I was looking forward for this race since I signed up for a few months ago. Not just because it had been a while I ran a half, But also because quite a few of my run buddies from our Morrisville Run Club were running this too. We have all been doing great with our weekly mileage including the long runs over the weekend and I'm so glad that the prep was just the way I needed it to be for me to do well in this race. I've heard about the hills in this course, But hey, Who doesn't love the hills (With a smirk on my face)! With the decent enough prep under my belt I was aspiring to break my PR and try to get this one for 1.45, but with a sense of caution.

Reaching the race venue wasn't hard, But finding my way to park the car seemed a bit tricky. It was perhaps my fault (Rather blame my GPS)! Once the parking logistics were taken care of, reaching the start line was rather smooth and I was all pumped up to see the crowds of athletes. I braced myself for the call to start and wished to get through the crowd a bit sooner and find my running groove for my pace. As it is, It took the first couple of miles to get ahead and I found myself at the pace I have been running during this time which is between 8.00 and 8.50. I even ran with the 8.30 pacers for quite sometime during the course but perhaps couldn't keep up with them once I hit the hills. The course was nice as we ran through the downtown and some part of Duke university. The weather was perfect for the run, But I wouldn't say the same for the time I spent after the run. Though I didn't see my run buddies at the start line, I managed to see some of them a few miles into the course. I found the aid stations were plenty and well placed and managed to hydrate a few times. The latter part of the course was what I found the most challenging with steeper hills rolling in. But the people especially little kids cheering along the course, made the experience rather better. As I got closer to the finish line, I noticed I was a bit under my aspired pace, But still ended up with PR at 1.49. All in all, I would say that I really enjoyed this race and would do it again and perhaps better my PR.

The after party was great, I met with my run buddies and was glad to know that they all got their PRs with this race. The weather started feeling cold, now since the race was over but the beer that was served after the run made it feel way better.