Today I completed my first half marathon (13.1 miles) with a time of 2:15:35 (hh:mm:ss). My first goal was simple - cross the finish line. After that, I was shooting for a time of 2:15 (hh:mm). So I must say that I am pretty happy with my results.

As for the race itself, this was the inaugural year for the Brooksie Way Half Marathon & 5K Run/Walk. From my perspective I think everything went really well. I like the course, a mixture of paved roads and dirt trails, flat ground and hills. There were plenty of aid stations, lots of volunteers working the course, and a beautiful finish line at the Meadow Brook Hall on Oakland University campus.

I would like to say thanks to my family and friends who cheered me on along the course and at the finish line. Every time I saw your faces and heard your voices it made me forget the fatigue and gave me the boost I needed to push harder.

Now that I have done my first half marathon, I'm thinking the Martian Marathon (26.2 miles) on April 5th, 2009.

On Saturday August 23rd, 2008 I completed my first 10-mile event in the Crim Festival of Races with a time of 1:58:08 (hh:mm:ss). My goal was to finish something closer to 1:45. It was not an un-reasonable expectation. I had ran that same distance for the previous three Saturdays with an average pace of 10:32 (mm:ss) per mile. I guess the temperature that morning (somewhere in the high 80's, low 90's) had a bigger effect on me than I expected. That will teach me not to do all of my training runs in the 60's to 70's.

Despite my results, I really enjoyed the Crim Festival of Races. There's something about participating in a race with thousands of other people that is exciting and motivating. If you are ever near Flint Michigan on the fourth Saturday in August, I highly recommend it.