The first ever Battle Creek Half Marathon and 5k had WSI members involved in all aspects of the race from planning to pacing to lead outs and more! The Battle Creek Half Marathon and 5k, in its first year, brought over 700 runners to the start line. Participants got an up close view of the Field of Flight and Hot Air Balloon Show that is a tradition in Battle Creek during the 4th of July week. Participants even ran right in front of the Thunderbirds which provided a great photo opportunity!
WSI and Custer Cyclery riders took to the start line on bikes to lead out both the half marathon and 5k. It was quite the experience to ride past the Thunderbirds and on airport runways! In addition to the lead out, WSI’s Charles and Danny both ran in the event.
For Charles, the race started at 4:30 am as he helped to set up the event. Surprisingly, he was then able to run his best half marathon time to date, coming in under 1:50.
Danny loved the course, the shirt, the event staff and volunteers. He was impressed by the organization for a first year event and commented it definitely put other long standing events to shame. For Danny, the half marathon was a bucket list item that had never really worked out for him. His lonest run had been 10 miles a few years ago. With an Olympic Triathlon in his back pocket from the previous weekend, he knew the fitness level was there, but it was still uncharted territory for him. His duathlon runs were in the 6.45 minute/mile range but knew that was probably not a good idea for this race – he lined up with the 7.30/mile pacers and that worked out well. Comfortable pace and the two leaders were good to chat with – made the miles go by quickly. A few of the miles were at a quicker pace but that was fine. At 10 miles the legs started to feel the distance and time out running. Staying with this group was not a great idea so he backed off the last 3 miles – pain, pain and more pain. But he kept the pace around 7.45 or so and finished. With all of the turns, my overall distance was a hair short at 12.8 and his watch said 7.30, officially my pace was 7.17 for an overall time of 1:35. For his first half marathon he was super happy with his performance. “I finished 30th overall and 7th in my age group (a bunch of freaks in my age group). I will definitely do it again once all of the soreness goes away…”
Lastly, WSI’s Katie Bridges ran the race too but not for herself. Katie was an event pacer for the 12:30 min/mile group. Her job was to keep runners motivated and help them to reach their goal of crossing that finish line. She did just that with a smile on her face the WHOLE time!
As a race director for this event, I couldn’t be more proud in watching how the community came together and supported this event and loved seeing WSI team mates being a part of it in so many different ways! Way to go team!
~Nikki
