The Broad Running Broad

It was incredible.

I have a lot to say about the 36-ish hours of heading north, exploring the city, the race and coming home again. And I will say it. But first I want to acknowledge the elephant in the room.

A sad turn

Tragically, a runner passed away during Mile 5 of the marathon on the Canadian side. The race director and Detroit news confirmed he was 57, an American and had suffered a major medical emergency, but opted not to name him out of respect for him and his family.

I was running a little behind him when it happened. A spectator yelled for all the runners to get over to the sidewalk for the ambulance to come through, which we all did. I should have looked ahead, but call it human nature – I glanced down as I was walking past him to see what was happening. I’m not going into details, but it looked bad. I’d never seen anything like it before at a race, and hoped that he would be okay with medical personnel getting to him right away.

Later on Sunday I got a notification on my phone. Detroit news reported that he had passed away. 

I want to acknowledge his passing up front, as well as extend my deepest sympathies for any family and friends who might read this. I’m sorry you have to go through this, and I hope you’re surrounded by support as you go forward.

And now, on to the post

Saturday morning I got up early to load the car up, get gas and head up north. It was a little over three hours thanks to some construction on I-75 after crossing into Michigan. Thankfully the car did great – no lights kicked on, traffic wasn’t too bad and I felt good going into Detroit.

I did however get turned around on all the one ways  and street closures in Midtown trying to find the hotel. A few F-bombs may have been dropped.

I got to my hotel around 12:30. The Element by Westin was the end result of renovating the Metropolitan Building back to its original, Art Deco splendor. When I was making my reservations earlier this year the top three hotels were booked, so I went with the Element not really sure what to expect. Knights and dames, the hotel was gorgeous and possibly one of the fanciest places I’ve stayed.

My room was a King with a corner view, and I must say I was pleasantly surprised. After calling Mom and putting my things away, it was time to go to the expo and explore.

While the streets may not have been the easiest to navigate as an out-of-towner, the city itself is one of the most pedestrian-friendly I’ve been to yet. I was able to find Washington Blvd and meander my way to Huntington Place, taking in all the shops and restaurants. The expo was well-organized and easy to get what I needed. Usually I wander at expos and look at the vendors, but this time I wanted to get out and explore the city.

At first glance driving in, Detroit reminded me of a cross between Cleveland and Pittsburgh – Cleveland for the water, Pittsburgh for the obvious nods to the city’s industrial roots. As I was walking around the convention center down to the RiverWalk, taking in the buildings around me, I realized Detroit was more than that.

There’s the buildings and public dedicated to auto giants and the auto workers, as well as the ornate buildings and statues, and street names taken from French-speaking settlers. I was pleasantly surprised by all the color of the public art, as well as the parks built into medians on main thoroughfares that breathe life into Downtown and Midtown.

It was easy to wander the RiverWalk and lose track of time. I love water and find it so peaceful, and the view of Windsor across the river was humbling. I sent a picture of the skyline to Mom, who told me later on that seeing Canada on the other side made her emotional. It’s so simple but profound at the same time.

To put it simply, Detroit has so many parts to its history on display. Combined with the fact this is probably one of the most ethnically diverse cities I’ve ever been to, you can feel the melting pot that goes into the city and makes it great.

It was time to get back to the Element for an early dinner and retire for a big day on Sunday. Which I did. Dinner was fish ‘n chips at The Lone Goat pub. Dessert was a chocolate soft serve ice cream cone dipped in sprinkles from the soft-serve window across the street. It was delicious.

Race day

I had choppy sleep the night before, thanks to some motorcycles coming through and then naturally waking up at 3:20 AM. I tried to make myself fall back asleep until my alarm at 4, but it wasn’t happening. So I got up, massaged my muscles and stretched so I’d be good and ready at the 7 AM start line.

Fast forward to the corral. The corrals got released in waves, and since I was in E, my wave didn’t start running until 7:20. This might have been the first time waiting to run was torture. I was ready to go.

Eventually that air horn went off, and I was crossing the start line. I had a time goal, but mostly I wanted to conquer the entire uphill of Miles 2 and 3 running up the Ambassador Bridge.

Mile 1 I felt strong and wound up taking my lightweight jacket off. Mile 2 was the ramp going up to the bridge. At one point I slowed my pace down to conserve strength, but I didn’t walk or feel like I was dying. This is noteworthy because it was an uphill and basically running in a circle – two things that are bad enough on their own, but together can be brutal.

The entirety of Mile 3 was the Ambassador Bridge. While Mom mentioned getting emotional the day prior when I sent her the picture of the Windsor skyline, I felt emotional on the bridge. The sun was rising over Windsor, a little ball of orange peeking over the horizon. The red letters were lit up against the blue bridge and the dawn breaking, and I could see a barge moving north on the river. On the U.S. side of the bridge is an American flag, and it was running up to and under the flag that the emotion of it hit me.

I was running an international half marathon, running on an international highway as a new day was starting and getting to take in a unique, magical moment.  That realization humbled me.

Thankfully for every uphill is a downhill, so my run into Canada underneath their flag and through the border crossing helped me recover from the uphill and get some time back.

Miles 4 through 7 in Windsor were wonderful. The spectators and volunteers were some of the most enthusiastic I’ve ever experienced, and getting to see the Detroit skyline from the Canadian side was incredible.

Mile 7 plopped us right at the entrance of the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel. In addition to Ambassador Bridge, another unique part of the Detroit Marathon is Mile 7 through the tunnel, also known as the World’s Only Underwater Mile. It’s an entire mile first downhill and then slightly uphill crossing back into the U.S. I’ve heard from previous race participants the tunnel gets hot and to be prepared for that. Thankfully my tank top and leggings combination worked in my favor and kept me comfortable through the tunnel.

Miles 8 until the finish line wound me through Midtown Detroit. I was still feeling strong and surprised myself by only needing two short walking breaks (coming up the bridge and coming back up from the tunnel.) I even got a jolt of energy during the last mile and decided to forgo my gel, which didn’t bite me. I was in the home stretch, feeling great and keeping myself going with the infectious crowd support. I saw the finish line right around the corner and it finally registered: I just ran the Detroit International Half Marathon.

I’m an international runner.

I did that.

And my final time: 2:20:54, with a 10:45 pace. I haven’t been able to break an 11-minute pace since pandemic times.

Knights and dames, I’m back.

Final thoughts

In spite of the tragedy I mentioned in the beginning of my post, Detroit was more than I could have ever hoped for. The city, the race, it was an extraordinary time. I already told Mom I’ve decided I’m going back next year for the half and taking her with me so she can see the city for herself like I got to.

With all of this being said – and it’s a lot – I appreciate all of you who stop by my corner of the Internet and read today’s book. I hope you all are having peaceful, joyful mornings, afternoons or evenings wherever you are. Until next time,

Allison