Gulf Beach Half Marathon

So after a week and a half or so of settling into life in New Haven (more on that soon!) I ran my first half marathon on this side of the ocean! I'd looked for one in the local area to give me motivation to keep training after the Reading half earlier in the year and found the Gulf Beach half marathon in Milford which is just down the road. It was described as the flattest half marathon in Connecticut and the course runs along the boardwalk next to the beach - I thought it sounded perfect and it didn't disappoint!

While my intention had been to keep training after my previous race that didn't quite happen... And I had to start from scratch building up my distance. I worked out a plan to increase my long runs steadily until the race and because I have another race in two months time, the goal I set for this race was to finish, enjoy it and not injure myself! Come race day I was pretty nervous - as I always am! - but Patrick helped keep me calm and once I got running the nerves started to fade and the 'I can do this!' mentality took over. 

Patrick had told me to look out for him around the three mile mark and sure enough there he was, with a big sign cheering me on, putting a massive smile on my face! The course was an out and back route so it was amazing to know I would see him again around the 10mile mark. Little did I know that the two lovely ladies above were also turning up to surprise me on the way back through! Having people along the route to cheer you on and support you gives you such a boost and the three of them then drove back to the finish to be there to watch me cross the line which was fantastic!

The course itself was lovely and definitely one I wouldn't mind running again. The sea views were gorgeous although there was occasionally a very strong fish smell that wasn't the best when you're breathing deep! The route was lovely and flat, although it was a pretty hot day by the time we were finishing. The last 0.1 miles is run on sand and at a slant which was way more difficult than you would think it would be! Usually I would be sprinting for the line but it was enough just to keep my balance and keep moving. My final time was 2:12:05 which I was so pleased with and had zero ache or pain after. Going to try and mix in some speed training to improve for my next race - Philly here I come!