Country Music Half-Marathon 2009 Retrospective

Adkinson Shocks Half-Marathon Crowd With Personal Best Time

Heat derails amateur scientist’s recovery research, prompts visions of Porter Wagoner

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (April 28, 2009)—Public relations guy, amateur scientist and very-occasional runner Tom Adkinson surprised the field of almost 23,000 runners in Saturday’s Country Music Half-Marathon by setting a personal best of 2 hours 32 minutes.

“My group got to the starting line about 7:45 a.m., and I got behind a really nice guy carrying a sign that said ‘2:30.’ I thought that meant we’d cross the finish line at 2:30 p.m. To my amazement, his intention was to run the whole 13.1 miles in 2 hours 30 minutes,” the red-faced, salt-deprived Adkinson gasped at the end.

His time of 2:32:00 shaved a whopping 10 minutes off his previous record but left unresolved the question of when a number begins to “whop.” The previous record came in the same race two years ago.

“This was only the second one of these silly races I’ve been in, so I knew one of them would be my personal best,” Adkinson said, noting that Jimmy Buffett on his iPod carried him through the first half of the race and the mesmerizing motion of a young female runner in very short University of Tennessee running shorts kept him going from miles 8 through 11.

The 22,749 runners in the half-marathon and another 4,122 in the companion full marathon (26.2 miles) had to cope with a veritable heat wave. Temperatures were above 70 as runners started and into the 80s as they finished.

As Adkinson had predicted, “some guy from Kenya” won the full marathon with a time of 2:13:41.

Adkinson’s run was sponsored in part by B.A.R., Beer and Advil Research, a group Adkinson said will organize officially someday.

“Our research project was to study the beneficial effects of copious amounts of beer and Advil for the occasional runner. Heat-related stomach cramps derailed that plan, but I’ll at least get to the beer part of the research soon enough,” Adkinson said.

Adkinson drew an amused mix of media and onlookers to a post-race news conference he scheduled next to a long row of port-a-johns.

“He seemed sort of loopy, but his norm is so off-base that it was difficult to tell whether anything really was wrong,” said one reporter over the noise of slamming port-a-john doors.

At the news conference, Adkinson seemed to channel Grand Ole Opry great Porter Wagoner (“I’ve enjoyed as much of this as I can stand”) and then professional boxer Roberto Duran (“No mas, no mas”).

The “no mas” comment made reporters wonder about Adkinson’s plans for the 2010 race. However, a female runner in very short UT running shorts strolled by, and the press corps turned its attention there.

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The Run-up to the Country Music Marathon

Adkinson Questions Own Sanity, Renews Marathon Research

Alcohol, drug research study set for April 25 at Country Music Half-Marathon

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (April 2009) – Nashville public relations executive and amateur scientist Tom Adkinson has surprised the research world by committing to a second study of the value of beer and OTC drugs in Nashville’s Country Music Half-Marathon on April 25.

His first study was two years ago at the same event when he competed on behalf of B.A.R. (Beer and Advil Research), a non-profit entity that remains unincorporated. He’s running for B.A.R. again.

“I question my own sanity. Two out of the three doctors I patronize didn’t really encourage me, and I’m not sure that the doc who did really likes me and wants to keep me as a patient,” Adkinson, 58, said. “Still, the research needs to be done.”

The questions, he said, are when to take copious doses of Advil and what amounts of post-race Miller Genuine Draft are appropriate for rehydration.

“The race in 2007 settled the question that Miller Genuine Draft is the right brand. Low-carb beers are useless, and besides, MGD is my favorite,” the aging and occasional athlete observed.

The Country Music Half-Marathon again will be a family affair for Adkinson. His son, Bennett, is a serious runner who says he expects to wait at the finish line for his father “for at least an hour, but probably much more. Adkinson’s daughter, Ruth, ran in 2007, but Adkinson noted that she’s gotten smarter since 2007 and didn’t sign up this year.

Research aside, Adkinson said he plans to petition race organizers to officially recognize his competition pace, something he calls “a fast waddle.”

Adkinson has taken preparation somewhat more seriously for this race than he did in 2007.

“I gave up french fries again, but this time, I actually bought a pair of running shoes that fit and have tried them out a time or two,” he explained.

The Country Music Half-Marathon and the companion full marathon will draw approximately 30,000 participants to run past Nashville landmarks such as Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge and the Idle Hour Tavern on Music Row.

“Some scrawny guy from Kenya will win it, and I guarantee that I’ll accomplish my goal, which is to finish before sunset,” Adkinson said.

Adkinson said contributions of any amount to B.A.R. research are appreciated and will be used in a transparent and fully accountable fashion. He said likely contributors know where to send the money.

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