Boiling Frog: Shamrock Marathon, Virginia Beach

The 2012 race season began just as the 2011 race season ended...with a marathon! On Sunday, March 18 Chris and I competed in the Shamrock Marathon in beautiful Virginia Beach, VA. St. Patty's Day celebrations had to be postponed for a day, but it was worth the wait. Joining us for this great event were fellow PTC friends Denise, Joe, Tommy D. and Jessica. Jessica's family was kind enough to host us for a pre-race dinner in celebration of her sister Jennifer completing the 8k that day and her niece Katlyn's first marathon. Jessica ran both races with her sister and niece, and her father, General George Joulwan had the honor of announcing the marathon start. Truly a family affair!

Race morning was a chilly mid 50's start, but was soon to warm up. At 8:30am we were off on this pancake-flat, but windy course! The energy of the cheering spectators and adrenaline of the runners made for a fast start, so I had to keep reminding myself to dial it back a little in order to stave of that dreaded marathon "wall." Highlights on the course were running through the military base and high-fiving the soldiers, viewing a sea of creative St. Patty's Day themed outfits (from runners and spectators alike), trying to draft a pack of runners in the headwind on the boardwalk and finishing right along the Atlantic Ocean. Spectacular! At mile 24 I caught up to Chris and we ran together for a little over a mile till he told me, "Go!" and I followed a little surge to the end. True to form, we finished just over a minute apart!

With the race being sponsored by Yuengling, each participant was generously awarded with up to 4 beers at the end (though I don't think they were keeping close track!). We also enjoyed entertainment from a live band and party on the beach. Overall, this was a great race in a great setting and I enjoyed sporting the TriSports apparel for the first time with a marathon PR! Here's the breakdown of our results: