Norma Ackert Won't Be Outdone
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Author: Norma Ackert
Released 25 March 2006
Norma Ackert Completes the ING Miami Half Marathon
Photograph Contributed by Norma Ackert
Having decided last year not to be outdone by my husband and my son, I decided I had to run a half marathon before I turned 60 (did I say that out loud?). My son ran the half marathon in Dhahran in 1980 when he was only 13. My husband, Tim, ran the half marathon in Dhahran when he was 40. I made it a personal goal to achieve, and registered for the ING Miami Half-Marathon.
I started training for the 13.1 mile run after returning home from the 5-6-7-8! Reunion in Las Vegas, Nevada last July. All my training was done solo, several mornings a week beginning with 2 mile runs and working up throughout the summer. Many mornings it was a hundred percent humidity and pushing 90 degrees. I figured that if I could make it through the summer heat here in Miami, the winter months of training would be a piece of cake. My training suffered in August after Hurricane Katrina left us with no power for five days followed by Hurricane Wilma which caused a power outage of 15 days. With the downed trees and power lines throughout our community, trying to run was a challenge.
Sunday, January 29, 2006 was the payoff for all the time I spent training to run the ING Miami Half-Marathon. I set the alarm clock for 4 a.m. and was out the door at 4:45 a.m. on the way to downtown Miami where I would be one of 10,000 runners running either the half or full marathon. The weather was a bit warm for a marathon at 66 degrees, and the wind was really strong and very gusty out of the East. Thankfully it was a bit overcast which for me was a good element for the race.
Medal Won by Norma Ackert
Photograph Contributed by Norma Ackert
The race began at 6 a.m. from in front of the American Airlines Arena and headed east over the MacArthur Causeway, the only 'hill' so to speak, toward South Beach. As I ran the bridge across Biscayne Bay, there was a spectacular view to the right of the Port of Miami where a number of huge cruise ships were docked. At mile 4, the bridge finally connected to Miami Beach where the course turned right and ran along the bottom of South Beach before heading north along Ocean Drive offering a view of the Atlantic Ocean. It was fun to actually run on the streets and view the beautiful Art Deco buildings without all the traffic.
As I headed north, the course cut across 14th Street to Washington Ave. and to my surprise, ran right by the Beach Plaza Hotel where my friends, Lloyd and Gloria from Columbus, stayed before their Queen Mary 2 cruise last year.
I was still feeling good about my run at mile 7 as the course turned to the West heading back to the Miami mainland via the Venetian Causeway. By mile 11, I was back downtown Miami, having finally seen some sunshine at about mile 10 along the flatter Venetian Causeway. The wind, thankfully, was at my back. I ran by my husband, Tim, who had positioned himself at a downtown location right at mile 12. It was so great to see him there! I still felt great but knew that the end was near and that I'd have to face the wind once more before completing the 13.1 mile distance.
I finished in 2 hours 20 minutes. Honestly, my time was not at all spectacular. I was just hoping to finish! Best of all, I got a cool spinning medal for my efforts. Upon my return home, there were congratulatory balloons at the front door from my friends, Bill and Frank. I drank Champagne with my friends in celebration of achieving my goal. It was a great day!