2024 Miami Half Marathon Race Experience
It’s that time of year! The time of year where I continue my streak of running the Miami Half Marathon and continue my streak of having a love-hate relationship with this race. I love that it’s my “legacy” race, aka the first half marathon I ever ran back in 2013 and the one race I have been intentional about doing every year since. But, I also hate how challenging this particular race is for me. I went into this year’s edition with three big goals:
Raise aware for The Little Piggy Fund.
Continue my streak for another year by crossing the finish line.
Work on changing the negative “hate” story I have with this race.
Read on to find out how things went for me this year!
For more on the Miami Marathon and Half Marathon, go here.
Accommodations
The best accommodations are always the ones that feel like home! Hometown race for me.
Expo
I went to expo on Friday with my friends and it was a grand time. The parking situation was a bit of a challenge around the Miami Beach Convention Center, but once we arrived it was smooth sailing. This year’s expo was held on the second floor of the convention center, shifting the orientation around from previous years. Bib pick-up was located outside of the main vendor area with t-shirt/bag pick-up being located in the vendor area. There were a variety of vendors that covered just about every need a runner could have leading up to a big event.
Pre-Race
I drove to the race again this year (with friends!) and, while taking the train is incredibly convenient, I like being able to leave and hop in a car when I’m ready. Race morning started with a 3am wake up time so that I could have my oatmeal breakfast before heading out the door. I was picked up around 4:20am and we made it to the race staging area around 5:15am. We parked at a lot that was a 10-minute walk from the start line.
Post-Race
There is a lot happening post-race: Chef Nicole meals in the finisher’s area, beer garden and tents, food vendors, charity village, and a stage with live music. I found my friends and took lots of pictures as the race finishes in Bayfront Park with beautiful views of the bay.
On the Course
There are aid stations and bathrooms throughout the course. Most of the aid stations had water and Gatorade and there were GU products at the mile 7 aid station. There was some entertainment on the course, but what really draws you into this race experience are the views as your run on the MacArthur Causeway and the Venetian. Spectators are high at the beginning of the race and in the last two miles of the race. My biggest issues were:
Lack of water at the aid stations between miles 7-10. It was a hot race day and I’m sure runners were taking in more water than expected, but I skipped two aid stations because one didn’t have any water that was easily grabable and the other had a pile of runners trying to get water.
Runner ettiquete was poor this year. From my understanding, there were a lot of first time half marathoners at this race, so I know there’s a lack of knowledge/experience here, but there is no need to be rude to your fellow runners on the course. Let’s assume the heat didn’t help people behave at their best.
Race Experience
I went into this race with the intention of rewriting the story about Miami being a race that I historically do poor in and/or don’t feel like my strongest runner self. I spent some time thinking about what made this race a challenging one for me and it came down to the course being a hard one for me (the first 5K is the hardest with the bridges) and the weather being a big wild card.
We received an email Saturday night stating that course conditions would be “Yellow/Moderate” because of high race day temperature and humidity. This didn’t surprise me, but it also made the “rewrite the story” goal that much more important if I was going to have a good race experience. I had been watching the weather and doing what I could to hydrate and fuel before the race, but heat/humidity and I just don’t mix. I spent the first half of the race fantastizing about living somewhere with seasons and wondering what kind of athlete I would be if I didn’t have heat and humidity always weighing me down.
Another thing that helped me get through these miles was reflecting on who I was representing while running this race: India Rose Carolina and her family. I was running with “The Little Piggy Fund” shirt on to help bring awareness to India’s story and all the work her family is doing in her honor. The weather may have sucked, but I was running for something greater than myself. Whenever the thoughts started to spiral with the heat, I pulled myself back by challenging myself to savor the moment, the miles, the race itself because none of it is guaranteed.
Around mile 8 I linked up with a friend and we spent the next 5 miles walking and chatting about all the similarities in our running journeys. These 5 miles were a celebration of running and an invitation to be in awe of how far we’ve come and how far we hope to go.
Overall Impression
I’m a walking contradiction, I know! This isn’t my favorite race and I get upset when I think about how the race has changed in my years running it, but I still come back to the race. Heck, I even sign up for the follow year’s event at the expo for the current year’s event. So, Miami: You are a hard, but sentimental race. There are plenty of things I would want to change to improve the runner experience, but I will always support this hometown race as long as I physically can.
Pros
Supporting the largest hometown Miami race.
Plenty of aid stations and bathrooms throughout the course.
GU gels at mile 7. Perhaps mile 11 as well?
Beautiful course with water along the water.
Spectator support in the last 2 miles is great.
Start and finish in the similar areas.
Post-race meals, snacks, and drinks.
Classic Miami spinning medal (although this year there was an issue with the medal that impacted travelers).
Pacers for both the half marathon and marathon runners.
Public transportation on race day is a great alternative to driving.
18,000 participant field - true runner party.
Cons
Course can get narrow at times because of all the construction around Miami. It’s in these points that runner ettiquete went out the door. Note: You can wait to pass; you don’t have to push or elbow your way through!
Weather is something to consider as it is always a wildcard and, in my 12 years of running the race, I don’t think I have ever experienced “ideal” running conditions.
Race pictures are not free.
The race keeps getting more and more expensive to do. I registered at expo at the “cheapest” rate and it was still $178 for the half marathon.
This year I made peace with the fact that running Miami isn’t about time of setting a PR. It’s about keeping the streak alive and using the 13.1 miles to reflect on WHY I run and how far I’ve come as a runner since that first half marathon back in 2013.
Next up for me is the Florida Half Marathon on Sunday, February 11th!
12 years of Miami finish lines moments.
