While my running events in Dubai will never be as frequent as they were in New York City, there have still been some fantastic events and results this past year. I also kept up the daily morning run habit, going 5-6 times every week to kick off my day.
January 21 - Dubai Standard Chartered Marathon 10km (Dubai Media City, along Jumeira Beach Road)
We didn't run the marathon, just the 10km route; and we didn't get an official time because the traffic was so bad that we arrived ~25 minutes after the start. But it was so much fun to run this event with James, and cross the finish line together.
February 18 - RAK Half-Marathon (Ras Al Khaimah) 10:20min/mile, 2:15:23
I had to get up at 4:30 in the morning to catch a bus out to RAK, and it was beautiful to see the sun rising over the Hajjar Mountains on the coast. We started the race and passed the sheikhs, waving from the stands. The course wove through town, giving a nice view. As I rounded the corner for the homestretch, the President of my running fan club was waving in the distance, having driven the few hours to meet me.
November 11 - Dubai Women's 10k (Palm Jumeira) 9:49min/mile, 1:05:55
Beautiful to see the skyline of Dubai (Burj al Arab) in the distance on race morning. My initial time was slower than I had expected, but later the race organizer emailed to let us know that oops, we'd actually run 10.8km.
November 25 - Mirdif Milers Donut 10 (Mushrif Park) 10:26min/mile, 1:44:23
Several laps in a desert park, a beautiful course with the airplanes coming in for a landing overhead. I listened to a bunch of podcasts to get me through it. Camel-shaped medals at the finish line!
December 9 - Dubai Creekstriders Half-Marathon (Dubai Creek) 10:05 min/mile, 2:12:16
Fantastic course with beautiful scenery and lots to see. I powered through and really pushed on the hills and bridges, resulting in my 2nd best half-marathon time ever!
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