I ran my 1st half marathon at RNR AZ in January 2010 so this race is my favorite for emotional 'goal setting' reasons. I basically had taken the summer off from training due to laziness and the fact that I was fried from the AZ heat AKA Hades! I ran a pitiful 5K race in mid-September and then hastily prepared for the Lincoln YMCA 1/2 Marathon at South Mountain in late October. I got hit hard by the rolling hills on this course and said, "AYFKM?!" throughout this race. I finished the race, albiet barely, but after that, I decided I better get my $H!T together since I had to defend my crown (I mean, beat my previous record) in January. About that time, Jeff, the P.I.T.A. from Monte Vista, emailed & begged me to train (with) him. We started training together the first week of November. It is a great partnership because we run at a similar pace and both like to run in the morning. Unfortunately I have to endure his ridiculous attempts at humor and other unmentionable habits but I am like Mother Theresa so it works!
We trained well in November and most of December. I ran 2 races (10K and 10-miles) in November and Jeff ran a half marathon in early December. Then Jeff starts to complain (loudly!) about his calves and defaults on this race. He leaves me hanging until we are carpooling to the light rail. Then he drops me off along with a stranger (Meghan, teacher at his school) running her first race. Jeff did let me borrow his Garmin so that was a treat. We walked to the start line, made the usual small talk, and I told her that she was not allowed to pass me at any point in the race. She agreed as I had shared numerous race secrets with her!
I made my way to corral 9 (woohoo, moved up from #12 last year!) and excitedly moved forward as each corral crossed the start line. I tried to run smoothly instead of the usual 'sprint out of the gate' and the crowd at the start definitely slowed me down. I made up time and stayed pretty steady for awhile. I hit the hill at mile 9 and slowed down. I need to train with hills again! I finished strong at 2:12, thank goodness for the crowds along the way. I enjoyed the Post-Race party and I am always impressed with the number of people who run the half or full marathon. Great accomplishment! Next year...running the full in 2012!! :D
I respectfully take umbrage at several of the comments in this post. PITA???? Begged you? Posting about a race three months after it's over? Thx!! :)
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