Half Marathon Race Report

I'm finally getting around to writing my race report. My mom and step-dad came up from South Carolina to cheer me on then up here to our house for a visit so I've been hanging out drinking beer and celebrating for 3 full days - I figure I need to milk this for as long as possible. I've even made a point to wear my medal around the house when doing everything from unloading the dishwasher to getting the mail.


The race was fantastic. I really had a blast. I met a woman who lives in Fredericksburg through the SeeMommyRun blog who held my hand Sunday morning, guiding me through the ins and outs of pre-race mayhem. She was fantastic - a big fat shout out to Jamie and all the SeeMommyRun, Fredericksburg, women. Without Jamie, I would have had to shuttle from my hotel to the race start and go through all the pre-race rituals alone. My nerves were settled big time because of the kindness of a stranger. It is incredible what a community this running thing is.

After checking our bags and hooking up with some of the other SeeMommyRun members, we hit the jonny line then it was time to weave our way into position. There were no pacers for this race, but they did have flags set up with times on them so we wiggled into the 2:00 - 2:29 slot. It only took about a minute and a half to actually cross the start line, a lot quicker than I thought. Jamie wished me luck and we were off. I ended up running the first two miles with another member. It was pretty crowded for that first mile, we crossed the marker at 9:46. They had told us before the start that the mile markers were painted on the street and with that crowd in the beginning, I'm kind of surprised we even saw it. We stayed together until mile 2 where she decided to hit the water stop, I wanted to keep going. At that point, I was 18:51 in and officially on my own.

I felt good, felt ready. The pack was opening up a bit which was good because I was able to pick up the pace a bit. I didn't have my iPod and honestly, didn't miss it at all (I was really worried about running without music). I tuned into all the chatter around me and the crowds cheering us on.

My only complaint is about the mile the markings. Around 28 minutes in, I started looking for the 3 mile marker. And looking and looking. I never saw it. And I never saw the marker for mile 4. Or 5. By that point, I was starting to freak a bit because I had no clue where I was which meant I had no idea how my pace was. Was I running to slow? Too fast? I hadn't memorized the route with relation to were the water stops were, I only had a vague memory. After one water station, I was thinking I had to be around mile 6.5. After running for 10 more minutes, I finally asked a volunteer on the side of the road. She said "You are at mile 6.5, maybe just a hair further." I looked down at my watch: 1:07. What?? Panic totally set in and I tried to pick it up a bit. I was dealing with a stitch at that point so I was having a hard time picking up the pace. I kept saying out loud (I'm sure people around me thought I was insane), "How could that be?" and "I'll never finish in 2 hours!" and then, out of the blue, I saw a big MILE 8 marker at my feet. I quickly looked at my watch and heaved a huge sigh of relief: 1:10:20. After 8, I did see the rest of the markings (all except 11, never did see 11). So that would be my only gripe, better mile markers. Oh, and make sure the volunteers know where they are because she was obviously not at mile 6.5 as she said!

The last 3.5 miles were really hard for me. I knew about 2 pretty big hills that started at mile 10 and felt like I took them pretty well. At the top of the second and once I felt recovered, I decided to pick up the pace. Unfortunately, there was another hill. I was about half way up it when I really felt the wall coming down in front of me. I turned on the gas too soon because I wasn't expecting such a big hill. I managed to get to the top without stopping and from that point on, for the last 1.1 miles or so, I just counted. I have no idea why or where it came from but I just started counting to 4 over and over. When I had less than .1 to go, even though the end was in site and the crowds were big, I just wanted to cry. I wanted to be done so bad and it was all I could do to put one foot in front of the other. My right quad had totally seized up on me. I kept cursing that 3rd hill and myself for not being ready for it when I heard my name being called. There were my peeps! Team Renae, right where I needed them most - about 200 yards or so from the finish line.


That was all I needed. I perked up and managed to pick up the pace. At that moment, I spotted Jamie. She was just far enough ahead of me that I couldn't quite catch her but I thought it was so cool that we finished with just 2 people between us.


Crossing the finish line felt so great. I still can't believe I managed to do it in under 2 hours. I then started the long walk to the water, medals, towel and finally, bananas. When I popped back out of the convention center, my family was right there waiting for me and I was re-energized. The rain started to fall and the winds picked up so we decided to skip the beer garden and head back to the hotel for a hot shower (I know, imagine - me skipping a beer garden! I made up for it when we got home though!)

After driving an hour and a half home, my legs stiffened up on me but other than that, I felt really good. My second toe on my right foot was hurting a bit and after taking the polish off, discovered a lovely shade of black. You know what that means....I am officially a runner!

It was such an amazing experience. I am still on cloud nine. I thought I'd get that let down feeling, like, now what do I do? But I haven't. It still feels really good. Next up, Baltimore! I will be running the half marathon at the Baltimore Running Festival on October 11th. Hopefully I can finish that one in 1:50!

Thanks again for all your well wishes before the race and your congratulations after, I really can't tell you how much it means to me.