Diva Half Marathon

I can check South Carolina off the list! It almost didn't happen. The night before the race I wasn't sure it was going to happen. On Saturday I started to feel sick, so much so that I spent two hours sleeping in the car while everyone else played pickleball. I took some medicine and drank two chai lattes to soothe my throat and prayed that I'd feel better in the morning. It's not every weekend you get to do a destination race and I was going to be extremely disappointed if I couldn't run.

Well, Sunday morning I felt better, albeit not 100%, but felt that I could run. Like all my other spring races, this was a fun race and I didn't have a time goal. Since this was a diva race, I wanted to dress the part. This was the first time I've ever worn any sort of skirt in a race, but I highly recommend sparkle skirts. They are lightweight and made to be worn over running shorts. You can hardly tell you have on anything extra when you're running, which is important when you're running in hot weather.

The race started out well. This was the first time we'd stayed in a hotel within walking distance to the start, and it was a very nice perk. We were able to get to the starting line easily with no hassle, so we had plenty of time to get a good starting spot in the corral. My mom started with the 5Kers, then we were off! The first few miles were shady and it wasn't too hot yet. I felt pretty good until Mile 6- then I started having stomach problems. "Bathroom problems" are one of my worst fears of a race, but I wasn't about to stop for that.

Miles 7-8 were hard because there wasn't as much shade and it was getting hotter. The first stretch of Mile 9 I would say was the worst part of the course because it was along a busy highway and there was also no shade. But that only lasted for a short bit, then we began to weave through neighborhoods and scenic areas with trees and SHADE!! By the end of the race, I could tell I was not feeling my best. My stomach still hurt and I was having flu-like symptoms: feeling overheated, headache, cold sweats, etc. I didn't start to feel really bad until the last few miles. My dad jumped in to run the last mile with me, which was good encouragement to finish strong.

Overall, a very fun destination race (despite not feeling well)! The course was mostly flat and scenic and the bling at the end was being handed out by hot firefighters. Totally didn't know that was coming up, or I would've had my camera ready. They had champagne at the end and I got a boa and tiara. And the best part about the end- again the hotel was RIGHT there. We were able to watch other racers finishing from our hotel.

I finished in 2:07:29. Overall pace: 9:43 min/mile.
The first half of the race was faster than the second half.
6 mile split 55:58  (pace: 9:19 min/mile)

*The next day, driving back, I came down with the full-fledged FLU! So basically the reason I was so miserable and felt so bad during the last half of the race was because I was running while sick.

Rock N Roll Raleigh

A couple weekends ago I ran the inaugural Rock N Roll half marathon in Raleigh, NC.

It started out with a road trip with the bestie for our drive down to North Carolina. It was an easy 3 hour drive fueled by Starbucks, Taylor Swift, and sour gummy candy. We were staying with Tristan's friend Connie, so we met up with her and Katie, then got dinner, and got to bed early.

We all got dropped off at the start a few minutes before the race. Then we had to wait in really long porta-potty lines, where we met these guys who were running the marathon without training:

We passed them around mile 1 and wished them good luck. I would never want to attempt that! Tristan and I started in corral 6 and stayed together for the first 7 miles. The course was VERY hilly. It was up and down hills the entire time. None of the hills were HUGE, it was just constant up and down. Tristan took off after mile 7, and then I got passed by the 2 hour pace group, which was kind of depressing. Not that I was expecting to make it in under 2 hours, but my goal is always to get as close to 2 as possible.

Weirdly, I don't remember a whole lot about the race besides the hills. It's funny because when I ran my first half marathon, I remembered what I was thinking/feeling at EVERY mile. I wondered back then if I'd ever get to the point where the miles would just roll by without me noticing. I think I'm finally there. Each mile may still be difficult, but I'm not thinking about it as much.

Actually, I had a lot on my mind during this race regarding job/life decisions. It was nice to be able to have my mind completely free to think through some things and decide what I want next in life. I had a lot of uninterrupted time to let my mind wonder and think about some of the different opportunities that have come up in my life.

So I don't have a whole lot to say about the last 6 miles, except that after a couple of big hills at the end, I made it to the finish! Also, doing a step class the day before (which works the calves), then doing a race with lots of hills (which works the calves) makes for very sore calf muscles! I was definitely limping around at work the next day (which is not unusual for me after a race, haha).

My time: 2:07:16
Pace: 9:43 min/mile
Splits: 5k: 28:27     10k: 57:32     10 mile: 1:34:43

Tristan and I waited for Connie and Katie to finish the race, then we all went out to lunch at Bad Daddy's. They had some of the best burgers I've ever had. It was literally one of the juiciest burgers ever. If I go back to Raleigh, I want to eat there again! Good ending to a good race day.

Signs of Spring

One of my favorite spring/summer smells is fresh-cut grass. Today as I was running, there were kids playing outside and people mowing the lawn. It was a good sign that spring is finally here. Warmer weather and longer days are ahead!

I always start to get a little depressed by the end of winter. I love snow and skiing, but it gets dark so quickly and there's not a whole lot to do outside. I love sunshine and being outside and going on hikes. It's nice to be able to run in shorts and t-shirt and feel the air on your skin.

After a long winter, I'm glad that spring is finally here!