-marathon out too hard and bonking in the middle. All I have to do is call on that horrendous experience to keep my pace in check.
Although still early in the morning, it was already very humid. But luckily, the skies were overcast, so we didn’t have the hot sun to deal with. I took in fluids at every aid station and dumped water on my head repeatedly. Within the first few miles I was soaking wet. After weaving through the Mills neighborhood, we entered the Arboretum and ran on the roads for the next few miles. My legs were tired from training (and racing on Thursday), but overall, I felt strong. I kept telling myself that 13.1 was nothing compared to the 20+ mile training runs I had done the previous two weekends. 
Once we emerged from the arboretum, we ran by Camp Randall stadium and then toward the Lakeshore path. My legs and feet felt increasingly heavy (probably partially due to my wet running shoes), but I knew that the finish line was in sight. It was great to run along the lake and take in the beautiful sights of campus and the sailboats gliding across the water in the distance. With one mile to go to the finish line, I locked my jaw and kicked it into high gear. As I rounded the Memorial Union, the big crowds of people cheered me through the elaborate finish line arch. The announcer said my name and commented that my running posture was excellent. Whatever that means. My official time was 1:36:33. Which made for a 7:23 pace and personal record for me at the half-marathon distance. I was the 21st female overall (out of 1,767).
I was happy with my performance, but even more happy to be part of such a great Madison event. I would definitely recommend the Madison Mini-Marathon for anyone looking for a late-summer race (there are both 5k and half-marathon distances offered). The half-marathon course highlights the very best parts of downtown Madison, and everything throughout the weekend was phenomenally well-organized. And you certainly can’t beat post-race beers on the terrace.

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One thing I’ve realized as I’ve grown older is that it becomes increasingly difficult to keep in touch with friends from high school and college. Of my five closest friends from high school, two friends live in Chicago, one in Arizona, one in California, and one Seattle. And everyone’s really busy. Therefore, it’s very difficult to get everyone together in one place at the same time. Lately, the only opportunity we’ve had to fully reunite is for weddings. Our first friend to marry off was Beth, in November 2007. And we’ve had a bit of a dry spell since then.








I apologize to those of you who are most interested in reading the next installment of my adventures from WS 100…but I need a break. And I also need a chance to catch up on a few other posts before they become completely irrelevant. So I promise to resume coverage and finally wrap up the WS 100 posts early next week.

