Tuesday Topics: Detroit Free Press/TCF Bank Half Marathon Race Recap

Disclaimer:  I received a free entry to the Detroit Free Press/TCF Bank Half Marathon as part of being a BibRave Pro.  Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review, find and write race reviews!  

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On October 20th, I ran the Detroit Free Press/TCF Half Marathon.  It was my 73rd half marathon.  It was also state #42 in my goal to run a half marathon in each state.

I left Saturday morning and arrived in Detroit at 1:00.  Once there I took an Uber to the hotel to check in and left for the expo.  I stayed at the Rivertown Inn and Suites on Jefferson and Rivard.  It was an OK place to stay.  What I liked about it is that the expo and start line were less than a mile away.

The expo was fun with lots of vendors.  I signed up for the International race so I had to show my passport in order to get my bib.  

I tried on some shoes but didn’t buy any.  🙂  Although these felt more comfortable than another pair of Ghost 12 that I had but sent back.

I bought 3 pairs of Balega socks (it was buy 3 pairs and get one free) and an R3 foot roller. 

Race morning I woke up tired.  My neighbors next door were loud and it took me a while to go to sleep.  I got ready and made some UCAN gel for before the race and during the race.  Then I went to the lobby because the clerk told me when I checked in on Saturday that there would be breakfast for the runners.  I ate a waffle as big as my face with coffee.  I walked with another girl to the start line while eating my UCAN.  It took us about 15 minutes to get there.

One bathroom break and it was time to run.  I was happy and excited.  I almost skipped the race because my left foot had been bothering me so much that it hurt to walk.  I blamed it on my inserts.  I have two different pairs – one in my shoes for running and another in the ones for running.  I switched them and hoped that I made the right decision.

The race began at 7am.  It was dark.  I didn’t worry about it too much and concentrated on my run.  I was feeling good.  The beginning of the race was in downtown Detroit.  I couldn’t really see my watch but knew that I was going faster than I was supposed to.  Still I kept running.  I was determined to enjoy and finish the race no matter what.  

Then came the incline to the Ambassador Bridge.  It was long.  I was beginning to feel tired.  I stopped to take a few pictures because the view was gorgeous.

Running in Canada was so much fun!  Lots of spectators cheering for us.  I was running in Windsor, Canada while on the left was the Detroit River and left to it was Detroit.  How awesome is that?!?!

My foot began to bother me.  My longest training run was 6 miles so I was beginning to feel more tired.  I didn’t want to remember this race as one in which I was in pain.  Instead, I wanted to remember it as the race where I ran in two different countries.  I soaked it all in.  The weather was perfect and I loved seeing the Canadians cheering for us.  So I kept going. 

My time in Canada was coming to an end as I entered the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel which is under the Detroit River.  Someone warned me that it would be hot in there.  It wasn’t too hot but I did warm up a little bit.  Love the middle picture with both flags!

Towards the end of the tunnel is another slight incline.  

You know what I am going to say now, right?  I was hurting.  I felt even more tired.  I wanted the race to be over.  I still had about 4 miles to go.  I kept going.  I began to wonder if I had made a mistake in running the race.  Well, at that point there wasn’t anything to do but to keep going.  I am smiling in my pictures but pictures can be deceiving, right?  🙂

I ran and walked the last 4 miles.  We were back downtown and I remember thinking that I was going be done soon.  I could see more people lined up on the sidewalk.  I could hear the announcer and knew I was close to the finish line.  I kept running till I finally finished.

I enjoyed this race and would love to do it again.  And this time hopefully not be dealing with an injury.  It took me a few days to recover from the race but I don’t regret running it.  My quads hurt a lot.  I felt like I had run a marathon.  The weather was perfect, there were a lot of water stations (there were signs letting you know how far the next water station was), and the volunteers were wonderful.  Every runner also gets free race photos (low resolution but still free).  Oh and the best part was running in CANADA!!!!

The swag bag had a long sleeve shirt, a pair of gloves, and a race wrap.

I am pleased with how I did.  I enjoyed the race and finished it.  That is all I wanted.  Oh, and I got mostly positive splits.  Isn’t that the way to do it?  🙂  And yes I did run with my passport and no a border patrol agent didn’t stop me to check it.

If you are planning to do this race, I hope I convinced you to do it.  Save the date as next year it will be on October 18.  There is also a marathon if you want to run more than 13.1 miles.