2:08.49

Yesterday, my friend Suzanne G. and I ran in the Detroit Free Press Half Marathon -- 13.1 miles. We both were proud in our accomplishment. Our time of 2:08.49 is slightly better than a 9:55 pace per mile. It also is better than our last half marathon, which we completed around 2 hours 15 minutes. (That was on an unbearably hilly course that I will never, ever do again.)

The course was beautiful, with the first couple of miles winding from downtown Detroit to the Ambassador Bridge. We crossed the bridge into Canada and ran along the riverfront before heading back to the United States through the tunnel. (The tunnel was cozy and warm, which I was even more aware of when we emerged back in the cold air. Race time temperature was around 32.)

You can watch us finish on the video here. Make sure you're watching the 2:13-2:23 video, as our clock time is slower than our actual finish time. (For you novice runners, that is because there were literally thousands of people lined up for the start. We were pretty far back in the crowd, so our offical race time is from the moment we crossed the starting line to the finish line. Our clock time is when the race began to when we crossed the finish line.) Patiently wait for the moment when the winner of the men's marathon crosses the finish line -- around 2:16. We're right behind him in white shirts. You can see me clap with my white gloves on when I cross the line. And, yes, we got lapped by the marathoner. That's amazing to me.

I had said this would be my last half, but I am not so sure now. This race felt much better than my last half, and my knees didn't hurt once. My right hip did, but that was OK. I'd love to someday match my personal best time, which was around 2:03 in the White Rock half marathon in 2001.