Race Expo and Course Preview

This race will be No. 186 for me and No. 85 for Martha.  We both ran it in 2010, when my time was 1:55:36, and realistically I know I will be an hour slower this year (although my goal is still to break three hours).  It will be my 20th half marathon, and my fifth Flying Pirate.  Martha brought her race book with her, and I have all of my records on my computer; it is both helpful and nostalgic to look back on previous races here on this same course.  I did not remember which year it rained nearly the whole race (no post-race party, no band, just huge relief at finally being able to get dry and climb in the car, which we had the foresight to park at the finish area).  Martha told me it was 2012, but I was not sure until I found a photo of us huddling in the car afterward.

Conditions should be better this year.  It is raining on Saturday evening as I write this, nothing very heavy, but hopefully enough to settle some of the pollen which will be higher in Kitty Hawk Woods than here directly on the ocean.  But the forecast calls for it to clear overnight, only 20% chance of rain in the morning, with temperatures in the low 60s, which is a little warmer than we have become acclimated to since our arrival.

We stopped at the race expo, which took place at the First Flight Middle School, and both began to get a little excited as we picked up our race bibs, shirts, and other SWAG (which included skull-and-crossbone temporary tattoos that we may or may not apply).

All went smoothly, and we had a picnic lunch nearby - sandwiches and pasta salad - before previewing the course, something we always try to do before a race.  Even though we have run this same course before, it is helpful to remember where the water stops are located, the mile markers, and the terrain.  The big challenge in this race, and the reason it will not be a fast one for me, is the last three miles in Nags Head Woods on an unpaved road.

The road is mostly smooth gravel, but it also has some sandy patches, potholes, and a little mud (which could be worse after tonight's rain).  At mile 12.5, the road ends, and runners face the most difficult part of the course, a single track path climbing steeply over sand dunes, up and down, with plenty of tree roots to trip an exhausted runner.  We will both very likely walk some of these hills!

Finally, after half a mile, the path makes a sharp turn, climbs to the top of a little rise, and there is mile 13 on the side of the path.  The last tenth of a mile is a wild, steep descent down to the finish line, which will be harder on my knees than the preceding thirteen miles, I suspect.

But we are ready for this race, as prepared as we can be.  Tonight we dined here in the house on simple pasta with marinara sauce and a little bread, and all day we have both been sipping water and Gatorade.  The alarm will be set for 3:30 a.m. because we will need to arrive in the Walmart parking lot before 6:30 a.m. to walk the half-mile to the starting line.  We even have flannel shirts which Martha found at a thrift store and washed, to keep us comfortable before the race starts.

Now the rain has stopped and fog has begun to roll in from the ocean, and it seems as if the crash and thunder of the surf is louder than ever.