Pensacola Marathon
Pensacola, Florida
Sunday, February 17, 2008

I race walked the Pensacola Marathon held in Pensacola, Florida on Sunday, February 17, 2008. It was a small marathon and half marathon with about 750 participants. Water stations were approximately every 2 miles manned by plenty of enthusiastic volunteers. The traffic was controlled excellently by the police, Navy, and Marines. Even though the roads were open to traffic, there was always a closed lane that was left only for the runners. The event did not attract elite athletes as no prize money was offered. There were only a few spectators along the course; however, that was probably due to the weather. There was a 75% chance of rain with both thunder storm and tornado watches then warnings in effect. Luck was on our side as it did not rain during the race. We could see the storms forming overhead, but they moved north and east of the race course before they started dumping. Four tornados touched down within 25 miles of the race. We were truly lucky.