this morning i ran the
mini-marathon in indianapolis, indiana. it's a half-marathon, though for some reason they like to say 'mini' instead of what everyone else in the world calls that distance. it's the biggest half in the united states, with 35000 registrants every year. it's part of the month-long indy 500 celebration, and it sells out every year around thanksgiving. look at all these people!
the route takes you through downtown indianapolis, around the race track, then back toward IUPUI for the finish. the race is well-organized, with local bands all along the way, and some specialty groups like square dancers and cloggers. there are also groups of high school cheerleaders all along the race track in the infield, which is fantastic because that stretch is otherwise pretty boring and high school cheerleaders are seemingly tireless in their pep and encouragement. there is a bar along the route near mile 10 that normally serves beer to runners who want it (last year i got a nice swig), but unfortunately they weren't serving today. here's a shot of these good samaritans two years ago:
the good news is that there was a nice lady at about 11.5 miles who was handing out cups of frosty beer. i was hugging the right side of the street and she was on the left so i cut off about 10 people in my sprint across, but i think it was worth it.
i ran with my brother, which was fun. we each brought a small bag of 13 gummy bears, and ate one after each mile. i totally stole this idea from my friend
amanda who is running her first marathon tomorrow in jersey. the idea is that as you run and the miles drag on, at least you have a steadily diminishing pile of candy to remind you that you are indeed making progress. i thought it might be dumb, but at least it was something to look forward to at each mile marker, but it TOTALLY worked. it was great! it made it seem as if the miles flew by.
