Chiang Mai Half Marathon 2013

I am relaxed about the Chiang Mai Half Marathon.

So relaxed I almost sleep through the 5am start. My $8 per night guest-house does not offer wake-up calls, or alarms, or even an illuminated clock. Given the paper thin walls of a $8 guest-house I am wearing ear plugs, and I sleep through the feeble chirp of my watch alarm and Arnaud's quiet knock on my door.  Somehow I emerge from a deep, deep sleep and decide to check the time on my iPad at precisely 4:34. It takes a few seconds to register that I am supposed to be racing in only 26 minutes. Fortunately the guest-house is very close to the starting line and I am able to throw on my shoes, pin on my number, eat my Espresso Love Power Gel, use the restroom, sprint to Thapae Gate, and push my way through the 700 other runners to the front of the starting line.  

When I do get to the starting line the adrenaline of rushing to make it has totally kicked in – normally I would be too groggy to run hardly at all only 20 minutes after waking up, let alone race. But I feel completely wired when the gun goes off, and tuck in behind Arnaud and Brooke to keep from going out too fast.

For the first 4 kilometers rather than go out too fast, we cruise along in total comfort. I glance at my Garmin which indicates we are running at 4:10 pace, not the sub-4 minute pace I hoped for.  So when I do pass Brooke at around 5k I surge dramatically and for the next 10k average about 3:40 per kilometer moving from 10^th place into 3^rd. 

I hang on for 3^rd place overall (the top two guys are light years ahead of me), and I finish in a time of 1:30 for the 23+ kilometer course (I figure it was about 1:22 half marathon equivalent – which I am pleased with given my uneven pacing.