CVX Half

My sister, dad and I had planned on running this race together after my mom passed away. My dad had been running and training but then hurt his knee and had to have surgery and wasn't able to run. My sister and I originally both were on a lets try to break 1:50 goal. Her goal then switched to 1:45 and then finally switched to a super high goal of breaking 1:40.

In my head, I wondered if I really could break 1:50. My training had been pretty good, but I really didn't do to much "speed" work. And then race day came...

We woke up early (4:30) to eat some breakfast and headed out around 5:15 since it was over an hour to the race. About 5:45, a deer ran out across the road and we hit it. What could possibly go wrong...K and I each called our sleeping hubbies back at the house in a panic as my dads car was leaking fluid. He was heading back to town and we were trying to get the boys to drive out to meet us and swap cars.

A little after 6 we were back on the road, with K driving like a mad women wondering if we would make it to race start. We had multiple plans for what to do once we got there...hop out pick up our registration so we would have our bibs and timing chip. That way if we didn't make it to the start right at 7:30 it would be ok.

We actually got to the race with some time to spare, it was 7:20 as we were picking up our bibs. Then wait in line for the port-a-potties. Then right before 7:30 while we were still waiting, a volunteer told us the bridge across the river goes up automatically at 7:30 so we might want to go across now and use the ones on the other side. Off we go and ran further to the potties as they were saying 2 minutes to the horn. As we were running back from the bathroom they sounded the horn. K and I got our music ready, said good luck and ran off at the back of the pack.

I actually ran the first half really controlled, which is surprising since my heart was racing. I hit the halfway mark (turn-around) at 55:15. Thought to myself how I just had to pick it up just a little to break 1:50. So I just started running hard. I have no idea how I managed to really pick up the pace and run that last half hard. I kept thinking of my mom and her strength and how whatever little pain I was going through would only last for so many minutes and how I could suffer that for her. And then crossed the finish line is 1:48:37.

What an almost magical race to me. I really felt her with me and was thankful we made it to the starting line. My sister used all her powers and ran 1:39. Both of us had probably one of the best races of our lives (in running sense). Perfect race course, perfect temperature...What a beautiful day.