Shamrock 1/2 Marathon

Saturday was the Shamrock 1/2 Marathon that I have been training for.  I have been training hard for this race, luckily the cortisone kicked in, and I was able to kick it up a notch these last several weeks.  This was an awesome opportunity because the course was literally right in my backyard, and when you live where I do, not a whole lot happens out here, so I had to take advantage.

All week long I had been nervously watching the weather, because they had been predicting rain and high winds for Saturday.  And sure enough, they had issued a high wind warning that was to take effect 10am Saturday morning.  But if everything went "according to plan", I'd finish right around 10am.  My goal was to finish in less than 2 hours, which would have shaved 10 minutes off my old 1/2 marathon time.  The course was extremely hilly, with the majority being uphill, with little bits of down sprinkled throughout.  I was fairly confident I could get in under 2 hours, even with the hills, but if I had to fight the wind too, I was nervous it would zap all my energy, but unfortunately I can't control the weather.

Cam dropped me off at the starting line just a few minutes before the start, and he and the kids planned to come back and see me finish.  It was a little windy when I got there, but not bad at all, so I had hopes that it would be calmer than the weather people were predicting.

When the race started, I was near the back of the pack, which meant it was a crowded for a little while, but I eventually weaved my way through the crowd and found my groove.  My goals were to 1) stay at or slightly under 9 min/miles, and pick up the pace as much as I could on the downhills and 2) try to pass people as many people as I could (sounds cruel, but it was more of way to keep myself motivated than a need to "beat" people).

So I just kept an eye on my pace, and would focus on the person in front of me, and slowly reel them in.

I had so much fun!  I was holding a challenging yet sustainable pace, but managed to have fun too.  I was focused the whole time on staying on pace and just enjoying myself, I barely even noticed the wind.  I kept telling myself to just get to mile 10, then it was nearly downhill from there to the finish and I could really pick up the pace.  I was eating Swedish Fish every couple of miles for fuel, which worked, but man, when your running hard, the last thing you want to do is chew and chew.  So although it worked, I think I need to experiment with something less chewy from now on.  Around mile 9 my legs were really starting to get tired, but those Swedish Fish must have kicked in not long after that because I just kept going, no problem.  Just as I came over the last hill at mile 10, I saw my friend Marcy (who is an amazing runner, she could run circles around me, that is training for a 50 mile ultra marathon in May) who I have been doing some of my training with, she surprised me and came out to cheer.  It was so awesome, I was yelling to her and she was yelling and cheering for me, so awesome!  It was such a pick me up, and loved seeing a familiar face out on the course.

I cruised into the finish, passing a few last people, and was able to finish faster than I thought I could.  I'm not sure what my official time is but it's about 1 hour 55 minutes.  I ended up averaging an 8:45min/mile, and my last one was even sub 8min/mile.  Cam and the kids were there right at the finish, and it was so awesome that they came out and fought the wind!

Waving to Cam and the kids, coming into the finish (running pictures are never very flattering)

With the girls after I finished.  Notice the hair in the girls face, a testament to how windy it was  :)
Also, like my arm warmers?  They are actually a pair of tube socks I cut up to keep my arms warm.  I just had to wear green for the holiday, and this tank top was the only cheap, green shirt I could find.  So I had to improvise to keep myself warm, yet festive :)

After I finished, and got a chance to talk to Cam and Marcy, they both told me it was pretty windy the whole time, somehow I must have zoned out enough to not really notice how strong the winds were. :)

This was the funnest I've had at a race, and I'm glad I was able to enjoy myself, and cut 15 minutes off my half marathon time :)

Now I gotta rest my legs for a few days, then get back to running, because I've signed up for the Utah Valley Marathon in June!  I've wanted to do a marathon for years, but this darn hip has held me back.  So I'm hoping and praying that I'll be able to finish this training cycle, and finally get a full marathon under my belt.