Message posted by: Jeff P.

Didn’t see a report for this event or the full marathon, so I thought I would chime in a perspective. THis was a fun race. 32,0000 people of all abilities made for a sea of runners that was very cool to witness at the start! Everyone was massed together in their respective corrals that seemed to go on and on when one looked back from the front of the pack. THe weather was gorgeous, but even at 7am it was already starting to get warmer than usual even for Nashville.

The elite women and chairs had already taken off 15 minutes before the start of the elite men and the rest of us. With the singing of the National Anthem and the sound of the starter pistol, we were off. This was the first time I had run this race and having just flew in the day before from Chicago, I wasn’t absolutely sure what the course was like – I soon found out. The downhill first mile should have been a clue of the impending uphills…what goes down must come up. Yet, even with the hills, I found myself running a good pace of 6:30 for the first 3-4 miles. It was fun to weave through the tall buildings taking advantage of the artificial shade they provide. Water stations, fuel stations and cool bands were stationed almost every mile on the course. As the middle of the course came around, I found myself going through the hills of the residential areas of the downtown. Fortunately, as I found the course doubling back on itself, I was at the front the pack and could see th

e wave of endless bodies coming the opposite way – way cool to see so many people running in unison!

Rolling back into the downtown area in the last 1/3 of the course, the hills would not relent. Thus, I found my pace slowing down to 7:00 then 7:15. The heat was coming on more and more with the rising sun – by now it’s in the mid to upper 70′s. I know to my southern friends that is not that warm, however, only the day before I was in weather with peak temps in the low 50′s in Chicago. I’m not complaining though…been dying for some warmer spring weather for a while now and it’s here!

Finish was really fun as it ended outside LP stadium(where the Titans play) and they had a nice finish set with a winding maze that forced you to keep walking and grabbing liquids and food and cold water sponges and passing by a medic tent so that they can see everyone who passed by and assessed those that needed help – a lot of dehydration issues occured especially with those coming later in the morning when it was even warmer.

Overall, a very successful and fun run – would recommend this race to anyone, novice or experienced. This was my first 1/2 marathon as a stand alone – previously, my 1/2 marathon distances have been done with 1/2 irons. Final stats: 1:32:21 ; finished 142nd out of 22,000 1/2 marathoners and 6th place in age group of 963.

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