I'm still alive.
Yeah, this doesn't sound like such a good deal, but there were a couple of minor negotiations with God during that 2 hours and 53 minutes and 5 seconds of my life Saturday morning.
"Dear God, please get me to the finish line in under 2:45. Okay....dear God, please get me to the finish line with no broken bones or fractures or sprains. Okay....dear God, please just get me to the finish line."
I kid.
A little.
The last 2 miles actually weren't the hardest. They were actually between about 7.5 and 11.
Very tough mental struggle, and conversations with myself (not out loud. Okay, well, maybe).
It had started misting when my little running group and I were about halfway around the track....then turned into a light rain....then steady rain. By that point, I was tired. My legs were cramping something fierce. I was wet. And cold. And tired.
Then, I finally hit mile 11. Okay. 11. 2.1 miles. That's a normal run around my neighborhood. Go!
And go, I did. Well, kind of. My last 2 miles were the slowest, probably (I haven't really checked) and had the highest ratio of "walk" in my "run/ walk" routine. But I made it. Chris, his mom & his sister were all at the 13 mile mark cheering me on. And I crossed the finish line, just a little past my 2:45 goal.
I rested awhile. Cheered my mom across (just 26 minutes after me!), and we walked back to the car. Well, everyone else did. I kind of hobbled, as the fronts of my hip muscles felt like they were rapidly disintegrating. Chris, mom & I had a quick lunch at Applebees, we drove home, and Mom & I proceeded to do pretty much nothing for the rest of the night (outside of showers and a quick dinner).
I woke up yesterday not feeling too bad except for my knees...and the rest of my body was pretty stiff, but moving. My knees are feeling a little better today so I'm not really worried, but I will definitely be investing in some knee compressions for my next race.
Overall - would I do it again?
Definitely. Can't get a high like that anywhere else. :)
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