State 1: Florida (2010 ING Miami Half Marathon)

Editor’s Note: I wrote the recap below shortly after running the 2010 ING Miami Marathon.  It was a brief description of the race and little else.  However, over two years later, I was asked to describe the race with additional details on another blogger’s website, which can be read here.

I began 2010 with a then-ambitious challenge to myself: run ten half marathons before the Chicago Marathon in October.  In the summer of 2009, I learned that my cousin Paula had signed up for her first American road race, the ING Miami Half Marathon. Without hesitating, I made arrangements to run with her. Seven months later, it was time to inaugurate the ten halves of 2010 with my family, a belly full of pasta and a head swimming with ambitious dreams of scenic vistas, cool ocean breezes and bold PR’s.

Ah, the gift of dreaming. The actual race was brutal. Although the temperatures were hovering in the low 70’s, the humidity was an oppressive 97%. At the top of the MacArthur bridge, right before the causeway, I was sweating bullets and hadn’t reached the first mile marker. Usually I feel my energy start to dwindle by mile 9, but Miami pushed me to this point by mile 5, barely out of South Beach. I kept sneaking glances at my watch, furious at the rising pace time. Once the course returned to the mainland around mile 11, I managed to speed up for the Cheer Zone, where my mom, aunt and cousins were waiting for us to pass. They got a glimpse of pure athletic histrionics, because I was (not-so) secretly dying on the inside.

Shortly before the finish line, the course splits, giving the marathon runners an additional 13.1 miles of punishment. For everyone else, the finish line was a few more gasps away. I finished in 1:57:09, my slowest half to date, grabbed the famous spinner medal and made my way through the post-race refreshments to meet up with my family.

Tía Ale, Paula, Tío Daniel, Andy, Nati

Had the weather not monopolized my focus, I would have enjoyed the race a lot more. I would have enjoyed the beautiful views of the ocean in between islands, the rows of palm trees lining the roads, the themed restaurants gracing Ocean drive – I might have also talked to one of the many Costa Ricans running the race. The bridges in between islands weren’t as backbreaking as I had imagined, though they did slow me down. But as far as aesthetics go, this race has been undoubtedly the most beautiful I have run. In fact, I feel a little sorry for my cousin, who will forever benchmark future races against this one.

But alas, I shook off my woes and returned to training.  With the Go! St. Louis Half Marathon in mid-April, I had some training to do.