If you had told me three years ago That I'd be running in my first half marathon, I'd have laughed at that notion. Yet, this past Saturday, that's exactly what I did and boy what a day it was.

I signed up for the inaugural Grand Lake Half Marathon back in April as it was in the same area where my girlfriend lives (she did the 5k incidentally & was the top overall female finisher!). As for training for this, lets just Say I did not put in the required work that I should have. Sure I ran a 15k two months prior but I did not put in the long runs that I should have. Despite that, I still managed a solid time of 2:30:52. I went into the race saying I would take this as a leisurely jog and was not out be be Superman and that paid off with my time.

I arrived in Celina, Ohio the day before on Friday to check into my hotel and get settled. I already had my bib as I went with the option of having it mailed to me ahead of time. Celina sits right on the shores of Grand Lake-St. Marys. It's an absolutely gorgeous lake sadly spoiled by algae blooms which prevent folks from swimming, etc. Despite this. I would highly recommend visiting the area if you have the chance. The night before, I laid out my gear & attached my bib so I could get out the door quickly. Lets also say that I did not get much sleep as my nerves were out of control.

Race Day! having not really slept, I was up before my alarm at 4:45. Got into my gear, had some breakfast in the form of leftover pizza from the night before (I'm sure that's a big 'No No' in someone's book) and was out the door to head to the start line at 6:00. Thankfully, my hotel was only about 1.5 miles from the gathering/startling line area. On my walk over, I was amazed by how quiet and peaceful the area is. Looking up, you could see so many stars from a lack of city lights. As I got closer to the starting line, I wondered if I went the wrong way as I hadn't run into anyone else. Finally, I saw the starting grid and was relived I had made it. I sat on a sidewalk and soon ran into my girlfriend, so we passed the time chatting (and trying to keep warm as it was on 55 at the time!) until my race got going at 7:30.

The half marathon course was one that took us out of Celina and would end up at Memorial Park in St. Marys. Early on, the course went through residential neighborhoods before opening up onto country back roads. There was lots of fog in those early minutes that soon burned away thanks to the sun rising.

The aid stations were well staff and several also had Gatorade, energy gels and food items too! Plus, lets not forget very amped up volunteers (big thanks to them!). At almost each one, I got complimented on my Zensah argyle compressions socks and that definitely helped my morale! By mile 8, we had reached the lake and the water was so still and peaceful. It was such a beautiful area to hold a race.

My strategy through this was not to run too fast or slow but be steady throughout. My pace was around the 11:15/mile mark through about 85% of the course. It was towards the 11 mile mark that fatigue was setting in and I had to take 2-3 long walk breaks that were desperately needed. Yet, in the final mile, I got myself back into a running groove and powered through to the finish. A sailor handed me my finisher's medal and congratulated me. I responded by thanking him for his service.

This was without a doubt one of the biggest challenges that I've ever undertaken in my life. It has further instilled in me that I can do something as epic as this so long as I put my mind and body to it. You can definitely expect me to be running more halves in the future. Perhaps a full one day too!