Las Vegas 1/2 Marathon

On December 4, 2011 Mark & I went to Las Vegas so I could run in the Rock n Roll Half Marathon. My dear friend from Austin, Carol, flew in to run it with me. 44,000 people signed up to make it the largest night race IN THE WORLD!!! Here we are, pre-race. I always feel so nervous before a race, asking myself, what am I doing here?! I am not an athlete, let alone a real runner! This race was extra tricky because I had never run 13.1 miles at night. Most people, including the man who came in first overall in the full marathon, had never run a night race. What to eat? When to eat? Rest or go about your day? They were all factors that would catch up to us after 5:30pm race night.

They closed down the strip and we ran from Mandalay Bay all the way to Fremont Street and back. All the overhead walkways along the strip were filled with people cheering for us. The lights along the strip were fantastic. We ran in front of million dollar hotels and shabby pawn shops downtown. Local news carried the race live, so Mark & Carol's husband, Pat, were able to watch most of it while sitting in the bar at our hotel!
After the race, there was much criticism about what a mess it was. For the people way in the back, they almost never got a chance to really run as there were so many people. I read online that they ran out of medals. I would have been heart broken if that had happened to me and can see their disappointment. The promoters were interviewed and said they wanted the race to go from 44,000 people this year to 60,000 next year!!! With all the bad press, it will be interesting to see what they decide.
For me, personally, it was a great race. I had a really good finish time (2:36:34) and, yes, that's two and half hours of running!! I am not fast! I felt strong and great through mile 9. I made sure to look up and enjoy the sights of the strip ~ the lights, the people, the energy all around me.

Here's the finishers medal. I just discovered the coolest thing ~ it glows in the dark so the moon and stars shine!!! What an exciting, challenging experience and one I will never forget!