13.2 miles | 1:48:46 | 8:12 pace | Provo Halloween Half
I don't want to whine so I'll leave most of the cheese out of this. Most of it. The frustration from the packet pick-up had me flustered to the point that I left stuff in my car in my rush to get my bib on and onto a bus--most importantly, my gloves and hat. I froze up at the start. Fortunately, hypothermia kicked in and I was overwhelmed with a sense of warmth and well being. And then the race started and I forgot all about all that other stuff. I started the race with Kelli and Rachel who were both a part of the 1:50 pacing team. And the 1:50 pacing team was, IMHO, the coolest pacing team there. Of course they were also the only pacing team I interacted with, so... The first 5 miles were a bit steep for my liking, but the sub 8's on all of them were nice to have in the bank--especially when mile 7 clocked at 9:05. For the final 6 miles, I attempted to find my Zen state, succeeding at times, not at others, averaging 8:20. Finished 12 minutes faster than planned and expected. Got my medal, picked up my shirt, helped sort through drop bags, rode the bus back to the mall, and went home.
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