Saturday, April 18, 2009

SLC 1/2 Marathon

It was pretty surreal this morning, running past the finish line and thinking how last June I couldn't even run 5 minutes straight without feeling like I was going to die... and here I was running 13.1 miles. We got an early start this morning (me, my sister, Ashleigh, my youngest sister, Whitney, and Whitney's best friend, Mallory.) We woke up around 4:50am and parked at Gateway and took the TRAX up to the starting line. We had about 45 minutes to go to the bathroom, stretch and warm-up. We were all a little wired. In fact, one guy came up to us and told Whit and Mal that he wanted to run with "these ladies." Assuming from their dance moves that they would be a riot to run with. Then he asked what their pace was and they both looked at him and said "We don't know." Then he walked away pretty quickly after that. I guess we weren't serious enough for this guy. My friend, Amber, met us a couple minutes later and at 7am the buzzer went off and it was race time. The first mile my knee started aching and I thought "Oh no. How am I going to make it another 12?!!" Thankfully though the 4 ibuprofen I took 30 minutes before kicked in and I didn't really start feeling pain until about mile 8. At mile 10 2 of my online friends, Leslie and Heidi, were there cheering me on. It was a great boost and definitely much needed at that point. Around mile 11 my hip really started to hurt. I pushed through as much as I could but eventually had to walk. There was a hill we had to go up from about mile 11 to mile 12 and it seemed to make my hip worse, which was frustrating. I didn't want to have to walk too much, but the pain started getting worse. When I hit mile 12 I got a second wind, knowing I was only 1 mile away from the finish line. So I picked it up and tried to push harder than I had the last couple miles. I LOVED running down Gateway. The crowd screaming and music blasting made me so excited and gave me that extra oomph I needed to finish strong. I almost had tears in my eyes running that last stretch. It was awesome. I crossed the finish line at 2:22. I was a little sad just because I was running around 10 min/miles for the first half of the route (and even had a couple faster miles) and was hoping to keep it up, but by the end I was just glad to finish. I told my sister "At least I beat the fastest person on the Biggest Loser!" I actually think I was probably a little faster because after I crossed the mat at the start, it took me a good two minutes to get going because there were a lot of people we were weaving through. Well, at least I have a time to beat now for my next half! After the race we all got massages (mine wasn't that great but better than nothing.) Then we went out to lunch at IHOP. We were all stinky and making multiple bathroom runs, as our digestive tracts were starting to function again. ;) The drugs I took have worn off now and both my knees are hurting pretty badly. I'm really grateful though that I was able to make it all the way through. After I finished my first race ever in 2004 (5 mile race in Moab) I told myself I would NEVER run a race that long again. My first thought after this race, even though my hip was hurting was "I can't wait to sign up for another one." So, I guess I've come a long way these last couple years and I hope I just keep getting faster and stronger. Thanks to all of you for your well wishes. It really meant a lot.

(Notice the Ethiopian guy on the right in the background. He had just won the marathon. Amazing to think someone can run a marathon in the time it took me to run half of one!)


Can you guess which one doesn't look like the others? Yes, I think my toenail will be coming off very soon. It actually looks worse in person but you get the picture.

17 comments:

Nurse Heidi said...

You GO GIRL!! I'll post your course picture in a day or so. I wish I could have come up and met you at the expo with Leslie. We'll for sure get the running girls together again some time soon.

Iliana said...

You're impressive! Good job, your one mentally tough chick to keep going when your knees suck. And love how Josh has had it in the first pic... sometimes being the spectator watching the kids is more trying for me than actually being the athlete :) Guess I need to have a little of your motivation rub off on me so I won't have to be the one with the kiddos :)

Shellie said...

Congratulations! You are a star.

Leslie said...

Way to go Jamie! If you want another half, a bunch of us are running the Hobblecreek Half Marathon in August - GREAT race! Registration starts May 1st and will fill up in a few days.
http://srcevents.com/hobblecreek/

Jen and Tyson said...

YEA!!! Good for you!!! :) You are super women for making it all that way even with pains! AMAZING! You should be so proud of yourself!!

Becky said...

Way to go, Jamie!! I too am so impressed, especially for running with pain! Yay for you! That's wonderful. And it's good to see you wanting to do another so soon after finishing this one! I agree w/ Leslie--Hobblecreek was my 1st and only half, but it was still my favorite! ;0) I loved it! So if you're looking for a good one, sign up for that one!

Becky (aka SmileyMama ;0)

peter said...

Congrats! You're awesome! It feels great, doesn't it? Now, if I can run mine in September in 2:22 I'll be pretty happy. Kristy

Megan said...

Way to go Jamie! Now that we will be heading back to Utah maybe I will get inspired and run the next one with you. You are awesome!

Woodruff Family said...

Did you ever know that you're my hero....you are the wind beneath my wings! (You should be glad you didn't hear me singing!)

Cansas said...

Way to go!! I was thinking about you all day. I'm so glad you finished with no major knee injuries. I keep telling Jason after I have this baby I want to start training for a half marathon. There's one in Moab in March. I shouldn't say it out loud because I feel like I'll jinx myself. It's pretty easy to say that I want to run while I'm pregnant and on doctors orders not to exercise. Anyway, you've inspired me! You're awesome!

Chelsea said...

Good for you! What a great goal!

Our Life is a Journey said...

Great race report! Fantastic job. It looks like you had a fun time there and great crowd support! Oh and I have a couple toes that look like that and it ain't pretty!

Kimberly Mosca said...

You and your sisters all have the exact same eyes! Just like your mom!

Brian and Carly said...

YOU ARE AWESOME!!! And you look gorgeous! Seriously, I can't wait to work myself up to that point and be able to run that far. It's a strange thing and you described it all so perfectly! One day, I'll run alongside you (or behind!!)

Highlights said...

Just like everyone else...I'm extremely proud of you! Way to go! I know I learned last year that there is a learning curve with distance running. You'll get better and better and a long as we're still having fun, I know we'll keep it up right?!

Tyson and Angela said...

Wow Jamie! Way to go girlfriend! I am at the point in my life where I can't run 10 minutes before dying...maybe one day I will get there. Thank you for the motivation! Good job!! You inspire a lot of people!

Anonymous said...

I am so impressed! I look up to you. You are amazing Jamie! One of these days I will run a 1/2 Marathon...