Yesterday was the last race of the year for me (most likely) and the Fredricksburg Blue and Gray Half Marathon was a nice finish to a pretty eventful racing year. A half was a good choice to end the year on - fast (a relative term)and short enough to let loose a little. In Febuary Moca and I ran a half marathon on the Dahlgren Rail Trail and it was almost completely flat and the drive to the race start was fairly flat as well. I don't know when or why Fredricksburg decided they needed hills between then and now but this was a damn hilly course. We had no clue about this until the first one and quickly figured out it wasn't a fluke when we hit the second and third hill. It was worse coming back. Fredricksburg is a very pretty town and we got to run through some very scenic neighborhoods with some older, historical housing along side the road. There is also section on bith path that runs along the Rappahannock river. Very pretty. It is also the site of a major battle of the Civil War and marks the second such battlefielf we ran on this year. It's always interesting to have a historicl context to a race to add to the flavor.
Despit the hills - or mainly (for me) the downhills on my still fatiuged quads from the Stone Mill 50+ I felt fairly strong and ran it in at 1:52:49. I'm happy to end the year with that. Moca ran a strong 2:32 and finished her goal of a race of month at no less than a half marathon. It's been a great racing year for her and I'm looking forward to what new goals she may set for 2012. And Matt, who ran his first Half in May for a 2:37 (I believe) ran his last for an astonishing 2:12! He must have a truly talented and gifted coach. Great job guys!
This is my second race in Fredrickburg and I've been happy with both. It's a beautiful area to run in and the crowds gathered at neighborhood corners to cheer were wonderful along with all the volunteers and fellow runners. It's a friendly little city and would be a great place to visit even without a race to run. A big thanks for the whole city and their patience with the large crowds and closed off streets!
What's next is a string of 50ks - four through the beginning of March with a possible 100k thrown for Mid March. Should be fun!
Thanks for reading,
Eric
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