It's Gonna Be A Hot One In MadTown

In my last post I complained about running in the heat. Well, I should have kept my big mouth shut, because the heat we've been experiencing on and off for the last two weeks is nothing compared to what I'll be facing at the Madison Half Marathon this weekend.

Oh yes, the mercury in Madison is supposed to soar to 96 degrees on Sunday.  Fortunately, it's only supposed to be about 70 degrees when the gun goes off, but the predicted humidity at that time is supposed to be about 84% - in essence, it'll be like running in a steam room as the temperature rises during the course of the race.  I have officially thrown all pace goals out the window and am strictly focused on staying hydrated and finishing the race safely. I have less than no desire to visit the medical tent!

The forecast has already caused the race organizers to cancel the full marathon because it's too dangerous to have runners on the course for up to 6 hours in that heat.  While I believe that the race organizers made the right call (especially in light of what happened at the Green Bay Marathon last weekend - medical tents were overwhelmed and the race had to be cancelled 2 hours and 49 minutes after the gun went off), I can't help but feel a little sorry for the 1,700 people who were registered for the full marathon.  Yes, they've been offered the opportunity to run the half marathon and they're all being offered $20 off the price of next year's race, but that doesn't make up for the disappointment of not being able to do the race they've trained for.  Ultimately, safety has to come first, but I can only imagine what some of those runners are feeling right now - especially those runners who were preparing to run their very first marathon. My heart breaks a little for them.

On to the details.  The course has changed since the last time I ran the Madison race (2008 & 2009). It begins and ends in the shadow of the state capitol.

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The elevation profile doesn't look too bad, except for a pretty big uphill around Mile 9 and the nasty looking hill between Mile 12 and the finish line - I guess we'll see!

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As I write this, my race clothes are in the wash, my GU's & Clif Bar are laid out on the counter, and my iPod and Garmin are charging.  I'm as ready as I'm going to be.  See you in Madison!