Paris Half Marathon

Enjoying some celebratory wine and my finisher's medal

Well, I finally did it.

It was the double-threat of a recent birthday (taunting me with a very round number) and the fear that all these croissants, cream sauces, and almond cakes would set up shop permanently on my thighs that motivated me to sign up for the Paris Half Marathon way back in November, and to my utter amazement, I actually ran it today.

I am not a runner. The only modes of self-propelled transportation I enjoy are cycling and walking. But I've wanted to run a half marathon (13.1 miles, or 21 km) since 2004, when I signed up for the Ottawa Half Marathon with my law school friends Eva, Erin, and April. I had to bow out when I was hired to guide bike trips at the Tour de France that summer, so I passed my bib number to Eva, who ran under my name... so *technically* I ran that one, and there are photos of Eva with my name on them somewhere on the internet. (BTW, she ran it much faster than I ever could.) And so I've had this unfulfilled desire to test myself with a half marathon for the past five years, and today I did it with 24,999 other runners. Yes, that's twenty-five thousand runners in a single race with only one distance to choose from... and only 5 porta-potties at the starting line.



The route started and finished in the Bois de Vincennes, on the eastern edge of the city, looping to the center of Paris before turning back, and staying on the Right Bank the entire time. We passed Bastille twice, on two different roads, and ran in front of City Hall. We came temptingly close to my place on Ile Saint Louis, but I managed to forget about the amazing ice cream shop and my warm bed and stayed on course.

It began to rain just before the starting gun went off, and rained throughout my 2+ hours out there. By kilometer 18, it was pouring, but I didn't care because I could almost see the finish line. My friends Erika and Kim from LBC came to cheer me on, but I couldn't see them for the big crowds on the sidewalk. I just kept thinking, "I hope they gave up and are sipping hot tea in a warm cafe somewhere." Nope, they stood in the rain. How sweet is that?

Once I made it through the freezing trip home, I made up for the caloric expenditure by wolfing down a fresh croissant with peanut butter. (What? I needed protein.) Then I had a really great lunch at my favorite local restaurant, Le Fin Gourmet, with Kim and Erika. I'm still too wiped to feel that great about it all, or to say whether I'll ever do it again or do a full marathon, but I'm sure I'll be happy when I wake up tomorrow. Done and done. =)