I first heard about the "Kovel Half Marathon" in the spring of 2017 when I visited the city of Kovel. Then he even had a slim chance of becoming my first half marathon to run. But it was a time when I was just starting to train, so my dream was to run 21 km. remained only dreams that came true just 5 months after that during the "Silesia Marathon". And finally, in 2 years, again Kovel station and waiting for the start of the next half marathon.
Registration
Registration for the race was on the website vseprobegi.org, where you could choose one of the three available distances (21 km, 15 km or 7.6 km). It is quite clear that I chose the 21 km distance - for her sake I arrived in this town of Western Ukraine and check out how the recovery is going after running my first marathon.
Run
What to get from Kiev to Kovel, I chose a bus and was in place for 7 hours. Arriving in Kovel, my further direction was towards the starting point of the half marathon. I walked there, which turned into a beautiful walk in the morning, which turned out to be a very beautiful and beautiful Ukrainian town. The start camp was located in the center of the city, and the starter packet delivery point was located near the home of the "Trade Union of Educators"
The starting point for the half marathon was opposite the park. Arriving early, I was able to watch the organizers and utilities prepare for the running holiday. Among the participants of the "Kovel Half Marathon" were not only Ukrainians but also representatives of other nations. Most of them were Poles - the second largest nation after Ukraine at the "Kovel Half Marathon". After picking up a starter pack consisting of a starter number, T-shirts, brochures with a short history of the "Kovel Half Marathon" and a half marathon map, and a coupon for a pasta party after the half marathon. The Kovel Half Marathon route consisted of one small and three large circles in the central part of the city. The track "Kovel Half Marathon" - flat, which is very good if you want to show a pretty good result.
All distances started at 10 o'clock at the same time. Honestly, I don't like those starts. The main disadvantage of such starts is that it is easy to get on the tail of a runner not from his distance. Obviously, this is not at all convenient - once he finishes, you need to keep running.
The start was easy enough for me. The first half of the half marathon was comfortable, despite the nuance, when I wanted to keep the pace of the athlete, who ran 7.6 km. However, after a whole marathon only two weeks ago, it would hardly be possible to run fast. Since it was hot, the organizers put in place a frame for spraying water on the track in advance. Yes, and visit all the hydration sites through the heat. I did not set out to run at the Kovel Half Marathon. This is a half marathon that I participated in to get a pleasant experience. After that, I had a delicious lunch at a local cafe.
Impression
Everything was well organized, like for a small country town. It was nice to see representatives of Poland devoting their time not only to theirs but also to Ukrainian half marathons. I really liked the work of the local police, who completely blocked the running route. Good support from the locals was also remembered. When I drove here, I did not rule out that there would be a chance to get lost, or, for example, the route would be shorter. But this has not happened, so it is worth thanking the organizers.
Of the disadvantages I can only identify the simultaneous start of all the distances that I encountered.