I chose the 2024 Breckenridge Brewery Half Marathon because it was the same weekend as a trade show I was attending in Denver. (PS: who starts trade shows on Sunday night?) I’m lucky that my boss supports my running adventures!

The race was small with only ~230 people doing the half. To keep us spread out on the trail they had 7:30 and 7:45 start times. I started at 7:30 and I’m glad I did because it got steamy out there! Race communication and checkin was a breeze.

I started this race with the goal of finishing and enjoying the views. Coming from 9′ of elevation in Charleston to 5300′ of elevation in Colorado was a struggle to say the least. I felt it in the first mile and knew it was going to be a tough one.

2024 Breckenridge Brewery Half Marathon Route

The out-and-back route snaked along the South Platte River on a paved path. During much of the race you could look across the river and see other runners and either think – I can’t wait till I’m that far along OR I’m so glad I’m past that point.

Not knowing the route, I approached each bridge with the excitement to cross it, but then inevitably, it wasn’t the crossing bridge. There weren’t as many mountain views as I thought, but you could see them if you squinted.

At several of the rapids there were people in the surfing the river. Only in Colorado. The other interesting thing we passed was a car junkyard with an old private jet on display.

The wheels didn’t start to fall off until mile 7-ish when I drank some tailwind. I swear it felt like it went straight to my ovaries and they started cramping. That passed but I was still shot. I changed my playlist, called my friend Adrienne, resolved to a run/walk and cheered on runners that passed me.

I forgot sunscreen and brought some wicked tan lines home with me. The hot, dry air makes for a really salty run. I haven’t tested this, but I think I’m one of those extra salty runners. Around mile 9 I did take some salt tabs which helped temporarily.

For such a small race, I was surprised they had professional photographers along the course! I tried to smile and act like I was having fun whenever I saw them. I had just started walking when the above left photo was taken and it took some effort to fake that smile. Funny that a chalk smily face is on the sidewalk right at that place. 🙂

All that said, the volunteers on the course were great. And the few spectators that were along the course were encouraging. Nearing the finish line the path got crowded with 5K walkers and other people walking/biking/skating on the trail. It didn’t bother me because I was slogging along.

I swear I was running to the finish line in the photo above. Immediately after finishing I stood under the tent’s shade. How can someone run so slow but also feel so tired? And yes, same outfit as the Cowtown Half.

The previous Wednesday was Global Running Day and my watch battery died that afternoon! Thank goodness for Amazon Prime, I was able to get a new watch late Friday night. This race was my first recorded activity on it.

The beer and gyro went down fast post-race! I chatted with a few other runners at a picnic table. One from MN, one from OK (who ran a 1:30 and got first place in his age category!), and one from CO. We all came and did the race by ourselves. Was it runner’s spidey-sense that we were lone runners and that’s why we sat together?

2024 Breckenridge Brewery Half Marathon Swag

The swag was pretty good and they gave away a TON of things post-race. The race t-shirt is a great tech material. Even the small is a bit big but I wore it a few days later for a short run. The tank tops were only $10 and I couldn’t not get the Run Miles | Drink Beer | Pet Dogs sweatshirt. They had tons of other items for sale and reasonably priced. (Nothing from Lululemon, just the bag.) There were also lots of vendors with tents giving away all sorts of free things. I limited myself knowing I only had a carry-on bag and a trade show to go to as well.

Full or Half Marathon in Every State

Colorado was state 24 – almost halfway! I’m registered for Iowa in July but nothing else this year.