Twisted Turkey Half Marathon Race Recap

Saturday I set out for the Twisted Turkey Trail Half Marathon. I got up had some breakfast and made my way to Imagination Glenn Park in Portage, Indiana. When I signed up for this race I kept telling myself my goal was to finish, not hurt myself and use it as prep for the Huff Relay on December 28th. I was excited to be able to cheer on my friends who were tackling the full marathon.

Tim and I going through the volleyball court

When we arrived at the park it was windy and chilly. I did not want to get out of the car. So I sat in the car until there was about 8 minutes to go. As we gathered at the start line many of us huddle together to stay warm. I said my good lucks to those running the full marathon. I met up with my friend Tim at the start line and was planning to run with him. Even though I knew he was going for the full distance I knew he would be
about my pace for me to run the half. They announced a few changes to the course because a tree had fallen and then we were off. We made our way around and back by the start line and they asked us to go through the sand volleyball court. (Photo courtesy of Derrick T) Then we quickly hit the near by iron-horse trail. This is where I spotted my boyfriend Jason was not far back. Tim said to me they are taking us to the dark side of the park first. So once we hit the trail Jason was right behind us. We twisted, turned, up and down. We hit the first aid station. All of us stopped for water. I took off first because I didn't want to drink too much.

Courtesy of Rosie!

Jason ended up right behind me as we headed back into the dark side of the trail. I tripped not long after this but my hands quickly caught me and Jason was right behind me to make sure I wasn't hurt. I was fine. It was just a small trip. This is when Chris one of the members of my team who is training for the Huff was behind us. I made sure to check how he was feeling and it was early so he was doing fine. I let Chris know to just say if he wanted to pass and I would let him. Chris, Jason and I stayed as a pack for a couple of miles. Up, down, around and around we went. My friend Sue heard my voice at one point and so I was able to say hey to her and another friend Tim. After the water stop I had lost Tim. I had really wanted to stay with him just for the company but I knew he had a plan because he was going for the full marathon. We hit a few more challenging parts of the trail and so Chris and then Jason ended up passing me. I was still feeling fine but I did not want to push myself too hard. I was focused on not hurting myself. A few more runners passed me and I was fine with that because I really just wanted to focus on my plan. I looked at my watch I was just before mile 6 and felt great.

My friend Aaron and a view of the last mile

We twisted and turned a few more time and then we were headed back out to the iron horse trail again. Since I knew there was water upcoming I went ahead and took my gel I had brought with me. I was also grabbed a sip of water from the volunteers. (Thank you Chrys, Jim and Steve!!) Then we headed back into the trails and this is where I caught up with a few of my running "peeps." They were setting a great pace for me to kick it up a notch toward the end. We hit the part near the parking lot and Todd from T&H timing saw me and asked if I was doing the half and I said yes... he told me about another mile. We followed along the tree line and back into the woods. I was still behind Marisol and Angelica. I was trying to push my pace since I knew we were almost done but it was hard to since you had to be careful to watch we were going the right way. When we came out of the woods and headed toward the finish Marisol and Angelica were able to kick it up a slight notch faster than me and I finished a few seconds after them.

2 hours 15 minutes and 31 seconds. Jason had finished about a minute and a half before me so he was awaiting me at the finish. I was actually pretty happy with this time. Although slightly disappointed when my watch only read 12.03 miles. Several runners who were already finished said they got something very similar. Although there could be many reasons for this my guess is that the course was at least slightly short.

Overall I highly recommend this race. Even though this was the first year and there were a few hiccups for race director Tom I think he did a great job. I do think there should have been a bit more water for the marathon runners who all seemed like they didn't get enough. The race is not easy or flat. However it is beautiful course. The trails are nice. I sometimes feel like you have to challenge yourself and this race will certainly do that. I told a few runners this race will make you appreciate all those "flat" and "easy" races. It certainly does that. I am also extremely proud of all of my friends and fellow runners who ran the full marathon. I cannot even imagine how hard that must have been. In the words of my friend Sue "I think I would rather have given birth again..." I think you could basically sum this event up with the quote... "If you doesn't challenge you it doesn't change you." We all need a good challenge & change and this is one I recommend.