Half-marathon

I ran my first half-marathon on November 1st. Tim ran it, too. Below are some (more like a lot of) thoughts about my race:

• The temperature dropped about 10 degrees during the race, it rained almost the entire time, and it was very windy. I was comfortable at the start of the race in my racing singlet and shorts, but I was freezing by the end. The conditions were definitely not optimal.

• Tim told me before the race that the course was pretty flat. He did the full marathon the previous 2 years, but since he had his Ironman 70.3 World Championship 2 weeks after the race, he opted for the half-marathon this year. After the race he admitted that the course was actually pretty hilly. I agreed with his more recent assessment.

• Before the race I was worried I'd go out too hard since I've never raced this distance and I haven't exactly had a lot of race experience in the past 7 years (only 2 prior races since college). Somehow I missed the first 4 mile-markers, so I really didn't know what any of my splits were or what pace I was running. I think it worked out for the best because I just ran based on how I felt, rather than obsessing about a pace.

• I ran with different people for the first 10K, but after that I was pretty much on my own. The wind was ridiculous, and being stuck in no-mans-land, I took quite a beating.

• A couple people who have seen the results of the race asked if Tim and I ran the race together since we crossed the finish line within a second of each other. Well, that definitely was not the case...

Tim missed a turn about half-a-mile from the finish line. Apparently the wind blew down a sign pointing in the direction of the finish, and since he couldn’t see the next runner in front of him, he just kept going straight. Tim realized he must have missed a turn after running a couple minutes in the wrong direction because he knew he should have already reached the end. So, he turned around and retraced his steps. At this point he knew his race was over. He was just trying to get to the end to see me finish.

It just so happened that Tim arrived at the turn he initially missed at the exact time that I reached it. One of the other racers must have stopped to put the sign back up because it was in place when I got there. When I saw Tim running toward me, I assumed he had already finished and had looped back to come cheer me on to the finish. He started running next to me and I asked him how much further I had. He told me less than a half-mile. Then he told me he had missed the turn.

I told him he could go ahead, that he didn’t need to wait for me. But he didn’t take off from there, like he no doubt could have. Instead, he ran just a step or two ahead of me to help pull me to the finish, encouraging me the whole way with, “You’re doing awesome, Hon! “ and “You’re almost there, you can do it!”

When we reached the finishing stretch lined with spectators and other members of the running community, many of whom recognize Tim as the winner of the first City of Oaks Marathon two years ago, my husband shortened his stride to let me cross the line before him. (Yes, Tim racked up some brownie points that day.)

I know, I know. This is not a flattering photo. Rain-soaked running shorts are not a look that anyone should wear, but there wasn't much I could do about it.

• My goal was to break 1 hour and 30 minutes. My best case scenario goal was 1:27. I thought the weather alone would rule out a best case scenario, but somehow I ran 1:26:27, an average pace of 6:36/mile. I was ecstatic with my time and extremely surprised with my 9th place overall female. I won a nifty running vest for getting third in my age group and a local news channel showed footage of Tim and I crossing the finish line together. Even though I felt sick to my stomach for the rest of the day and my legs were very sore for a couple days, I had a lot of fun!