Well, all that stressing over nothing. Phew, it is done, when’s the next one…..sign me up! So there were over 1,000 runners. And I came in 631st!! Now, that isn’t too bad. I was happy not to be last. I finished before my 8 year old daughter’s best friend, that is good.
I ate oatmeal (that seems to work), had a bout of nerves that went to my intestines (if you know what I mean without typing it). I left the house @ 8:00ish with my neighbor who ran with me. I was soooooo nervous, I thought I was going to puke. We got there, signed in, got our #’s and chips, used the porta-pottys and lined up. The weather was beautiful! A nice breeze, not too hot. Although, the sun was really beating down on me with no relief during the last mile. The gun went off, and my little family was on the sidelines with signs saying “go mom” that they made yesterday when I wasn’t home. My husband is an illustrator and made the coolest sign which was an illustration of a “fluff-a-nutter” sandwich (see attached photo). It was such a surprise and motivator (although a real fluff sandwich would have been appreciated after the race. (note to self: bring one next time)
The first mile was o.k. we passed a lot of people and set a pace. My neighbor really pushed me - which was good. My music was synced perfectly and worked amazingly well. I was totally parched by the 1st mile mark water station. I used both water stations - and of course soaked myself. At the 1 mile mark I think I was at 10:20. At the 2 mile mark we were just under 20:00. At the second water station at the 2 mi. mark, the water was just at the base of a slow hill, so it really slowed me down and I need to catch my breath. I walked for about 30 sec.-1 min. I told my neighbor to go ahead, she said “are you sure” and I said yes. So, I ran the last mile by myself. My music was amazing. There was a second hill at around 2.5 miles. I was alone and trying to convince myself to not walk. Then “I Still Believe” by The Call came on. Just as I am slowing and getting tired, the lyrics say “I’ll march this road, I’ll climb this hill, upon my knees if I have to…” It was so perfect and made me smile to myself. I finished at 30:50. 2:10 faster than I had hoped. I came running in to “Can’t Stop” by the Chili Peppers, it was awesome. I would have been in about 5 seconds faster but just about at the finish line, I run by my mom, who is poised and ready to take a picture and misses me. So, I slow and I am yelling “Mom, Mom” She didn’t see me. But I think it blew about 5 seconds. O.k. Next time - no walking, I will carry a small squirty bottle of water so that I don’t have to stop at all. The Motrin worked on my knee like a charm, no pain at all during the race. I also really enjoyed running outside and the pavement wasn’t that bad.
It was A LOT of fun, I am so proud of myself and thank all of you who inspired, supported and otherwise listened to my obsessive compulsive rantings. I will be signing up for another race before decent running weather is over. I am taking tomorrow off!
Workout:
- Type: Run
- Date: 09/01/2008
- Time: 12:20:00
- Total Time: 00:30:50.00
- Distance: 3.1 miles
- Average Pace: 9:57.01/mile
Digg! this story.
