Mystic Half Marathon

After my half marathon there, the drive from Maine was pretty uneventful and we got to our hotel in Connecticut in the late afternoon.  Yes, you read that right...I planned on running two half marathons in one weekend.  It's not as uncommon as you might think.  We relaxed for a bit, and walked to Applebee's for dinner - grilled chicken, potatoes and mac n cheese for me.  And lots of water.  A stop at Walgreens and then back to the hotel, so I could prep my stuff for the race, we could plan a little for the next day, and go to bed early.  The Mystic Half started at 7 am.  Getting up at 5:35 am sounds early, but after you've done a Disney race, not really!  :)

Again, we timed it perfectly and arrived to get a perfect parking spot with limited traffic.  I had my race packet mailed to my parents' house, so we didn't have to rush from Maine to try to get to the expo the day before by 5pm.  Just the usual pre-race granola bars, porta potty trips and making sure I had everything.  I hugged my parents and got into the crowd for the start.  My goal (after getting a PR the day before) was to just finish, but I still wanted to finish strong, so I found the 2:30 pacer, Beth, and struck up a conversation with her.

The race started on time - the weather was perfect, nice and cool!  Soon, we were off, running into the Mystic Seaport and past some waterfront, then it was over a drawbridge and Mystic Pizza (I heard) was approaching.  It was sooo far off the course (I realized too late), but I wanted a picture of it anyway, and got one, but then had to double time it to reach my pacer.  I did find her and stuck with her for pretty much the whole race.  We had a few people with us for parts of the race - here and there.  Certainly, no one stayed with her longer than me.  I was strong through the first 9 miles and I started to walk more at the water stops and up the hills.  Eventually, Beth continued on without me (after I thanked her profusely) so she could keep pace, and I did my best to stay strong. I put my earphones in - to this point, I was just talking everyone's ears off, which certainly passed the time for me! - and ran on.  I don't think I walked more than half a mile for sure...not that it really matters, but I was surprised while running that I felt so good, since I felt so bad after the race the day before.  I really think it was because of the weather, and because the course was so beautiful and enjoyable.

Due to the out-and-back nature of the course after mile 7, I knew that mile 12 was just ahead.  I walked up the last enormous hill, and started running again.  With my music on, I crushed the last mile, caught up and passed my Beth, and ran into the finish area essentially alone.  My parents were there cheering and I had the same amazing feeling when I crossed the finish.  And still felt great!!!

​I couldn't even eat anything after the Maine half, and at this post-race party, I did not hold back.  I had some coffee biscotti ice cream from The Farmer's Cow and I had a fresh ciabatta roll with PB&J. The finish line was right by the Mystic Aquarium, and the post-race party was all set in the Olde Mistick Village, right where the start was.

All in all, this was one of my favorite half marathons, out of the 14 I've run so far.  The weather certainly helped, but the route was very scenic, there were quite a few spectators, the post-race party was impressive for such a small town feel, and the tech shirt and medal were really nice.