Berlin Marathon Race Recap!

TL DR: Berlin was awesome and I highly recommend running this marathon! 

Berlin Berlin Berlin! I am slowly coming down from my marathon high. Berlin was everything I hoped it would be. It was a long journey to get to the start line because of Covid. It wasn’t until the night before the race that I was certain it was going to happen. It was always on my mind that the race could be cancelled. My head wasn’t fully in it this go around. It made for a tough training cycle. When I would be getting ready for a long training run, I would question if I should keep training since there was so much uncertainty. Plus this summer was super hot and gross. It was a big sigh of relief when the race was over. My anxiety has gotten a lot better and I feel like I can start enjoying my life again.

Race Day!Our hotel was right outside the Tiergarten and about 2km from the starting area. The walk made for a nice warmup. I didn’t really know where I was going so I just followed the crowd. It was cool to hear all of the different languages being spoken. I was able to spot a few Americans. After walking through the outer part of the garden, we finally got to the starting area and it was filled with all of the runners! This was a cool spot right outside the Reichstag. I had about 45 minutes until my start time, so I headed for the bathrooms. Note to future runners: The lines are crazy long and there are tons of empty bathrooms right by the start line. Use those bathrooms or you might miss your corrall like me and many others! I was supposed to start at 9:35, but they close that gate right at 9:35 and my 9:37 arrival to the start had to wait until 10:05! I was bummed that I couldn’t start with my corral, but I met another lady who also missed corral. We started talking and she was from California and we had similar goals. We decided to pace together. I have not ran a race with someone in a long time and it was really nice! We kept each other company and we were able to maintain a pace that we were both comfortable with. We cheered each other on and celebrated little milestones along the way. We ran together for the first 30km. I got a big adrenaline rush with about a10km to go and we parted ways. We gave a quick pep talk, a thank you, and a good luck! Running with her was awesome and I don’t think I would’ve had a strong finish if it wasn’t for her. I probably would’ve burned out at 30km instead of feeling strong. The last 10km was fun. I saw Michael and my parents again, which is what I needed to get to the finish. I kept getting a burst of energy and speeding up and then forcing myself to slow down when I could tell I was over doing it. The last 2km were the longest! I knew where the finish was and I was just waiting for the turn to head that way and it seemed like it was never going to happen. But it finally happened and I knew it was about 5 minutes until the finish. Free by Phish came on my playlist giving me all of the feels! I started to get choked up and it messed up my breathing so I tried to think of random things to calm me down. Then we turned and you saw Brandenburg Gate and I got choked up again. It was a never ending cycle until after I finished! I thought the finish was going to be just after Brandenburg, but it seemed so far away!! Crossing the finish was filled with emotion. This race finally happened and we all did! Everyone that was around me was emotional and excited to have finished the marathon. It was so special and I will never forget this race. It was the best marathon experience I have had (my first race was also pretty phenomenal and will always have a special place in my heart). There were moments during the race I told myself I never had to run again after today, but as soon as I crossed the finish I was immediately trying to plan my next race. If you can make it happen, run the Berlin marathon! 

The course was awesome. I love running through a new city and experiencing different parts of it. The crowd along the streets was the best crowd I have ever experienced. There were people every step of the way and they were loud and excited! I loved seeing flags from all over the world. It was truly special running with everyone. When I was tired, there would be someone right there cheering me on. All of the support really helps when I feel tired and thinking the race is never gonna end. This is a very flat course and the Pittsburgh hills would laugh at the ‘hills’ on this course. The sun was shining all day and thankfully there were a good amount of trees lining the streets to provide some shade. It was about 75 degrees when the race ended. A little warmer than I wanted it to be, but it was a beautiful day and a slight break in the heat that I was used to!

Along the course, they gave out water, tea, some kind of sports drink, bananas, and apples. I was told to not drink the sports drink if you have never had it before, so I never tasted it because I was nervous. It will remain a mystery to me. I tried the tea after the race and it was warm and definitely not what I would have been in the mood for while running. The water was enough for me. The apples were life changing! The first slice I had was one of the best apples I have ever eaten…but it could’ve been the race talking! I also had a pack of Honey Stinger energy chews. I had one about every 5km. This was the first race that I fueled during the race. It definitely helped and I am going to work on doing a little more for my next race. I was happy with what I ate during the race. I think it did the job to keep my energy up and feel strong throughout the race. In the finish area, they gave out water, tea, and tons of alcohol free beer. I went for the beer because it was cold and I needed calories. The tea was too warm for me and I chugged a ton of water at the finish. It took Michael and my parents about 20 minutes to find me. I used this time to cool down and take it all in. They greeted me with soft pretzels and coke zero. Just what I asked for and thought about during the entire race. Most of my time running is spent thinking of the post race meal. 

The Reichstag made for a great post race meeting area. The grass was soft and great for walking barefoot on…which is how I walked back to the hotel. There were a few trees to sit in the shade and I brought a bunch of beer from the finish area for us to enjoy with all the pretzels. It was a perfect Sunday and I am so happy. I was 35 seconds slower than my best time, but that was 6 years ago. I did not think my training was where it needed to be to get a PR, so I was very happy with this time. I am happy to know that my 32 year old self can still run like I’m in my 20s and I have a bigger goal for my next race!