I just ran my second half marathon! For all you non-runners that was 13.1 miles. I PR'ed, (Personal record) which isn't tough, since this was only my second half marathon! My official time was 2:26:06. A full 8 minutes faster then my first. I was pretty excited.
Emil (My uncle) flew down from NY to run with me and Chris, so we started off 3 strong, but we all got separated along the way! Emil was pretty much just feeling the race and wanted to run faster, so we were separate early, before mile 2. Which was fine, he had trained hard for this and wanted to have 'his' race. I knew from our training runs that he wasn't going to be waiting at the finish line for us too long and he wasn't; he finished about 12 minutes in front of me. I tend to be very conservative on these long runs, too afraid that I will burn out if I start out to fast.
Chris and I stayed together until mile 7 then we got separated at a water station. The water stations were very unorganized and chaotic. Instead of having like 10 tables, they only had about 3 and there were 15,000 runners! So it was tough to get in and out of the stations. At mile 7 I needed water, pretty bad too, because I skipped a few water stations because I just didn't want to deal with them. So by mile 7, I really, really needed water. Chris wanted the powerade, which was a table over from me. So I grabbed my water and ran to the right to get out of the way of the runners coming in for water, I turned, I saw Chris coming away from his table, so I slowed my pace a bit to wait up for him and when I turned again he was gone! We had just talked about becoming separated and Chris had told me not to worry, that if we got separated he would run ahead at a pace he knew I wasn't running and scan the crowd and find me, so I just slowed my pace a bit and waited for him to find me. Well, from mile 7-8 I must have looked like a lost puppy! I kept looking and looking thinking, that I couldn't believe we got separated. At mile 8, I got myself back into the race and thought, well if we don't find each other its okay. By mile 9 I had resigned myself to just finishing solo.
Chris however, kept looking for me until mile 12!! He was so worried that us getting separated was going to ruin the race for me. He ran ahead, waited, scanned the crowd, ran back a bit, waited, scanned the crowd, ran ahead again and did this till mile 12!! Poor guy, but what a sweetheart!! At mile 12 he looked at his watch and thought that there was no way that he wanted to finish after 2:30 so at that point he just gave up and headed to the finish line. He finished at 2:27 so he was just a minute after me!!
Then between mile 9-12 the hills started!! Man!! Who does that?! At this point, I wanted to meet the person that designed this course and have a little talk with him or her!! I just kept putting my chin to my chest and running forward! At mile 12 there was a KILLER hill! I think the majority of people on this hill were walking! I mean come on...at mile 12..you put a hill like that!!??? It felt good when I got to the top of that hill, running and having the supporters at the top yelling things like 'way to kill that hill' Put a smile on my face and gave me energy to go forward and hopefully NOT face another hill!!!
Soon after that hill, I was brought low by a massive calf cramp! I had NO IDEA that a cramp like that could actually cause you to quit running! I just figured I was tougher then any pain! I did keep running, well sort of, it was like a run hop or a hop run! I just kept thinking, man, if my other calf cramps, I am going to fall on my face! So I just slowed my pace and hop ran until the cramp eased, but after that experience, I was a bit afraid to push myself too hard, good thing I was past mile 12!
Then at 2:24 as I was rounding the end of the race and already in the finisher chute, the winner of the marathon came running down the marathon finisher chute, which was separate, but right next to the half marathoners chute. He was proceeded by the bicycle escort and the crowds were cheering and I loved that, I was so in awe of his speed. Here he was finishing a whole marathon in the time it took me to finish a half. So that gave me some more energy, and the signs 800 yards, 600 yards, then the finish line came into view and I knew I was going to PR and I picked it up at that point! I was so excited that I was going to PR that I was almost crying.
After the finish I started to think, how the heck am I going to find Chris and Emil?! I was scanning the crowd, knowing that both of them finished before me. But my legs were both cramping up really bad. I was almost hobbling. I picked up my finishers shirt, made it through the food line and I had my head down and I hear someone say 'excuse me, do you know where I could find Susan "? I look up and there is Emil!! LOL And right after that we look up and there is Chris coming through the food line. We were all amazed that we found each other so easily!
Let me tell you, I was hurting, my legs were cramping I was having other issues, but there was so many things to be happy about. I am still smiling. It was a great race! Despite being separated, dealing with the hills and having leg cramps. I loved it and I am looking forward to my next race, which is in Seabrook Tx on March 14. (near Galveston). Chris is running what the race calls 'the pelican' he is running a half on Saturday with me and a half on Sunday (without me!!! NO WAY that I can do too half marathons back to back like that). After that one, I may or may not run one in Dallas in April, but I am definitely running one on Long Island in May and in Seattle in June!
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