Half-Marathoner!

It's over. I did it! I am a half-marathoner! I ran it in 3:07:20, which is way slower than the vast majority of people (just an observation, I'm quite proud!), but was just right for me. It's also technically a PR, and I'm excited because it's my first! In terms of the race, I had three goals in mind:

A. 3:00
B. 3:15
C. Just finish

As I watched the three hour mark pass, I just cranked it up and told myself to get in under 3:15 (the race started at 8:00 and awards were handed out at 11:15). I would have been happy with any finish, but I've got to confess that I'm quite pleased that I didn't have to default to goal C.

The race was great, and I met a few awesome people along the way. I wore my CamelBak, as I need water way more frequently than the average Joe. Aid stations were situated at 1.5, 2.5, 5, 7, 9, 10.5, and somewhere near 12, and they were a sight for sore eyes. I downed water and Gatorade going through each of them. No asthma or allergy problems, thank heavens!, and the weather was exceptional - around 60 degrees and overcast, though a bit humid. Way better than the forecast of 80 degrees and thundershowers.

Here's a brief overview of the events of the race and my thought process:

1: What the HELL am I doing running this thing? I have 12.1 miles left. I am the dumbest person in the world.
2: Met a cool girl from Vermont, made me feel better about life and running. Started a bit too fast, so I eased up and said goodbye to her. Also had to hit a toilet real bad, but there was no way in hell I was losing time on the lines. I decided to wait for the next one (mile 5).
3: Who the hell thought it would be a good idea to put this ginormous hill here? You think it's over, turn a corner, and there it goes again. I saw someone else struggling up and said to her "What goes up must come down." She flew ahead of me.
4: Where the hell is that toilet? I need to go something fierce.
5: Sweet lord, salvation! And no lines. I was in and out in 2 minutes, took some Gatorade, and powered up the next hill.
6: Met Lily and Kristin, two lovely women who gave me moral support and company for about 2 miles. They are sassy and lovely. Makes me forget about the pain.
7: We've passed the halfway point! Hit an aid station and walk up a long hill to give my feet a bit of a rest.
8: What the hell am I doing? I can't do this. Shut up, of course you can!
9: Insert a lot of mumbling and cursing about the cruel person who thought it would be a good idea to put a mile long hill this close to the end.
10: I didn't even see this marker. At this point I'm run/walking. My back is aching and my feet are cramping.
11: Met a nice woman from Florida who didn't have a chance to do any hill work. Poor flat-lander. She was a powerhouse!
12: Just one more mile right? I think I'm going to die. Okay, not really. But even though I know that I am so close, I just can't even fathom finishing. My right foot is cramping something awful.
13: 0.1 miles to go. This is where I feel like an Amazon warrior. SPRINT.
13.1: DONE! So smiley. And Lily and Kristin stuck around to watch me finish. They were so sweet!

Lessons to take away with me:

1. I don't really need to pee much when running long distances, likely because I sweat so much. The more you sweat, the more salt you lose. My forehead was like the shore of the Dead Sea. Maybe invest in some salt tabs or something.
2. I sweat a lot and dehydrate fairly easily. CamelBak is a good idea for longer distances for me, and I'm quite glad I decided to run with it. Aid stations every ~2 miles is not enough fluid for me.
3. After a race, I can't eat immediately. I downed an entire water bottle, cracked open a Gatorade, and tried to eat an orange. The orange made me gag. Stick to the fluids for the first 20 minutes, then go for a banana.
4. Stick with running socks. In fact, invest in more. I picked up two pairs of SmartWool running socks yesterday at an LL Bean outlet (they're somehow defective and thus very cheap, but can't find any flaws), and they were the most wonderful things I've put on my feet in quite some time. They weren't lying when they said no blisters.
5. Running with people makes the time go by so much nicer. I wish I had friends or knew people who ran a snail's pace - it would be nice to have someone to pass the time with. Though Lily, Kristin, and a couple of other kind folk were there with me part of the way, I spent most of the time running alone.
   

I'm in the middle, flagged by Lily on the left and Kristin on the right.

The aid stations were well stocked even for the super slow people (i.e. me), and the volunteers were great. It was especially nice to get cheered on by kids who were volunteering. So cute! My only complaint about the race is that for the last two miles, when few people were left on the course, there were no volunteers or police officers to help with traffic (the roads were only partially closed). Other than that, it was an awesome inaugural race, both for Worcester and myself!

I will take a day or two of rest, and then back to the old grindstone. Gotta keep moving!