Race Recap: Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon

Another race, another medal, another lesson. This past Sunday I ran the Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon in Knoxville, TN!

Richard is my #1 supporter and made sure I made it to the race safely and calmly. It was a pleasure having him with me!!

My training was almost nothing with my longest run being only nine miles. I went into it looking forward to experiencing a new city and just getting myself back into the long run game. It was a nice change to not have to worry about meeting a certain time. I didn’t train, so it would be foolish to set any goals (other than finish)!

About 800 marathoners and 2,500 half-marathoners lined the streets of downtown Knoxville for the 7:30 a.m. start time. The weather was refreshingly cool and the participants seemed delighted to just be there. It was a perfect morning for a marathon.

Winer recently passed and spring was blooming all over. The course led us along lush streets through local neighborhoods, college town and the eclectic downtown area.

I surprisingly felt great during the first several miles. I practiced a vital rule: when my legs feel sluggish and beg to walk, that’s the time to run! I thought of running as lubrication to keep my legs moving smoothly.

I had so much fun spotting all the lululemon! I was wearing a Run: Swiftly Long Sleeve and spotted several others wearing the same thing! I think Knoxville is ready for a store

The race was AMAZING for the first half. Right before the 13.1 mark the half marathoners broke off to their finish line. Once they left the crowd thinned out greatly.

Love these runners with their Twitter handles on their shirts! I need a healthyashley shirt

The second half of the marathon course had us running a lot more on roads and through sketchy areas. I swear I watched a drug deal happen.

Since my longest run was nine miles, my legs naturally started slowing down around mile 17. Still, the course was beautiful so I committed to keep running and take walking breaks whenever I needed.

Before the race I tested out a new sample I’d recently received: Degree Expert Protection with motion sense. On light days I go with a natural deodorant but on days when I do a big workout in public… or, say, run a marathon… I like to keep a bit fresher!

At mile 14 I still didn’t smell. I felt pretty dry and smooth, too! After the race I told Richard about my Degree deodorant marathon experiment and asked him to smell me. He did and thought I still didn’t smell. And he wasn’t kidding. Three thumbs up, Degree. Check this out for a chance to win a $1,000 gift card.

Knoxville is a great city. I was continually interested in the old buildings, beautiful homes and blooming cherry blossoms! This race just made me want to go back and really explore!

The highlight of the race was definitely running on the interstate!!! How many people can say they’ve run on a popular interstate with cars speeding by? Don’t worry, those cones protected me more than you’d think!

I got to see broken car pieces up close!

Thanks to all the volunteers and everyone who left us runners inspirational signs!

With about four miles left, my hip flexors said enough is enough! They boycotted running and I gave in. I walked as fast as possible and sat when the side of the road looked so appetizing that I couldn’t resist!

I may have also seen a porta potty and used it as an excuse to sit.

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The last two miles were run mostly alone but were by far the most gorgeous. After exploring local neighborhoods we looped back into this city. I had an entire lane of this packed bridge to myself! Yay, runners!

Richard caught me with 1.5 miles left and walked (v e r y s l o w l y) with me to the finish line. My hips weren’t happy, but I was excited to have completed another marathon!

My official time was around 6:27. That is almost two hours slower than my marathon PR and I couldn’t care less! I was SO excited to just revisit 26.2. There are plenty of marathons in the future that I can run and watch my watch for a PR. This day was more about the love of running (or walking with tight hip flexors).

Thank you to Richard for dedicating his weekend so I could be in my element. This race put a huge smile on my face and it wouldn’t be the same without him!

Would you believe after the race we walked around an outlet mall for two hours? My poor blisters! It’s okay- Richard more than deserved it and I got to see this hot sight.

Do you ever run races without checking the clock and solely for the love of it?

Tagged as: race recap, Richard, travel