What it’s like competing in the Austin City Marathon

The Austin City Marathon is a great event. It attracts over 14,000 runners every year, and challenges people to push their bodies to the limit.

In 2016, people from 40 different countries participated in the race, both the full and half marathon. It is also the year I finished my first 13.1.

The feeling of success and self-accomplishment is astounding, and I want to share that with you. Hopefully, it inspires you to take a swing at the challenge, and run the 2017 race.

Morning of the race

Downtown Austin seems to freeze for the event. Roads are shut down. Stores are closed. Everyone’s attention is one the race. Preparations start at 6am, and early runners begin trickling in to the starting area (basically all of South Congress Street). People are stretching and warming up for the long journey ahead. Of course, there’s music playing in the background, and a motivational DJ shouting out words of inspiration to the runners. For me, there’s a sense of nervousness. Despite all my preparation, I had never gone the full 13.1 miles, usually stopping at 10. But there was a mix of excitement and anticipation. It was my first race, and I wanted to finish under 2 hours at the very least. It’s hard to visualize what 14,000+ people on one street looks like, but everyone was standing shoulder to shoulder in the seconds before the starting whistle blew.

Miles 1-3

The first few miles are exhilarating. Everybody is running. It’s a mad dash to get into position for the rest of the race. For some, this initial burst is too much, and they end up hurting themselves in the long run. The Austin Marathon begins as a gradual uphill battle. I remember constantly smiling as I started the race. Excitement was turning into adrenaline, and I made my way up faster than I usually would. The cheer of family and friends from the sidewalks is resounding, almost drowning out the music flowing through my headphones. In totality, I felt energetic and strong.

Miles 4-6

This is where the crowd begins to thin out. The experienced and life-long runners surge ahead, and the less well-trained begin to move to the back. However, when you are in the middle of the crowd, you don’t see the big picture. All you see are the people you are passing and the people that are passing you. Occassionally, there will be a table serving water and Gatorade for runners, or some small groups of fans cheering on the runners. My initial burst of adrenaline had worn off, and I was beginning to feel some fatigue. But that’s what hitting the metaphorical “wall” is. After you get over your first wave of fatigue, once you push through it, the rest of the run will become easier. The good news is that this stretch of the half-marathon is generally downhill.

That’s me in red

Miles 7-10

This is where people quit. Nobody quits in the beginning, where you’re excited about the long road ahead. Nobody quits at the end, because they know they’re so close. They quit in the middle, where it seems it’s impossible to keep going. I was more tired than usual at this point, and the Austin terrain certainly didn’t help. It seemed every 100 yards, there would be another small hill. Nothing to completely discourage you, but definitely enough to tire you once you arrive at the top and give you a sense of dread looking ahead. I think however, that this is also where friends and family on the sidewalk decide to throw in their sense of humor to keep us motivated. There are tables serving beer and champagne, and signs that make us laugh and detract from the weariness.

Miles 11-13

This is the part where you can taste the finish line. Every mile marker signals one step closer to your goal. For me, every step is one further step than I have ever taken. The adrenaline and excitement of finishing my first half-marathon was kicking in. But then you hit the wall. Not the metaphorical wall, but an actual wall. Perhaps the course planners had planned this. But once you get close to mile 13, there’s a giant hill, steeper and longer than any other before it. As I turned the corner, I heard a collective spewing of curses and frustrations. As soon as we hit the hill, a lot of people stopped, giving up. But for those who ground it out and finished, the last 0.1 mile was a sprint.

13-13.1

This is the end. All the hard work and perseverance has paid off. Some take a mad sprint to the finish line to improve their times by a few seconds. Others slow down significantly, taking in the moment. The roar of the crowd is deafening. Everyone is screaming and congratulating the runners, and all we can do is smile. As we cross the finish line, volunteers are ready to hand us a medal, a meal, and a picture. And all I can say is, it was worth it.