Eisenhower Half Marathon
Abilene, Kansas
Saturday. April 9, 2016

On Saturday, April 9, 2016 I race walked the Eisenhower Half Marathon in Abilene, Kansas. It was somewhat cold as the temperature ranged from 36 to 45 degrees while I did the race. The wind was relatively light for the first 6 miles then increased to 10-15 mph with higher gusts for the rest of the race. Water/Gatorade stations were located about every ¾ of a mile and were manned by plenty of enthusiastic, efficient volunteers. The course went up and down quite a bit; however, nothing was very challenging. The course utilized paved roadways which were completely closed to traffic and had an out and back layout. The event had four races: 5K, 10K, Half Marathon, and Full Marathon with approximately 500 finishers in total. The event starts and finishes near the President Eisenhower Museum and Library. This was my third time at the event: 1 marathon and 2 half marathons. The event is always well organized, friendly, and fun. The Abilene community goes out of their way to welcome the participants and appreciates financial boost to the community and its charities. I had an especially good performance in this half marathon as I finished second in my age group entered as a runner even though I walked the entire way and my time on this certified course was my fastest in the last 57 half marathons that I have completed,