The Experience of the Indianapolis Mini-Marathon – Indy Mini – Running

4:45am…That was the time to wake up on Saturday. The temperatures all week had been mid-60s to even a few 70 degree days. That morning was a projected high of about 54. So when we were ready to head out the door at 5:00am I checked and it was 48 degrees and 30mph winds.  Not exactly what I would consider ideal conditions to go run 13.1 miles for the first time at the Indianapolis Mini-Marathon.

minimarathon

My wife and I started the weekend off on Friday night going down to the Indianapolis Convention Center to pick up our packets for the race.  We ate at Buca di Beppo to cram our bodies full of carbs.  I think this was my third pasta meal in two days, so I was eyeing P.F. Changs as we were walking around downtown Indy.  One of my friends had mentioned that she got her best time last year after eating sushi the day before.  She is a lot braver than I am on that note.  I think she did the same thing this year and ended up in the bathroom three times during the race.  The sad part for me is that she still beat my time by about 10 minutes.  Maybe sushi is on the menu for next year.

Once we arrived in downtown Indianpolis the temps were still cold, but the wind was just gusting, so it really wasn’t that bad.  It had slowed down to about 15mph or so.  So much of the day was so adrenaline filled that I am still trying to sort out the different parts of the day.  So as we are getting into our different sections to start the race I notice that there are a lot of people.  I mean a LOT of people…about 40,000 to be exact.  This makes for a sea of people at every turn and twist to the race path.  So if you think that it is going to thin out after about mile four or five you are mistaken.  It doesn’t…

There are all kinds of emotions and experiences as you run the Mini

  • There was an elephant from the Indianapolis Zoo that was cheering on the runners as we passed by…(I am being serious…no joke)
  • There were all kinds of bands playing music as you run by…
  • I saw all kinds of people running this race from kids to 70-80 year olds…so if you are reading this thinking that you are not in good enough shape or that you are too old you need to realize that you can do it.  You just have to make up your mind that you will…
  • I saw a guy talking on his iPhone as we were running around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway…I am not sure if he was calling for help or if he was just wanting to share his experience with someone at that very moment.
  • I got high fives from a lot  of people…from the Indianapolis Fire Department to the Chick-fil-a cows to the Indianapolis Colts Ultimate Fan.  Maybe next year I will cut some of these high fives out to improve on my time.  Oh who cares…it was fun and the support from people out there is awesome!
  • The finish of the race is about 50 emotions all at once…happiness, pride, relief, exhaustion, thankful, blessed, etc.  I am sure it it is different for everybody, but I couldn’t help but wish I would have had my camera with me as I saw so many smiles and happy faces after finishing.
  • A special thanks to all the volunteers that helped out with all aspects of the race. 🙂

So now on to my final time.  I used the RunKeeper app and I am still blown away with this thing.  I finished with a time of 2:04 for 13.39 miles.  I didn’t make my goal of under two hours, but I am still happy with my time.  Wendy finished with a time of 2:13 for her first mini-marathon.  I am really proud of her.  She keeps telling everyone that this was her first and last mini-marathon, but I am thinking otherwise. 🙂

I am leaning towards training for a marathon.  Yes I know that sounds crazy, but for some reason I seem to be drawn towards this. I guess you could say I have become somewhat obsessed with finding out how much I can push myself in this.  I am already looking forward to my next run.  I figure that no matter how many miles I run it will seem very easy if it is less than 13.29. 🙂  I am planning on at least one more mini-marathon this summer.  I also have my eye on the Warrior Dash.  This is totally out of my comfort zone to say the least.  Getting dirty is not one of my specialties…

IndyMiniRK

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  • EmmaMay 20, 2010 - 11:24 am

    It sounds like an incredible experience. I can imagine that rush of emotions.
    Go for the marathon, you can do anything you set your mind to. 🙂ReplyCancel