Lake Washington Half Marathon

This was the final remaining race from the 2020 season, except it was originally supposed to be the Lake Sammamish Half Marathon in March as a build up to Boston in April. It was the first in a long series of race cancellations. So finally after a twenty-month delay, I ran the half marathon along a different lake than I originally anticipated. It was a very well organized race and it certainly exceeded my expectations for a road race.
The race got underway at 8AM on November 6th under misty cloudy skies from Juanita Beach Park. I started off fairly quick trying my best to stick close to the police escort bike. I started off in the lead and clicked off the first mile in 5:29. From there I settled into a more reasonable pace in second position. The course transitioned from Juanita Beach Park to Lake Washington Boulevard and we followed the road to Yarrow Bay Wetlands.
I ran the first 5 kilometers in 17:48 and around mile 5.4 the course ascended a steep hill to the Cross Kirkland Corridor trail. I ran the next 5 kilometers in 18:23 (36:11 10 kilometers). The Cross Kirkland Corridor trail was quite flat and smooth and I covered the next 5 kilometers in 18:16 (54:27 15 kilometers).
At mile 10 (58:22), the course returned to the slippery wet pavement en route back to Juanita Park. I began my kick along Forbes Creek, but a steep hill at mile 11.7 slowed my rhythm slightly. I got back on pace once I reentered Juanita Beach Park and followed the Old Market Street trail. I covered the final 5 kilometers in 18:11 (1:12:38 20 kilometers). The final 400 meters of the course was quite twisty and slippery, but I managed to stay upright and I crossed the finish line in second place with a time of 1:17:13.
The rain began to pour as I finished the race and I became quite cold during the post race cool down. I was quite happy with the result of the race, despite being about 4 minutes off of my half marathon personal best. I do feel that despite seeming fairly flat, the Lake Washington Half was a little hillier than I anticipated. I do also believe the course was a little harder than the Cleveland Fall Classic Half Marathon route where I ran 1:13:05 back in 2010.
Finish PC Juan Montermoso Juanita Beach Park Mile 2Finish PC Juan Montermoso Juanita Beach Park Finish PC Juan Montermoso Juanita Beach Park Mile 2Finish PC Juan Montermoso Juanita Beach Park Finish PC Juan Montermoso