1/2 Marathon

First off, lets talk about HOW I am NOT a runner. So 5 weeks ago, Nat convinced to start running with her. I knew I had to do something to get this baby FAT off of me & get my energy back up. So we started running, she started slow at 3 miles..then progressed up to 10. GOODNESS sakes I thought I would never get passed the burning lungs. BUT WHO KNEW…it passes. I felt great, my legs were getting used to it…I actually enjoyed running.

Well she finally convinces me to do the 1/2 marathon & thanks to a friend, who couldn’t run, I was able to take her place. A few days before said race we read the course description:
The Gunstock Half Marathon is a trail run through a working ranch. Don’t expect paved roads, get ready for some hills, and watch out for horse apples and cow pies!

The race follows Jeep trails, cow paths, dirt/gravel roads, paved roads, and sometimes open pasture. There are 4 steep hills on the course, topping out at 321 feet above sea level….blah blah AAAHHHHHH!!! What the crap was I thinking, I just started running…I don’t REALLY HIKE, can I do this?

So the week of the race I freaked out, I really wasn’t sure I was going to make it to the end. BUt I committed to doing it & I wanted to do it. This was my most trying, busiest & stressful week EVER. (I was in charge of Halloween Ward Party/making 3 costumes/running in preps of race/making sure my diet will keep me alive during race/Trick-O-Treating/etc.)

Friday night I could barely sleep, tossing & turning, dreaming of sleeping in & missing the race. I worried about my back….which I slept wrong on earlier in the week & was sore. BUT I was excited, I picked up Nat, we got our Numbers & stretched. GOODNESS everyone there looked like REAL runners..I was just pretending to be. But none the less we started running, right away 90% of the pack passed us by….but I figured that was ok, my goal was to finish & NOT finish LAST.

THE RACE was HARD, really really hard. UP & down hills, over cow pies, rocks, roots, sticks & more FRESH cow pies. MY body was not cut out for this. Nat was keeping me alive, she was motivating me…“we can do this, NO, WE ARE DOING THIS!” At mile 5-ish a couple of guys were on their way BACK to the finish. AAAAAHHH really? Are we that far behind? IT was ok, we will finish it. Through mud, a stream, a water treatment plant, through beautiful hiking trails, and back again…my body SCREAMED at me, but we made it to the end. After most people had already left to go home, after the award ceremony had finished we made to back. Nat of course beat me, that girl can gazelle run like crazy and she bolted to the finish at the end. I was slow or else I might have passed out…but I did it.

(don’t be fooled by the smile on my face, I was crying inside)

I am proud that I ran the race and DIDN’T come in last. I will run again, but may NEVER do a trail run again. It was a very humbling experience and I learned a lot about myself by doing this. Nat told me something that someone told her….The way you stick to your running schedule is similar to how your life is (something like that). AND that is what made me not give up. I think that NOW I can say I stuck with something, it was UNBELIEVABLY hard for me & I finished it still. DONE!