I'm not much of a runner, never have been, but when my dear friend Natalie asked if I'd be interested in running a half marathon with her just months after I had Dean I told her yes. I'm not really sure what I was thinking other then maybe it would be a good way to get back in pre-baby shape or maybe I was thinking a trip to Vegas would be fun. If you'd had asked me last year if I'd ever run in a marathon I probably would have laughed at you but I did it and I'm thinking of doing another.
Training proved to be harder then I anticipated with the kids, the heat and my lungs but once the weather cooled down and Ava started school things got a little easier.
The Rock N Roll Las Vegas Marathon benefits The Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America. The week of the race my mom came into town to watch the kids for us. We made it to Las Vegas on Thursday so we would have a few days to spend together. Saturday we picked Natalie up at the airport and headed to the Fitness Expo to gather our race stuff.
Sunday morning I met up with Natalie again for brunch. Nerves were running high that morning between the both of us. After brunch we stretched and walked the strip a bit to warm up before heading to the start line.
At the start line there was a big concert. Snoop Dogg was supposed to be the headliner but last minute backed out and instead The Heist performed. I didn't pay much attention I was so nervous but any other day it would have been a good concert.
There was 70,000 people registered for the marathon. Th start line was so packed I began to get really anxious but thankfully once the race started the crowd dissipated quickly. I ran better then I had thought I would. I knew the altitude change would be a big difference but I didn't realize how much it would benefit me. I got to mile 10 in 1:55:16 and was almost done. Unfortunately I was getting tired and my knee was really feeling it. The last 3 miles I struggled to complete and walked a lot. I wasn't about to walk through the finish line so I pushed through the pain and ran the last mile. As I ran through the finish line the volcano at The Mirage erupted. It was a great way to finish and what an amazing feeling of accomplishment I had. I finished in 2:47:33, not bad for my first half.
0 comments:
Post a Comment