“Raindrops Keep Falling…” Cowtown 2006 by Duncan Stewart

After suffering through an extended drought, Mother Nature decided we needed some rain. And so we did, and more! Starting about 20 hours before the race, the rain came down. First it was off and on, then a solid drenching for the 8 hours prior to the start. There was a little bit of lightning, too. Well, the Striders were not easily swayed - we had paid our entry fees and were not going to cancel now! The motley crew: David & Sarah were running the half, as was Jennifer – this was to be her debut at the distance. The Latin Striders team of Yolanda, Sonia and Sandra were looking to win again, while Kevin, Adam, Harry and I were set to tackle the marathon.

Fortunately the rain pretty much stopped before the race started, so that was a big help. Then it was time to go and Off We Went! The course is fairly hilly and has lots of turns, so pacing is more of a challenge. There are also several sections where the road is quite cambered, but you just have to make do the best you can. Things were going along pretty well for me until about Mile 17, when I had to cross the first of three sections where water was running across the course. The shoes and socks got soaked at that point, which made it tougher to maintain the pace. Unbeknownst to me at the time, all that rain has flooded part of the course and a detour had to be added at the last minute. I thought something was amiss when Mile 24 took me about 90 seconds longer than I expected. Well, I thought, maybe the next mile would be short. No such luck!

We had gotten some rain off and on, but nothing too bad. Despite the detour, I was still on pace to break three hours, so I pushed through the pain to the end. My finishing time was 2:57:08 on a tough, sloppy course that was long by 0.214 miles. Since that was 1:41 faster than last year, I was very happy! Adam busted a HUGE PR and the Latin Striders successfully defended their title. Also, Jennifer broke 2 hours in her debut half – well done! Sarah, David and Harry also ran well. All in all, it was another successful outing by the Striders that was made all the more fun because we did it together. J