I traveled to the coast of Oaxaca last weekend to the glitzy resort town of Huatulco to run in the first Huatulco Marathon. Actually, I wasn't running the full 26.2 mile race, but the simultaneous 10K that happened that same morning.
I was really pumped for this event. First of all, I'd never been to Huatulco; my visits to the coast of Oaxaca usually take me to the kicked back beach town of San Agustinillo, but forget I mentioned it--I want to keep it's off-the-beaten-track pleasures all to my greedy self! Secondly, I had high hopes, as I'd trained well. I was ready for a good race!
Huatulco is a trip, a strip of high-end resorts along a gorgeous Pacific bay. We stayed at the Barcelo all inclusive resort, a high-rise hotel on the beach with a spectacular pool, several restaurants and of course a swim up bar. My wife managed to score a real deal for us online, maybe 1/3 the posted rate.
The room was posh, the view was great, and the food fresh, well prepared and plentiful. We enjoyed the on-site Sushi restaurant quite a bit. We knocked down our share of watered-down drinks, but not too many as I was there to race!
The race itself started out well enough. While the marathon had several hundred runners, only a bit over a hundred lined up for the simultaneous 5K/10K run. It was a hot morning, but thankfully overcast. My plan was to start slow, build into a good rhythm, and go for broke over the second half of the race.
All went well through the first three kilometers, I felt good and settled into a strong rhythm. I started picking off runners, moved into the top ten and I'm pretty sure I was in first position for my age group (55-59.)
Picking up the pace a bit, I moved through halfway just beginning to feel the stress of the race--but I was ready to dig in and give it what I could. Sadly, it was not to be.
I realized that I was buzzing past really slow runners, like they were barely moving. I wondered if I was off course. I was. Back at the point where the 5K and 10K courses briefly intersected, a poorly trained volunteer had waved me onto the 5K course.
I arrived at the finish after running about 6.5 kilometers, and frankly I was mad as hell. I had a great race going, and a basic incompetence had robbed me of the chance to see it through.
Yes, if you are running for enough years, it's probably happened to you too. You take it in stride, but it still stings pretty good at the moment. To add insult to injury, these knuckleheads listed me in the 5K results. Thanks guys. The way I see it, I won a special event, the 6.5K.
I did literally take one good thing away from the race, and that was the cool T-Shirt they made for it. But they almost messed that up too, as the first one they gave me was a child size. T-Shirt lady ran after me and changed the shirt, so they got something right. Here I am in the cool T, with my best Grumpy Runner face.
I guess I am grumpy 'cause I zipped an email off to the race organizer suggesting they refund my entry fee--after all it was a stiff 350 pesos ($30 US), at least twice the going rate in Oaxaca. Haven't heard back.
A Well-Hydrated Marathon
The marathon itself went off well. A runner friend who finished told me he was pleased that there were aid stations with water throughout, well done! The race was won by Mark Kipkosgei Chepses in 2:38:50. He won by over 5 minutes on a hot day over a hilly course, well done indeed.
Finally, I note that the Huatulco Marathon posted on it's Facebook page on the subject of non-payment of prize money for the race. The language was in a very formal Spanish that I found hard to understand, but it sounds like the organizers were complaining about a lack of assistance from the local authorities in running the race. If I hear more about what happened, I will update this post.
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