1/2 marathon results

On March 14th I ran 13.1 miles in the Shamrock'n Half Marathon. I have to say I did better then I thought I would. I ran 13.1 miles in 2:20:41. The Shamrock'n website says I finished 2527 of 4127 participants and my pace was 10:44/M. My goal was to run the whole thing without walking and I DID IT!! I have to say this entire experience was probably the hardest task I have ever taken on and I'm glad I did it.

I started my race day waking up at 5:50am and to top it off it was the first day of day light savings. My pre-race meal was an egg and a piece of toast. I'm not a early morning eater so i had a hard time choking it down but I needed something in my stomach. We got to Raley Field at 7:20am and did a quick stop at the bathroom which had a huge line (no surprise for a ladies room). I guess everyone one had the same idea as me. It was a beautiful day with clear skys and low 70's for the high of the day, but it was FREEZING at 7:30 in the morning. Surprisingly I was not nervous for the race. During my training the longest I ran was 11 miles and if I could do 11 I figured 2 more would not be hard. I just wanted it to be over so i could sit on the grass in Raley Field and relax.

Running is hard! There was a point during the race when I pasted mile 8 and the runners ahead of me were on their way back and they were passing the 11 mile marker, I wanted so bad to be them. Once I finally pasted that 11 mile marker it was a big milestone for me. For one that was the mile marker I was so jealous of and two, 11 miles was the longest I have ever ran. At that point I felt my body loose it's energy. Those last 2 miles were the fastest and longest. But once I went through the finish line I was so happy, so happy I made it and so happy I could stop running! I had a couple thoughts at that moment. . . there is no way I could run 13.1 miles in addition to the 13.1 miles I just ran and why in hell are they making us climb stadium stairs!!

Now with the race day in my past and no pain in my feet and toes I am thinking of attempting a full marathon . . . . just thinking . . . maybe in the next 10 years.