This past weekend my family and I ran the Indy-Mini Marathon which is held the first Saturday in May in Indianapolis. The race sells out months in advance, with the draw being the opportunity to run on the actual Indy 500 racetrack. I have run this half marathon three times, but this time was the most fun that I've had. Kevin, Kym, Brooke, Jake (Brooke's boyfriend), and I started out together with a run/walk interval plan. The weather was perfect, low 60's and overcast. The course is flat except when entering the Indianapolis Motor-Speedway. Here, runners encounter a slight incline leading onto the track. I have never been to the actual race itself, but my husband has.
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| At the expo |
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| Always have to have a shoe picture. Chips were on our bib, not our shoe. |
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| At the start in Corral T. There were 6 more corrals behind us! |
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| The route |
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| Just about to cross the timing strip to start the race |
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| After crossing the timing strip, we were greeted by the American Flag flanked by members of the military, fire-fighters, and police. |
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| We passed fire-fighters and members of the armed services running in full gear |
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| "Eat More Chicken" cheerleaders |
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| About to enter the Indy 500 Motor Speedway |
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| The famous "Bricks" where runners stop "to kiss the bricks." I was afraid that I would end up with a face plant if I attempted to "kiss the bricks" due to the volume of runners stopping for a photo. So, I just squatted for a photo. |
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| Photo courtesy of Jake. About halfway finished with the race at this point |
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| Encouragement from complete strangers |
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| IU cheerleaders with spirit |
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| About to cross the finish line. Another 13.1 miles in the books. |
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| Kym and Brooke sporting their hard earned medals |
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| Me and my girls! |
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| Kevin and I |
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| Our hotel, The Crown Plaza Union Station only 5 minutes from the start of the race. This hotel is housed in an old historic train station. |
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| Indianapolis Capitol building |
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| Our "official" Garmin time |
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| Inspirational monument on our walk back to our hotel |
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| Colt's stadium |
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| Indy Runners support Boston |
We followed our walk/run interval throughout the race as planned. However, stopping for photos, potty breaks, and chatting with fellow runners put us about 20 minutes off our target goal. Although I enjoyed this race, I will probably chose a different one next May. As they say, variety is the spice of life!
I love your Kiss the Bricks photo! I'm so glad you had such a fun time.
ReplyDeleteNote ... I'm thinking of doing the Pig again next year ;)
Can't forget the SHOE picture!
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