Planning calendar of Polish half marathons in which I wanted to participate in 2019, I couldn't miss "Half Marathon Wiazowski". This half marathon is held for the 39th time in 2019, which is very impressive. In addition, the site run-log.com half marathon "Half Marathon Wiazowski" has a rating of five stars. All this interested me very much, so I decided take part in a half marathon. It was not difficult to get to the starting point. The event is held in the suburbs of Warsaw. This was the final impetus to meet spring on the classic track in one lap, participating in the half marathon "Half Marathon Wiazowski".
Registration
Register to participate in “Half Marathon Wiazowski” can be found on the website
wiazownapolmaraton.pl. If you register in advance, the cost of participation will be 50 zlotys (somewhere 320 hryvnia), but already one month before the start the price rises to 70 zlotys (about 450 hryvnias).
The main distance runs are 21 kilometers and 5 kilometers and for kids. The 21 kilometers full circle covers the villages of the suburbs of Warsaw. The start and finish areas are located on the premises of the school in the village of Wiazownia. The starter packs were distributed to participants directly on the day of the event. Children's races were held in the morning, but starting at the main distances of 21 and 5 kilometers gave as early as 12:00. The distance I had to run had two time limits - 2:30 and 3:00. The last race starts 30 minutes earlier than the first.
The path to the starting town
This time I decided to get there to Warsaw by plane. Departure from Kyiv airport was scheduled for nine in the morning, and had to arrive at the destination in an hour and a half. After successfully passing the customs control, at 10:30 I went to the hostel, which was located in the eastern suburbs of Warsaw.
When I checked the navigator, I saw that the hostel was about 20 kilometers away. Therefore, it was a great opportunity to have an interesting walk and get to know the beauties of Warsaw. I also really wanted to visit the "Empik" bookstore to make myself something new to read. I spent at least half an hour in a bookstore and chose a book called "Ultra. You will run further than you think". The next stop was my hostel. It took me about 8 hours to get to it, but I had to go the whole 36 kilometers, which was a great warm-up before the race.
The next day on Sunday, as I strolled through the city, I went to the starting town. It was necessary to walk 7 kilometers of forest trails. Since I'm never looking for easy ways, so I decided to work my way out to the venue. I was on the spot about an hour and a half later. This is where I got the starter kit, which included a participant's number, a T-shirt, a backpack, a buff, and promotional booklets from half marathon sponsors.
Run
The start of the half marathon "Half Marathon Wiazowski" was scheduled for 12:00, and the race for the distance of 5 km began 15 minutes after the start of the main distance. From the very beginning there were many people in the starting town, because children's races were held before the main distances. More than two thousand people took part in the distance with a limit of 2:30 hours. Another 100 marathoners started half an hour earlier to cover the 3-hour limit. At 14:30 the track closed.
Frankly, I doubted that I would be able to fit in the allotted time, remembering my walks around Warsaw. In total, during the days spent in Warsaw, I managed to walk about 60 kilometers, so my legs did not feel the best. In addition, the Half Marathon Wiazowski became my first half marathon in 2019. So I decided to start 30 minutes earlier so as not to exhaust myself and run calmly.
I started at 11:30 and pretty good. There were not many runners, and they were running at a rather slow pace. After a few Polish runners, I started my half marathon. The route was very well marked - there were volunteers at the corners, indicating where to go next. Hydration stations were located every 3 kilometers. At the 10-kilometers mark, the runners were in for a surprise - a turn was set up where local bands provided musical support to the participants.
The route was laid out in the surrounding villages, so there was lively support from Polish fans everywhere. The race was easy for me - in just 1 hour I managed to overcome 7 miles.
The finish line
At 9 miles they made themselves aware of their feet, so I slowed down a bit so that they did not refuse me at all. My result was 1 hour 59 minutes. This is just a great result for the first half marathon of 2019. At the finish, I received not only great impressions from the race and medals but also a delicious treat with a delicious porridge, which was used to treat the participants for a renewed strength in the school gym. At the end of the event, I took the 730 bus that went to the “Kwatery Głównej”. And from there he reached the airport and flew home.
Features of “Half Marathon Wiazowski”
The highlight of the event was that the half marathon "Half Marathon Wiazowski" is part of a series of races "Grand Prix Traktu Brzeskiego" and that is his first stage. This series includes another run for 21 kilometers, two for 10 kilometers, and one for 15 kilometers. Each of these races amazes with its special organizational moments. But I thought the most interesting of them was the second half marathon “Bieg Siedleckiego Jacka”, held in late August.
Booking.com
