TT: 1:42:45 (watch was 1:42:57). AP: 7:51. HR: 166
8:44, 7:41, 7:44, 7:57, 7:56, 8:21(H), 7:55, 7:30, 7:52 (H), 7:38, 7:33, 7:26, 7:39, 54
Hobble Creek Half Marathon: 2012 - 1:43:01 (previous pr)
I went to the race by myself. The rest of the family had stuff going on. I saw Rachel at the race expo and always love seeing her!
I got some pizza and headed over to see the Cranes. Their kids are so darling. I finally got to the Macdonald’s house and we chatted for a minute.
I slept so horrible. I kept worrying about my alarm going off. I hardly slept at all. My phone finally went off at 3:05.
I had a headache and my body felt terrible. I met all the Stratton’s at the expo center to catch the bus at 4:00am. I’m super grateful I didn’t have to ride the bus or hang out at the start alone. We got to the start at 4:45am, but the race didn’t start till 6:30. I kept second guessing myself about everything.
My goal for the race was 1:45 (8:00/mile).
The gun went off and it was very dark. I brought a little flashlight so I could see my watch splits. Michelle and I ran together.
My legs felt so heavy and clunky. Our first mile split was 8:44. I hit the panic button. My thoughts started to go south.
Mile 2 split was 7:40. Oh crap….I’m going to fast. We finally got into a groove. We started to climb around mile 6 and Michelle dropped back. I thought for sure she was right in my tail.
I was feeling pressure that I needed to beat her. Silly. But I felt it. So I was running scared.
The last 2 miles took awhile, but I never felt like the wheels came off. I felt in control and kept the gas peddle down. I passed Jen Richards at mile 11 and continued to run scared. My mile 12 split was 7:26. I tried to figure out my splits to see if I could go sub 1:43. Fuzzy math.
I ran pass this random lady, Kristen, who was walking. I grabbed her arm and told her to run with me. This happened twice. We chatted for a second at the finish and she told me I was her guardian angel.
My legs were so heavy during that last stretch. I’ll admit that I was sad I had no family at the finish line. I waited for Michelle—Brook—Mel to finish. Mel gave me the biggest hug.
After everyone finished, we were sitting on the ground chilling. Michelle said the nicest things to me. “You are so mentally tough. You took off and never looked back.” “You look so pretty when you run.” She would never know how much those kind words meant to me.
I think I truly RACED this race. I pushed the limit from the beginning. It’s been 10 years since I’ve had a half marathon PR. That’s a lot of self doubt and heart break. 16 second PR today.
| 