Race #165
Half Marathon #56
2019 Race #9
2019 Half Marathon #5
State #4
Salt Lake City Half Marathon #1

So…I don’t normally take this long to get up race recaps but…this trip has been an amazing whirlwind and this is the first opportunity I have had to sit down and compose this post.

We got in late to Salt Lake City and went straight to the hotel. We wondered how getting in so late and having to get up pretty early to get to the race start with enough time to find where to pick up our bibs, get them, and get ready to race.

Everything flowed smoothly!

We made our way from the hotel to the TRAX station just a block down. I paid for two fares since we did not yet have our bibs which would provide free rides for that day. We never had to scan or show the tickets so we could have avoided that, probably. In the long run the funds support Salt Lake City’s public transit so I’m okay with it.

It turns out that we had plenty of time to get everything done, including stuffing both our bags and shirts into one gear check back. While we waited, we realized that it snowed during the early morning! In fact, light flurries came down on us while we waited! Talk about “Spring Break!”

That is snow behind us.

When we lined up, we chose the front of the last corral. My bib did not have a corral printed on it due to the fact that I switched from the full to the half (best decision!) so we lined up together in the back. This did not really detrimentally affect our race except towards the beginning.

Ready to go!

We took off and immediately stared in amazement at the view that greeted us after we crossed the start line. I could get used to this, running with this amount of beauty all around.

Somewhere after the first mile (or during the first mile…I’m not exactly sure), the course goes up a huge hill. While this hill was tough, I have run more challenging ones before. Many of the people around us, however, have not encountered this particular challenge. We slowed down significantly on this hill.

After that, we settled in for the “long run” (couldn’t help it) and the miles ticked away.

Around mile 4 or 5, we descended into a mini canyon of sorts on a trail and were greeted by a band that sounded like they had come straight from Mardi Gras. So cool!

I felt great throughout the entire race, including the long, slow, gradual climb on South Temple. That one, even though the incline changed the least, could break even the strongest runners and we were stronger!

Mom only once, on South Temple, said something about wanting to walk. I asked her if she was sure and she said no. We kept running and ran the entire race!

I wish that I had been able to write sooner so I could remember more details about the race itself. For some reason, I have terrible memory for run details, thus, why I try to get my race recaps up as soon as possible.

Both Mom and I absolutely loved the race, the beautiful views, the challenging course which left Mom’s calves super sore (TBH, she’s not loving that part right now), the organization, the post-race food and so much more!

Splits
Mile 1 – 10:19 (slowed down by the others in the corral)
Mile 2 – 9:52
Mile 3 – 8:49
Mile 4 – 9:07
Mile 5 – 8:50
Mile 6 – 9:28
Mile 7 – 9:13
Mile 8 – 9:45
Mile 9 – 9:08
Mile 10 – 9:34
Mile 11 – 8:49
Mile 12 – 9:24
Mile 13 – 8:55
.24 nubbin: – 7:57
Overall time: 2:03:35

If I did not have so many other states to get in in my 50 state quest for half marathons, I would run this one again, in a heartbeat.