First 13.1...check! First Trail Race...check!
I never thought I could finish a 10K...much less a Half Marathon...but I have!!
I had a running stint after Ian was born where I completed 2 sprint triathlons. However, I never really liked the running leg of the race. I just kept telling myself, I am just not a runner. Jason, Mr. "I can run 7 min miles like it's nothing and place in my age group every time I race", always told me it's mental. I always told him, "my mind must be really strong then!" I could talk my self into stopping in a heartbeat.
Back in July, I decided it was time to get back into it. After two babies, I had a little excessive baggage in the abdominal area that I did not like. So I started running with some ladies from my church. We started meeting at Dorman 2-3 times a week. There is a nice little route that is 2 miles around the campus. It is not an easy 2 miles either. Dorman's campus has 1 lengthy climb and a shorter steeper climb. It has been great for training! When I started in July, I couldn't make it around Dorman once. By the time September rolled around, I was running around Dorman 4 times, for a total of 8 miles! Granted my pace was/is slow, 9-10 min miles, but hey, I was making it!
One of my training buddies, Starla, and my husband convinced me to sign up for the Camp Croft Half Marathon on November 12th. I had not been running long on the road, much less trails. However, I decided to go for it! So, Starla and I started meeting at the Southside trails off of highway 56 on Saturdays and would log 3-4 miles at first. However, Ian started soccer and since the games were at 9am on Saturday, our Saturday morning trail runs ceased. So, we had to start coordinating our long trail runs with Jason during the week so that he would be here to watch the kids. We started meeting at Croft on Fridays around 4:00. We would get anywhere from 8-11 miles running different parts of the course. It was TOUGH. With trail running, you have to watch every step. I run about 11/12 min miles on the trails. We had our falls, but running through the woods seeing wild turkeys, deer, beautiful leaves, and stopping to eat wild muscadines was so much fun!
Finally, the week of the race was here. Starla and I, and our friend Wally, who also ran the race, went out to Croft on Monday for one last long run. We got in 8 miles and I felt as though I was ready...or at least as ready as I was going to be! I ran one more time on Thursday...3 miles in my neighborhood. I ran an 8:48 pace! I was so excited to have a 5K PR right before the half.
Race Day: I got up and ate a granola bar and drank a little bit of milk. I was so nervous. I had never done that distance before. It was 32 degrees. I was freezing, but I knew I would warm up fast. I started out in the back because I knew I would be one of the slower ones. I was ok with that...I was just out there to a.)prove that I could finish 13.1 and b.)to have fun! I started out conservative because I knew that I typically start out too fast and get burned out. The first 4.75 miles were tough...very hilly and windy. I knew this already since we had run it several times. I did have to power walk up one or 2 of the steeper hills. Stopped at the first aid station for 15 seconds or so and drank some gatorade and then was off again. The next 3 miles or so were so nice and my favorite part of the course. It was a nice wide/flat trail and mostly downhill to the lake! :)
I stayed with these 2 other guys most of the race. They were running a good pace for me. We crossed a section of the river and made our way to the 2nd aid station. The guys I had been with moved through the station before I did, but I caught back up with them. I didn't really like being out there all by myself and was afraid I might get lost. Well, somewhere around mile 9 or 10, we did get lost. I had not run this part of the course but once or twice and one of those times, Starla and I got turned around as well. The 2 guys that I was with and myself probably lost a min or 2 trying to decide which way to go. Finally, we decided to go left and after awhile saw another pink ribbon and knew we were on the right track.
We came up on the last aid station at mile 11.5. I was like only 1.5 miles to go...I can do this. I don't know if it was because I was so tired or if it was because I had not done the full 13.1 miles, but that last 1.5 miles seemed to last FOREVER! It was not quite as hilly as the first part of the race, but it was definitely not easy. Jason, who finished like half an hour before me, came back and found me with like a mile to go. He ran behind me encouraging me along the way. He kept telling me "only a half mile left, only a half mile left". It was so sweet of him to encourage me. However, I told him to quit talking after it seemed like we had been a half mile and then some and the finish line was no where in site! haha
Finally, we got to "the last hill" as Jason said and there was a guy yelling PUSH IT! I was like I have nothing to push! I made it 3/4th the way up the hill and then had to power walk for several feet. After that, I ran the rest of the way and finished in 2 hours and 43 min! Pretty slow and I was a little disappointed that I didn't finish in under 2.5 hours...BUT...I DID FINISH!
The race was very well organized and there was lots of giveaways at the end! Jason and I ended up with several nice glasses with the CCHM logo, a gift certificate to a restaurant, and a $20 gift certificate for gas! It was a lot of fun and I hope to do it again next year! Here are some pictures from the day, provided by the race director, Seth Novak:
I stayed with these 2 other guys most of the race. They were running a good pace for me. We crossed a section of the river and made our way to the 2nd aid station. The guys I had been with moved through the station before I did, but I caught back up with them. I didn't really like being out there all by myself and was afraid I might get lost. Well, somewhere around mile 9 or 10, we did get lost. I had not run this part of the course but once or twice and one of those times, Starla and I got turned around as well. The 2 guys that I was with and myself probably lost a min or 2 trying to decide which way to go. Finally, we decided to go left and after awhile saw another pink ribbon and knew we were on the right track.
We came up on the last aid station at mile 11.5. I was like only 1.5 miles to go...I can do this. I don't know if it was because I was so tired or if it was because I had not done the full 13.1 miles, but that last 1.5 miles seemed to last FOREVER! It was not quite as hilly as the first part of the race, but it was definitely not easy. Jason, who finished like half an hour before me, came back and found me with like a mile to go. He ran behind me encouraging me along the way. He kept telling me "only a half mile left, only a half mile left". It was so sweet of him to encourage me. However, I told him to quit talking after it seemed like we had been a half mile and then some and the finish line was no where in site! haha
Finally, we got to "the last hill" as Jason said and there was a guy yelling PUSH IT! I was like I have nothing to push! I made it 3/4th the way up the hill and then had to power walk for several feet. After that, I ran the rest of the way and finished in 2 hours and 43 min! Pretty slow and I was a little disappointed that I didn't finish in under 2.5 hours...BUT...I DID FINISH!
The race was very well organized and there was lots of giveaways at the end! Jason and I ended up with several nice glasses with the CCHM logo, a gift certificate to a restaurant, and a $20 gift certificate for gas! It was a lot of fun and I hope to do it again next year! Here are some pictures from the day, provided by the race director, Seth Novak:
1 comments:
Yeah! Great job! That's such a great accomplishment!
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