I only ran the half-marathon, not the full one.

For breakfast I had a ham and Swiss sandwich (on homemade rye bread with grainy Dijon mustard). Also a large mug of coffee. On the walk down to the race start from my house I ate a mini Cliff bar (I think it was the chocolate brownie flavor).

Over the course of the race I ate a package (8 pieces) of GU Chomp energy chews (strawberry flavor with caffiene). Also some pretzels given to me by bystanders on 33rd St., and gummy bears from my friend Stuart Siegler who gives them out to runners every year on Guilford Ave. near 28th St.

After the race I had a bag of Utz potato chips and a bottle of water in the post-race area, and a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale at the bar at Luna del Sol Steak and Seafood Bistro on Pratt St. before walking back home.

I finished in 2 hours, 19 minutes, and 51 seconds, over 27 minutes faster than the same race last year, and 36 seconds shy of my personal best half-marathon. Not too bad for an old coot.

Did Sarah KK run the full marathon?

What impresses me about Hal is that he not only ran a half-marathon, but he walked to the race and home afterwards, as if running more than 13 miles wasn't enough exercise.

Way to go, Hal. PDI...

Bucky, my neighborhood gets totally encircled by the race route. To drive to the race I'd have to go two hours early. It's not a far walk from my house, although the walk back always seems longer. :-)

Boy, I really misunderstood the title. I thought it was going to be about an eating contest at the Golden Corral!

I'm always pleased when someone appreciates my headlines. EL

Wasn't there once upon a time a candy bar called Marathon?

Before running 20 miles of the marathon, I ate a banana, a multi-grain English muffin with PB & raspberry jam, a mug of black tea w/ honey and a glass of water.

While waiting for the race to start, I had more water and a few bites of my friend's PB powerbar. During the race, I ate three gels (one caffeinated) and wondered a bit about the bananas that were handed out in Locust Point ... there were peels on the ground everywhere, and I've watched enough cartoons to know that could lead to chaos during a race.

Soon afterward, I had another banana and water before friends and I took advantage of the new weekend hours at the Miss Shirley's location downtown. We shared fried green tomatoes and sweet potato fries, and I gobbled up a sandwich that involved waffles, a fried egg, fried chicken and Smithfield ham, liberally doused with Old Bay. There was cheese, but the whole thing was so salty I didn't even notice it until the last bite.

And, hot chocolate.

I did the half-marathon, too. I was underprepared (because I didn't make enough time for my during-the-week training runs), but I did finish. The day of, I had three-quarters of a Luna bar and some banana for breakfast. Along the course, I ate a package of Clif chews, gummy bears (probably from Hal's friend), and when my legs started to cramp badly around mile 10, a package of Utz chips at a water stop and some pretzels from one of the Team in Training coaches stationed just before the bridge.

After the race (still with cramping legs and desperate for salt), I had another bag of chips and part of a ham wrap at the TNT tent. We stopped at Red Robin on the way home.

To this day, the most satisfying burger, fries and Coke I've ever had were from the hotel restaurant after I did my first half-marathon, the Mayor's Midnight Sun in Anchorage in 2005.

Good job, Hal! I'm hoping to take this one on again with a few more miles under my belt.

Race AM: single serving oatmeal...I only did a leg of the relay so no need to load up.

After race: Abbey Burger Bistro for a build-your-own burger and beer. delightful.

The day after the race, I took my out of town friends to Miss Shirleys downtown. The place was PACKED, seemed like a lot of racers had the same idea as there were several patrons sporting their UA race shirts.

I did the half. My pre-race dinner was the following:
Bimim myun with frozen mixed vegs., chinese sausage, an egg and kimchi. It seems to work for me. I did the same before the Frederick Half in May.

Breakfast is usually just a granola bar and water.

During the race it was Rasberry Hammer gel, Vanilla Powerbar Gel, Lemon Lime Jelly Belly Sport Beans, and tried one Hammer Electrolyte capsule. Oh, and I had some gummy bears too.

After the race it was a sampler platter frome Ropewalk...2 chix tenders, 2 mozz. sticks and a bunch of potato skins...all followed by a Guinness or two.

Then it was right to bed, I had worked 3rd shift so I only got 1-2 hrs sleep before the race. ;-)

Oh man, Timothy--that's dedication! or insanity--one or the other.

Yeah, I wouldn't go into Ropewalk, either. They have Republicans in there! *shudder*

I forgot I switched shifts with a co-worker that was driving to upstate NY.

Now I have the Marine Corp. Marathon in 2 weeks. I was signed up for their pasta dinner on Sat. Night. by the person that made me sign up for the MCM. For that race, I'll probably be eating Advil during and after the race. ;-)

Did I mention that I really hate running? :-D

Timothy, you may not be ready for it yet (especially if being pushed by someone else), but I've found that the run/walk/run method promoted by Jeff Galloway and others makes the running a lot easier. It's counterintuitve and I don't understand why it works, but my overall pace has improved greatly since I started inserting walk breaks every 2 to 5 minutes (depending on the run).

I started delving into the run/walk/run thing after last year's Baltimore half-marathon. This year I ran the same race doing 5 minute runs interspersed with 1 minute walks. I improved my time by almost 28 minutes, and (for the first time ever) my legs weren't sore after the race (or on the day after).