Falmouth RR 2011 - my personal recap.

Well folks another one on the books - I successfully completed the Falmouth Road Race this weekend with a PR for the course.

The weekend was fairly low key - did a little sight seeing on the Cape on Saturday, went to the Race Expo to get my 'bag o' stuff' and had a fairly early dinner.

Sunday morning my friend Christy showed up and we got it done.

Here is my recap of the course - because I know there are some of you that want to know.

Mile 1 is all hills/climb out of Woods Hole. You need to take it a little easy here as unless you ran a mile or so ahead of the race start, you are getting warmed up. Easy on Mile 1 is the rule with this course..

As you break out of Mile 1 you get to the Lighthouse, which of course is one of the more famous items along the race course. If you ever run this race, when you reach the lighthouse look behind you - you can see the 'sea' of runners behind you and there is a true sense of solidarity with your 'people'.

The miles that follow wander through a little bit of a residential area; there is never a shortage of well wishers. Residents as well as others line the roads shouting words of encouragement and offering water, oranges and the occasional hose/sprinkler for your enjoyment.

When you break out onto the course along the ocean, it is the most beautiful sight. Boats line the area and some honk their horns in support. The beaches are lined with folks cheering you on. Don't forget to look beyond them at the ocean - the ultimate backdrop for this morning run....

Coming into miles ~5-7 is cool. You know you are halfway done and things start to get busy. More and more people are cheering you and you can hear the live music over your own iPod as you approach the onlookers. Look up and you can see people on their roof lines...dangling their feet and drinking beer in your honor (at least that's what I tell myself).

So at around mile 6.5....there's a hill. Nice right? Don't worry - there are enough people on this hill that make it quick and fairly painless. Once you summit it's all down hill as you see the flag and know you are steps away from a finish. Oh - don't forget to smile as somehow they think it's a good idea to take your picture after you climb this hill...

While the elite runners were certainly done, showered and have had a hot meal by the time we crossed the finish line - it doesn't matter. I am always happy when I finish a run. Seven miles at the Falmouth Road Race is nothing to laugh at and I was more than happy to have beat my first time on the course.

There was a time when I thought I couldn't run 30 feet, let alone 7 miles.

Next year I will work to beat this year....as long as the Falmouth folks keeps saying yes - I'll keep running in Falmouth in August.

"Success isn't how far you got, but the distance you traveled from where you started" - Steve Prefontaine

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