Hungry Duck Run Half Marathon
July 4, 2016
2:20:24
Temp: Mid 60s at the start, high 70s by the end
What I wore: hat, tank top, a Skirt Sports Gym Girl Ultra, Features socks, and Altra One 2.5
I have to admit that I wasn’t very excited to be running this race. I’ve learned over the course of many half marathons that in teeny tiny races like the Hungry Duck Run (especially when they offer a shorter distance too), I’m going to be nearly last and I’ll be running mostly by myself. But I needed Michigan and this was the only race available while we were in town.
The race took place in the town of Brighton, which had a fabulous brewpub (Draught Horse brewing). That alone made it worth running LOL.
Unfortunately, Shoo had a super rough night (we think maybe dehydration), so I got basically no sleep the night before the race. Luckily, as with most small town races, I found that getting to the race was easy. I parked at the local high school and caught a shuttle to the start with plenty of time to use the portapotties and chill.
The race started right on time and I started out way too fast. It’s hard with these kind of races because you want to stay with the pack, but the pack is fast. I ended up running sub-30 for the first 5k, not exactly the brightest choice on a hilly, hot half marathon. At one point in mile 2, we did a small out and back and I discovered there were only 16 people behind me. I made it my goal to finish with at least 10 behind me, which was totally arbitrary, but gave me a reason to keep pushing.
The rest of the race can basically be described this way: hills, more hills, gravel road, gravel road with hills, more hills, am I lost?, oh, and look a final hill into the finish. I’ve never been so happy to see a finish line. I haven’t walked in the last quarter mile of a race in a long time, but I definitely did in this one. Yeah, it was that hard. I consider it a huge victory that I finished with 17 people behind me.
The good:
- The race was well organized and had zero glitches.
- The price was right – I think it cost me $40 and included a medal and shirt.
- I bought a super cute hat for $5!
- Lots of friendly people.
The bad:
- It was pretty warm.
- I felt pretty lonely for most of the race and a few times I wondered if I’d wandered off course. (I hadn’t all the turns were really well marked and staffed with volunteers.)
The ugly:
- The hills. OMG, the hills.
Would I run the Hungry Duck Run again?
Probably not. It was fine, just a typical small town race. Great if you are from there or need a race, but not one I’d go out of my way to run again.
32 states (plus DC) done on my quest to run a half marathon in all 50 states! 21 of 23 states done in my journey to Mercury!
Today I’m linking up with HoHo and Tricia for Weekly Wrap. Stop by the link up and see what everyone else is up to…
And don’t forget to join us on Tuesday for Tuesdays on the Run! We’re talking about race slang!
How cute that there was a duck mascot there! I don’t race in the summer at all, so I give you huge kudos for tackling such a hard, hilly course in July! Congrats!
I once ran a half with less than 20 people. I think it was an afterthought run in conjunction with a very popular 5k. I had a very lonely run on rural roads. The medal is cute in an odd sort of way. Did you notice the duck is holding three different things on the T, the hat, and the medal? At least the beer was good there! Thanks for linking, Ericka!