Half-Wit Half

"For only a fool would do the Halfwit; a 13.1M rustic trail of rocks galore, downed logs, bizarre aide stations, gnats & newts, crazy awards, memorable shirts, urban horrors like the "128 Steps from Hell" and silliness that would make a jester jocular!"
I needed a break from Petty Gay Drama, so a road trip for a trail run was the answer. I drove to Reading, PA this morning for the Half-Wit Half Marathon. It was challenging, but not as bad as the teasing promotion quoted above. I kept a pace of 8 to 9 minute mile when the trail was somewhat flat. When hills came, I walked and moaned! About 10 men passed me during the "128 Steps from Hell" when I moaned the loudest. Once the steps were over, I passed all these men smiling! My last 3 or 4 miles were awesome as I was able to keep up with a strong 20-something girl. We passed everyone in sight, and no one passed us. After the last water stop, with 0.6 mile left I stepped ahead of her and never looked back!
My time was around 2:20. I finished at 183 overall out of about 600 runners. While the time was about 30 minutes higher than what I could do in a half marathon road race, this Half-Wit Half was my second best race this year.