On Dec.2, 2018 Hadano Tanzawa Minase River Half Marathon 2018 took place. I finished in 1:41:46 gross, and 1:41:24 net. It is my third best time for this particular course. My PR is 1:38:44 net from the previous year. Time wise I'm almost three minute slower. But nevertheless the race this year is far more memorable for me, because for the first time in my life did I run the entire distance of a half marathon in complete bare feet. Now when I say "complete bare feet", it means not even having kinetic tape on the sole for minimum skin protection. Up until the race began, I had run two races in this way. But both races were 10 K. I had run longer distances in training. But not in any races. In training you can choose to run those roads that are suitable for barefoot training. Smooth pavement, and no rough surface, and all that. But in a real race, you just accept everything that's presented to you. And I knew from my careful observation in the previous year that the road surface condition in this course sucks!! But that's my whole reason why I wanted to go for it. If I could run it barefoot, I would be able to run any race in the same way.
The gun went off at 8:45 am in brisk cold air of early winter. The first 5 K includes two shuttle stretches rich in undulation. I could feel sweat beading on my forehead. Near the 5 K mark I dropped by the aid station and grabbed a cup of sports drink. There is still a long way ahead, so I slowed down a little to have the drink without choking.
Once past the aid station, the course turned northbound toward the Tanzawa mountain range. The road started climbing for a while, and then after running for about five minutes it turned westbound into a long series of ups and downs that was going to last for 9 kilometers.
I felt light thanks to a slight weight loss after the Aqua Line Marathon in October. I had some fun chats with a few runners who showed their interest in my barefoot attempt. I was full of energy and high spirits, and my soles were both still intact.
Then came an area where the road surface suddenly deteriorated. I almost came to a complete halt because of unexpected pain that traveled through my backbone. I almost walked instead of running, carefully choosing to step on areas that were less rough no matter how slight the difference may be. Once the rough part ended, I sped up to make up for the time loss. But in no time another rough part came. I had no choice but slow down, being overtaken by God knows how many runners coming from behind.
When I finally reached the highest point in the race near the 15 K mark, I almost cried with joy. The iconic suspension bridge welcomed us runners. As I crossed it, I enjoyed the comfortable feel of the stone tiles on my sole. I enjoyed two cups of drink at the aid station, one cup being water and the other sports drink.
Once I left the aid station behind, I changed gears and hammered down the hill, overtaking one runner after another who were exhausted from working too hard on uphills. I was pleasantly surprised at my brisk cadence. It was thanks to frequent slow-downs due to the bad road condition. I was actually recovering thanks to the slow-downs, so I still had enough energy left in my tank to put on a substantial spurt.
Every now and then the road condition got bad, but thanks to an adrenaline rush I didn't feel much pain. I pressed on, and on, and on.
When the finish arch was finally in sight, I saw my bilingual companion and her friend chatting with each other without having the slightest expectation to see me so soon. I waved at them. They finally noticed me approaching. But I quickly run past them, and they had no time to get their smartphones ready for photo-shooting!
I kept a good pace around the track and kicked one last time down the final stretch to cross the finish line at the time that I mentioned before.
I was engulfed with a tremendous feeling of satisfaction both because of an unexpectedly good time, but more because of the fact that I kept the promise I had made with myself--to complete a half marathon in complete bare feet.
That night I stayed at a hotel in Machida City. I finally started feeling significant pain in both of my soles. I found myself limping while strolling through town to look for a place to eat in. But I couldn't shake a grin off my face, because I was so damn happy to have achieved the goal.
My next challenge is almost seven weeks ahead. It is Tateyama Wakashio Marathon 2019 in the last Sunday of next January. My goal is to run a barefoot sub-4 marathon. I will wholeheartedly commit myself to doing it for the next seven weeks so that I wouldn't need to make a lame excuse for not being able to achieve it.
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