This morning, I ran the Derby Festival Mini Marathon (a half-marathon, or 13.1 miles). My time of 2:06:37 was about a minute faster than last year's time. It was cloudy and rain threatened, but it never did rain and the temperature was perfect (low to mid 50s). This race, which is part of Louisville's festivities in honor of the Kentucky Derby, has a route going through Churchill Downs (where the Kentucky Derby will be run next Saturday). They were training horses on the track while the runners ran on the paved infield path. There were other fun things going on during the race: I passed a small pack of Elvis impersonators, and a newly-wed fellow ran in a tux. At one point, the route for the full marathon (ran today along with the Mini) paralleled the Mini, and we saw the two leading marathoners run past us---fast---following the pace car. (We were at about mile 9 when this happened; the marathoners were at about mile 18. The marathoners finished the marathon before I finished the half marathon.) And at about mile 10, Amy, a priest at my church, cheered me on as I passed her.
While my time was better than last year's time, it was short of my personal best on that route, just under 2 hours, two years ago. But I am grateful to be able to run this race, and I'm grateful for my health.