I think I’m done with running till the spring! I’m taking a hiatus and going back to my cardio workouts with Stacy starting tomorrow (not that those will be any easier or less painful, but the thought of running again after these last 2 half marathons is very distant right now)!!
I finished the Maui half in 3:01:27 on 9/22/13 … This past Saturday, 10/26/13, just 5 short weeks later, I finished the Cape Cod half in 3:13:08. Considering how much harder this course was, the fact that I didn’t train nearly as hard, and that I actually thought about quitting the Cape Cod one a few times during the course due to excruciating pain/fatigue/blisters, and pure exhaustion; finishing just 12 minutes later is quite an accomplishment!! There was also a time limit at the Cape Cod one which got into my head … the limit was 3 hours, and since it took me 3 hours to do the first one (after proper training), I was terrified I wouldn’t finish this one on time; wouldn’t get a medal and wouldn’t be considered a finisher, so that definitely slowed me down – you’d think it would have made me run faster, but I don’t think ANYTHING could have made me go any faster!!!! Plus, it was FREEEEEEEZING at this one and there were so many HUGE hills … this will definitely NOT be on my repeat list! There was one part of the run where we went through a park, on a bike path. Above the bike path, there was an overpass – and all of us down on the bike path saw the people running above us on the overpass. At first I thought maybe they were just runners, not marathoners … but then I saw 3 guys go past and on their shorts was the bib … the same bib I was wearing … which could only mean one thing … somehow I had to get up on that overpass. The bike path ended at a small dock area, with a volunteer standing off to the side telling the marathoners to “continue up the hill to the right” … the “hill” was not a hill … it was a small mountain!!! I turned to him and said “we have to go up THAT?” and he said “yep” … this was around mile 5 or 6 … somewhere in the middle, but not quite halfway yet … that was the first time the thought of calling it quits entered my mind. My left hip was killing me, my left foot had a blister that was not pleasant, and both knees were starting to hurt. I leaned over, hands on my knees, looked at the huge hill ahead of me, took a deep breath and started to run up this mountain … along with maybe 5 others … we all got about half way up before all of us decided this was insane and we decided to walk up the rest of the way. The hills continued from this point on, till around mile 10!! The course description said “small, rolling hills from miles 6 – 9” … I don’t know what these people think small, rolling hills are, but those were not them!!! Near the top of this small mountain was my first encounter with the medical crew who thought I needed assistance. I did need assistance, but had I accepted their offer of help, I would have been disqualified from the run … I wasn’t that bad. I declined the assistance and pushed on. Somewhere along mile 9, I had my second thoughts of calling mom to find me and pick me up … but then a good song came on (I can’t think of it now) and I continued on … only to find a new medical crew asking if I was okay. I was okay enough to finish, even it meant crawling across the finish line!!! During mile 11, I encountered a flock of huge turkeys … they were starting to cross the road right in front of me, but I kicked my foot at one and they went back to the curb, and after I passed them, they started to cross (in front of a group of people behind me) … just another adventure along the course.
I knew the end was near … and it felt great to know I was almost done. I just wanted to sit down. There wasn’t a part of me from my shoulders down that didn’t hurt in one way or the other. The balls of my feet were aching so badly, it felt like I had rocks in my shoes. My lower back was so tight I couldn’t even stand up straight. My left hip hurt so bad, I had never experienced like that before – but that seemed to help me forget about the blister!! I got to the last turn and I told myself that I was running this last little bit. I could finally SEE the finish line. I could see my mom standing on the side ready to greet me. I could see the volunteers with the clipboard to jot my number down. I was there … I was at the finish!! I wanted to raise my arms up, but they were too tired to move … but I finished. I crossed that finish line, I got that teary eyed hug from my mom, and I got my medal, and my first foil wrap!!!
I finished my second half marathon in FIVE weeks!!! WOW!!! GO ME!!!!