T.R.A.I.L. (Transportation Recreational Alternatives In Louisiana) puts on the Cajun Country Half Marathon every December just before the Christmas holiday. Until recently, this was Lafayette's only half marathon race. On Sunday, March 30 all of that will change with the
Zydeco Marathon and Half Marathon's inaugural event. Sadly, due to events that transpired during the Cajun Country Half, I will not be racing the Zydeco. Maybe next year. To participate in the race and pay it forward for all of the lovely men and women who have volunteered to hand me water and point me in the right direction during the various races I've run, I will be volunteering on the Zydeco course. Volunteering will also be a great way for me to watch my training partner and friend finish her second half.
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| Pre-race, looking pretty excited. |
December 13 looked pretty grim on the hour by hour forecast I was obsessively watching in the wee hours of Friday night/Saturday morning. I lay wide awake at 4:30 a.m. with numerous questions running through my mind. Why have I not really trained/run since my last half in November? Should I wear shorts? Pants? Rain jacket? What happens if my feet get wet mid-race? Maybe the rain will deter everyone and the race will be cancelled?
The race was not cancelled, and it was a completely different experience than my first magical world of Disney half. First of all, only about 40 runners made it out to north Lafayette in the questionable weather. Cory and I were running a little late, so we basically had enough time to park, stretch and jog into place at the starting line. I waited for hours with thousands of other runners before I even saw the starting line at Disney.
Read on– there's more!
