I have been a huge fan of this race since it was first announced back in 2011. I circled the date on my calendar and was one of the first people to sign up. This race will always be special to me because it was my first half marathon. I could not have asked for a better first half marathon race experience.
I had made the decision in the Summer of 2011 that I was going to set running a half marathon as a goal. My initial plan was to make the Mercedes Race held in Birmingham as my first half marathon. Then this race was announced and that it was going to be held in November. I quickly knew changing my goal to this race was a good idea.
The first year of the race it was named the Ruben Studdard Half Marathon. I was a big fan of Ruben when he was on American Idol. I knew his initial goal was to run the half marathon. He ended up running the 5K race instead. Sometimes you have to modify your goals. I respected that. He ran the 5K and finished it. This year he is going to be on The Biggest Loser (Biggest Loser Link). I wish him the best of luck as he competes on this show.
The course takes you into parts of Birmingham you might not venture on a regular basis. You start out at Boutwell Auditorium just like the Mercedes Race but you go in the opposite direction. You go toward Interstate 65 and go by Legion Field and Rickwood Field. Then you work your way back toward Birmingham going by Railroad Park. The last part of the race takes you up a long gradual hill. You double back on this hill and head toward the finish line. The last mile is through a tunnel. You emerge from the tunnel and head toward the finish line. Just describing the course makes me excited about the next time I get to run the race again in November! Here's a link to the course map.
Course Map
The finish line is also something special. For the past two years there has been a band with music playing. There has also been a fitness competition going on. It's a great atmosphere. The weather has been awesome the past two years. Both years I have run comfortably in shorts and a t-shirt.
If you are a new runner and only have experience running 5K's and 10K's and have thought about running a half marathon, this is the race for you! It's a little more laid back than Mercedes since there are less people running. It's at a great time of the year. To prepare for the race I ran a few 5K's in October and then ran the Vulcan Run 10K the first week of November. This helped me greatly prepare for the race.
Here's a link to the website to learn more about the race and to sign up.
Magic City Half Marathon Website
Good Luck and Happy Running!
Course Map
The finish line is also something special. For the past two years there has been a band with music playing. There has also been a fitness competition going on. It's a great atmosphere. The weather has been awesome the past two years. Both years I have run comfortably in shorts and a t-shirt.
If you are a new runner and only have experience running 5K's and 10K's and have thought about running a half marathon, this is the race for you! It's a little more laid back than Mercedes since there are less people running. It's at a great time of the year. To prepare for the race I ran a few 5K's in October and then ran the Vulcan Run 10K the first week of November. This helped me greatly prepare for the race.
Here's a link to the website to learn more about the race and to sign up.
Magic City Half Marathon Website
Good Luck and Happy Running!
No comments:
Post a Comment