Today was the day. The day I run a half marathon with very little training under my belt. Not just any half mary, a half on seriously hilly trails with inches of snow on the ground. I haven’t run over 10 miles since October, so really what could go wrong…
The Run for Regis used to be called the Buckeye Trail 50K, they have summer race counterpart. But this year they changed the name and moved the course to another part of the Buckeye Trail. It has a few options, 50K, marathon and half marathon. There are 2 loops, an 8ish and a 5ish. I say ish because this race is way over. I ran 13.76 miles, not 13.1. That is a little irritating, they could easily make the course the right distance by cutting out a few field runs. But hey we all ran the same so it doesn’t really matter. I got up bright and early to make sure I got to Ledges Park in enough time to pick up my packet between 6am -6:45. It was seriously foggy out, so when I left my house at 5:40 I was really nervous that I didn’t leave enough time. I couldn’t see more than a few feet in front of me on the road, but I managed to get here in plenty of time. Registration was in a little shelter house and it had 2 fireplaces so it was nice and cozy. I knew it wasn’t going to be too cold today, so I dressed appropriately. I wore a tank top/bra top as my base layer, a wicking long sleeve shirt over that, and a waterproof vest. On bottom I have on a pair of compression undies that are shorts, then my lighter weight winter running pants. 1 pair of wools sock, trail shoes, cheap thin gloves and a knit hat finished off the outfit. I wasn’t sure if I should wear my yak trax. I knew that either way I would probably end up regretting my decision on parts of the run. I opted not to wear them b/c I was afraid it would be really muddy and they’d get stuck, but it was a bad choice.
The half marathoners started on the 8 mile loop. It was a mass start and we had to run across about 1/2 mile grassy field, half marathoners went to the left for the 8 mile loop, the other runners to the right for the 5 mile loop. I was glad to get the harder/longer loop over with first. After the grass, you get to run on a dirt path for a little while, but it was a muddy mess. Then it’s down a rocky hill and into the trails. We were literally running on solid ice. Every step you took, your foot would slip out from under you a little bit. I felt like I was just flopping around everywhere. I kept trying to reign myself in, concentrate on my core and my form, but it was no use. I just couldn’t get good footing. I planned to walk up most of the hills and I did, but you had to walk down the hills b/c you had no choice or you would fall on your butt. It was very treacherous out there. I made it 6 miles before I fell down. I felt very out of control coming down the hills and I was jogging down one and just got going too fast and my feet, both of them, slipped out from under me and I landed flat on my bum. It hurt! But I was more embarrassed than hurt and jumped back up quickly. I could feel my tail bone stinging with each step from there on. I seriously considered stopping after the first loop, but I didn’t want to come back here and report that I didn’t finish! So, I stopped for a few minutes at the aid station between the loops, ate some fig newtons and oreos (power running food), drank some water, sucked it up and got back out there. The second loop was okay for awhile, but around mile 11 I was just OVER it. I wanted to be done so bad. My feet were wet and I felt like I was running on carpet. I know I will have some bad blisters tomorrow. But I just focused on my music, put one foot in front of the other and got it done. When my watch rang the signal for 13 miles, I was nowhere near the finish line. That bummed me out. I ran 13.1 in 2:48. I finished in 3:01. The top female finished in 2:15 if that tells you anything. It was tough out there and lonely! I was pretty much by myself the whole time since they only let in 250 runners I walked a lot after the 13.1 mark b/c the last part was literally traversing boulders and I had to crawl at some points! At the end they had some yummy chili that really hit the spot and you get an awesome Brooks shirts if you finish. Good shirts and pancakes are the only reason I run.
Here I am modeling the shirt. I call this modeling look Blue Aluminum, don’t I just ooze badass runnerness:
This pose is The naughty Burro:
I am going to be so sore tomorrow. But I feel very satisfied that I completed this run even if I cursed it the whole time I was out there. Now it is time to relax as much as I can with a 9 month old. Now it’s time to start training for the Lexington KY half mary in March and the Cleveland half in May. I am really really hoping to break 2 hours at those races.
