SF Marathon -- Race Day

Sunday I awoke at 3:30 AM for a 5:55 AM run in the city. I arrived and parked just in time to wait in line for the bathroom; stretch; and join 15,000 other runners. The weather was nice (62 degrees F) with slightly cloudy skies. I could see the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance and that was a good sign since it meant it wasn't totally fogged in.

The first (and fastest) runners started their journey at 5:30. Because of my estimated finish time I was in Wave #5 and started later. They use RFID tags (called chips) that you attach to your shoes and record your start and finish times. This means you have two times: "gun time" and "chip time" which allows for delayed starts. The start seemed better than last year because it was an orderly start with none of the pushing and shoving I've experience in other races. This was my third time doing the half Marathon (13.1 miles) and this seemed to be the best organized.

I love running in San Francisco because of the beautiful views and weather. This was an almost perfect day to run and I felt strong (besides only getting 4 hours sleep the night before). The highlight of the race was running across the Golden Gate Bridge. The bridge starts around mile 6 and there are a couple hills you have to overcome to get there. Running to Vista Point (end of the bridge) and back is a little over 2 miles and provides a nice view of the bay and San Francisco. After reaching Vista Point and heading back over the bridge I saw a sea of runners coming towards me and I wished I had my camera -- it was definally a "Kodak Moment." (I thought about running with my camera but I didn't want the added weight for such a long run.) I saw a number of runners stop and pull out their cameras to capture the moment. I even saw one runner stop and ask another runner to take a picture of her with the bridge in the background. No one seemed to mind and everyone seemed to be enjoying the experience.

After coming off the bridge everything was downhill; and uphill; and downhill; and ...  There seemed to be a lot more hills this year than last and it really took a toll on my legs the last two miles. When I entered Golden Gate Park I was looking forward to coming around the turn and heading to the right for the final downhill race to the finish line. This year they changed the course and forced us to the left and up another hill. It was the final struggle before hitting the finish line. My time was 2:17 which was a little behind last years but I felt it was good time beause of what I felt to be a tougher course this year.

The buses took us back to the starting line and I grabbed my camera and took the pictures you see here. The finish line in these pictures is for the Marathoners (26.2 miles); the 2nd Half Marathoners, and the 5K runners/walkers. I have more race/San Francisco pictures on my Flickr site too.

Whenever I run a half marathon I think of those that continue on and finish a full marathon. Two years ago I completed the San Jose Marathon so I know how it feels to conquer that dream. I also know the toll it takes on your body ("hitting the wall") and the amount of time you need to devote to those "long runs" building up to race day. Someday I may do another marathon but I'm content on pushing myself 13.1 miles and cheering on the soles that see my run as only a halfway point.

This was the best SF Marathon yet and I'm looking forward to doing it again next year.