Helvatia Half Marathon

A few months back I received a phone call from a great friend of mine to keep June 12, 2010 open. We're running a 1/2 marathon. About 5 of us were going to start training for it. I said, "SWEET! Let's do it!" I start running here and there and then come across an actual 10 week training schedule. I was already 2 weeks behind but was able to just jump right in. This is great! I'm totally going to run this the whole way through. When I ran 6 miles without stopping, I cried. It's the farthest I've ever ran. (By this time, 2 people had dropped out.) A week or so later when I reached 8 miles, I was pretty dang impressed. That morning, I could tell that my body was getting sick. My kids had been sick for a few days and I think I caught the bug. But I ran anyway cause I didn't want to get off track.  Then, the sickness totally took control of my whole body. I wasn't throwing up, but my whole body hurt. . .like when you get the flu. I didn't run for a whole week and when I got back out there, I needed to run 3 miles but couldn't. I felt pretty uneasy about that. The following week, I helped out a friend washing dishes at his cafe. So, no running there. Crap. Only 3 more weeks until the big day and I'm not running 10-11 miles like I should be able to right now. There's no way I can do this. Not to mention, my running partner has a LOT going on in her life too, so she wasn't on track either. Our third person in our running party was on track, but come to find out, she's got kidney stones. So, she's out. It's just me and Jayme. We run great together. At least, I think so! We've pretty much got the same pace and when one's going to fast or too slow, the other keeps us right on track so we don't over do it and we can keep on keepin' on. Life keeps happening for the both of us and with one week to go, I'm feeling pretty nervous. The furthest we've gone is 8 miles. Yes, it was without stopping to walk, but the schedule we were on, we should have been able to do 11. Although I was nervous I was really excited about this. If I can't run the whole thing, WHO CARES!? I'm out there and I'm going to cross the finish line. That'll be so great!

Race day.

I get up at 5:15 to get ready and make sure I've got all I need to get through the race. Some breakfast, my ipod, my shot blocks. . .I'm good to go! Jayme picks me up and we're off to the stadium. There's so much traffic! We get right in, parked, and onto the field. There are people E.V.E.R.Y.W.H.E.R.E! I couldn't help but feel the excitement all around me. We tell each other that no matter what happens, we're in this together and we may walk, but we're going to run our way through the finish line. And that's what we did.

We start. We've got smiles on our faces and we head off. (You can see the course map here.)

Miles 1-5 I feel incredible. Pace was great, weather was gorgeous, and I've ran this part before so I know what to expect. I'm so excited that I start to get emotional. Ok, Carrie. KNOCK IT OFF! I had to snap myself out of it because it was getting hard to breath. When I get emotional, my chest tightest up. I pull myself together and blow right through to mile 5.

Miles 5-7 HARD! There was a big downhill part after the mile 5 marker and it hurt my knees! I had to stop and use the bathroom at the mile 5 aid station and I think stopping is what did it. Miles 6-7.5 were nice because they were in the shade. :)

Miles 7-9 It was ok. . .Still feeling good but they were stop and go. My wonderful family came to see me right after mile 8 to cheer me on and it was such a great boost! THANK YOU!!

 

My biggest fans!!

Miles 9-11 Hard. Slow. Lots of walking. Feeling the sun beat down on us, running (walking) on gravel for a mile = no fun, starting to have a mental block.

Miles 11-12 Holy cow! This hurts so bad! Sun is REALLY draining my energy.

Miles 12-13.1 I can't believe it. ONE MORE MILE! We've totally got this! We're going to run through the finish line even if it kills me! We pick up the pace, run the last leg into the stadium, see our families and cross through the big balloon finish line.

David, Gabriel, Angelina, Mom, Dad, Lindsey, and Kylie. . .Thank you for being there! I loved seeing your faces as I turned that corner!

Jayme and I hug each other and it hits me. I start getting emotional again. Except this time, I'm out of breath. So when my chest tightens up, I literally can't breath and start wheezing. So, again, I had to snap myself out of it. What an incredible feeling of accomplishment! I did something that I never thought I'd be able to do. Shoot! Just last week when I ran a 5k, I couldn't even finish that without dying! I don't think I'll run another 1/2 anytime soon but I know that I'll be doing more races. 5 and 10k's whenever I can. My next 1/2 marathon will probably be next year. I want to do the Helvatia half again. I loved it. The beautiful country roads, fresh air, and all the people we amazing. My running partner was even more amazing. I definitely could NOT have done any of it with out her. If she had dropped out, I think I would have still done the race, but it would have been harder and I would have walked 10 out of the 13 miles of it. Thanks, friend.

After the race I didn't want to do ANYTHING. Angelina didn't want anyone else but me, so I had to hold her but I just wanted to die. Ok, maybe not die, but just sit! So we ventured off to find all of the sponsor booths and enjoyed a free burger from the Helvatia Tavern and lots of free Jamba Juice. There were also complimentary 5 min massages, but the line was so long that I didn't even bother. I was pretty bummed about that. We went home fairly soon so kids could take a nap and I could just chill.

RESULTS!!

Overall Place - 2962/3447

Female Overall - 1824/2248

Age (25-29) - 291/319

Time - 3:14:06 (I was anticipating 3 hours so I was not too far off!)

I am so happy with these numbers. SO HAPPY!

Battle wounds include: Sunburn on my face and arms, blisters on my feet, and sore muscles everywhere in between! (some pics are gross)

 

I feel like I can conquer anything.

Today, not so much. I mean, I could conquer anything. . .if I could move.