European Road Races

After living in Europe for a year, it seemed only appropriate that I, a person who loves running marathons, should try my legs out here in Europe. I was originally training for the Barcelona race in March, but the horrible winter made training close to impossible, so I found a later race in Hamburg, Germany. After one of the best marathon experiences ever, I'm so glad that I chose Hamburg, a lovely German port city.

The race was on Sunday, so after picking up my race packet........
We spent the rest of the day exploring this beautiful city. We ate a lunch of fresh fried fish on the helicopter pad of an old ship:
Then we took a boat tour of the port, which is the third largest port in Europe:


Then we headed over to this pond in the middle of the city to have a drink and watch the ducks. (It was chilly so Peter wore my scarf and had some beers to keep warm.)
I loved this race for many reasons, the first being that Europeans don't follow the crazy American idea that marathons should start with the sunrise..........I have been at starting lines before 5, but this morning, we arrived at a much more reasonable 8 am for a 9 am start.
Another reason this race tops my list of marathons is the course and crowd support. I read that there were 800,000 spectators and I can believe it. There was never a moment when there wasn't someone clapping, cheering, passing out treats, playing music, or offering high fives. And the course was perfect......flat, scenic, and filled with all the Hamburg highlights.
I also loved the finish line party for several reasons........1. it was very organized and easy to find Peter. 2. I saw several people cross the finish line and light up a cigerette which I found so hilarious. 3. The band was great and there was a stand selling fried fish straight from the North Sea. Here is a picture of me with my medal......all smiles with an empty plate in front of me:
This was the fish stand.........so cute:
We spent the rest of the afternoon sitting by the lake, watching the people, enjoying some our favorite post race refreshments: beer for Peter, gummy worms for me.


Peter recently tried out a European road race as well. His was the Strasbourg 10k and he ran with a team from his school, IHEE. Team IHEE was pretty serious, even meeting for a pre-race pasta dinner
Team IHEE pre-race:
And post-race:
Peter is hiding in the back, but I have to brag..........he ran the fastest out of his entire team. He ran so fast, I arrived to the finish line to late to snap a photo.

Overall, I would say that races over here are very similar to races in the states, lots of fun filled with commeraderie and encouragement. We are already looking forward to our next race........