GAYLORD HALF MARATHON (Gaylord - 2019 - 13.1 Mile)

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  Gaylord Half Marathon 2019 Photos

235 Mile Drive


MY FIRST HALF MARATHON!!!

…turned into a Mother's Day weekend trip.  We got to Gaylord around dinner time and grabbed my registration bag at The Ostego Grand Event Center.  It was a really nice venue.  I didn't know I was getting 10 Kindness Counts Raffle Tickets for running 13.1 miles.  Participants got more tickets the higher mileage their race was.  It was so cool!  I had read that their raffle was huge.   10 tickets were given for the half, six tickets for the 10K and three tickers for the 5K.  We got a $30 voucher to eat at Crave in Gaylord.  Italian was the perfect meal for me the night before such a huge race.  The food and atmosphere at Crave was excellent.  After dinner we drove to Ostego Lake to take pictures.  I saw the team of TRITOFINISH and took a picture with them.  They were busy setting up the course.  The lake was beautiful and so big!  Looking out around the lake made me realize how long 13.1 miles was.  I wish the course could have been around the lake as originally planned.  It got changed to halfway around and back due to trail construction this year.  I was really sad about the change.  Running around Ostego Lake was a big reason I choose The Gaylord Half Marathon as my first half marathon. 

We started a bowling tradition the night before the half marathon.  We went to Gaylord Lanes and almost had the whole place to ourselves.  The neon lights were awesome.  The kids loved bowling.  I stayed up way too late, just another one of my many unconventional running strategies.

After getting a nice hotel breakfast the next morning we left for the run.  I woke up with plenty of extra time but checking out took longer than expected and we got to the start late.  Jason wasn't allowed entry because the path in was the path runners came out.  A police car was blocking entry.  He dropped me and I had to run to the start line.  It was so embarrassing running towards a starting line of runners.  I was thankful of the national anthem that started promptly at 8:00am as it bought me a few extra minutes to get into line.  I dropped my thin zip up shirt for Jason and the kids to grab.  They managed to make it to the start before we started which I found mind-blowing.  They found an awesome playground with huge tractor tires that they played with new found friends at.  They got donuts at Cops and Doughnuts Jay's Precinct while I ran and visited Jay's Sporting Goods which I was told was like a mini Cabela's.

Even with not being able to run all the way around Ostego Lake, I still loved the scenery and the course.  I had my new hydration pack that Jason bought me a week earlier as a motivational present and much needed half marathon item.  The course had some major hills on Ostego Lake Drive during first few miles and again at the finish.  I had a great time flying down a hill and then immediately was dying climbing one.  I enjoyed the turn-around near the water in the beach access area.  It was cool taking the half marathon route for the first time and passing by the 5K and 10K runners.  Mile 12 hit me like a freight train and Jason's hydration pack came to the rescue.  I had to stop and walk a lot.  I've ran for two hours before but the longest distance I have done prior to this half was only nine miles.  My finish time really amazed me and I am very proud of it as a first half marathon time.  I was just over two hours and under my goal of two and a half hours.

After finishing I went over and got an amazing massage from a woman who was able to feel body energy and transfer energy into people.  It was similar to acupressure or blood flow therapy.  She was really inspiring and thought provoking.  I met a lady with the coolest colored outfit and got a picture with her.  I used my food tickets at the food trucks with Jason and the boys.  Corky got some too.  We went over and checked on the raffle which the boys had entered for me.  They had an amazing assortment of themed baskets and tables. The sizes were so generous!  I won a beautiful gardening raffle basket!  It came with pots, a watering can, a ladybug solar light, a hand painted garden sign, gloves and mini shovels.

We had a great time in Gaylord.  We walked downtown after the race and went to their Farmer's Market and the original Alpine Chocolate Haus (We have one in Downtown Plymouth).  The kids potted free flowers for me to take home and plant in our garden at the Farmer's Market.  We went to the movies after the race.  The kids really wanted to see Detective Pikachu and I wanted to rest my legs.  It was the perfect thing to do after a half marathon, sit still for two hours.

The Gaylord Half Marathon is an amazing half marathon put on by one of my favorite running companies, TRITOFINISH.  I am very glad I choose this race as my first half marathon.



Location: 1657 County Park Rd, Gaylord, MI 49735, USA

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