Blessed...

I thought of many different titles for this post...but none of them seemed as fitting as "blessed" because that is exactly how I feel!

I am so unbelievably blessed to have some amazing friends.  Megan and Jenn got up before the butt crack before dawn to come and cheer me on at my race!

So many people left encouraging and supporting messages for me on facebook. 

And really, I am just so thankful that the Lord has given me the ability to run.  I am not fast.  I can't run amazingly long distances.  But I feel that I am using some of the talents that He gave me.  Whether it be solely for my own therapeutic purposes or in ways that I don't even know...I am his masterpiece =)

With that being said, let me tell you a little bit about the race.  This was the first race I have ever ran in my whole entire life.  I never even "ran" the mile in high school.  I walked it.  Every.  Single.  Time.  My thoughts regarding the race were this: 1) I just want to finish.  2) If nothing else the race was held on a cool date - 9/10/11. 

Amazingly enough, I wasn't that nervous leading up to the race.  About a half an hour before "take off" is when the nerves kicked in.  I remember looking at my watch and telling Megan and Jenn that my heart rate was 130 bpm and I hadn't even started running yet!  Here is a pre-race photo with my cheering section!

Funny story.  We were standing here chatting and a man came up to me and asked me if I knew where the 10K starting line was.  I, of course, said I had no idea!  He replied with...well, doesn't your shirt say "STAFF" on it?!  Um, yeah.  Maybe, a poor t-shirt choice but it's comfy and in my defense all the staff were wearing red t-shirts.  Well, Jenn and Meg took a liking to this man and took some very nice pics of him for me while I was running.  Enjoy.

Bahaha!  Creepy, right?!  He was skin and bones...probably weighed 85lbs. soaking wet!  But I have to give him props, he found the starting line and he runs faster than I do =)
So, the race began.  Everyone ran really fast.  I was definitely in the back of the pack.  We hit the mile 1 marker and my watch said 6:50.  Not going to lie, they probably needed to remeasure their distance because there is no way on God's green earth I ran a mile in under 7 minutes.  The mile markers were interesting...there would be a huge sign saying "Mile 3" and then 400 yards later there would be spray paint on the ground that said "Mile 3"!  What is a girl with out a garmin supposed to think?!

The path was well marked and the there were cops at intersections to direct traffic.  When the 10K and 5Kers split, I could see a girl in front of me and it was my goal to catch her.  I finally did.  She was doing the run for a certain amount of time and then walk for a certain amount of time method.  I gained some ground while she was walking...but then she would come zooming out of nowhere and run for awhile.  Eventually, she petered out and I didn't see her until after I had finished.  It was fun to run with her for awhile even if she wasn't that friendly.  I tried smiling at her and got nothing.  Sheesh!  I figure misery loves company...but apparently she didn't like my company. 

I felt pretty good until probably around mile 5.5.  Who really knows with their funky markers!  The last mile was a mental struggle.  At this point it was hot.  The sun had been shining down on me for most of the race.  I had hit up all the water stations but definitely think that if I race again I would consider carrying my own water bottle. 

This pic was the home stretch.  I definitely picked up speed once I could see the finish line.  I also took my ear buds out so I could hear the cheering.  It was pretty cool considering I was the only person about to finish.  I look like I'm sleeping and doing something crazy with my lips...that's determination, ladies and gentlemen, pure determination!

Stupid guy was standing in front of the clock!  My final time was 1:17:45.  Which is a 12:31 pace.  I was pretty happy with that.  My goal was 1:15:00, so I'll take it!  I think I could have done a little better if it had been cooler out. 

This is my "thumbs up, I didn't die picture".  Megan pointed out that I wasn't even out of breath...hmm maybe could have pushed harder?  I'll just go with, "I have a great recovery time". 

Final pic, I promise.  My cheering section.  They have starbucks...I have oranges and water.  A good morning had by all =) 

Will I race again?

I dunno.  I think it would be a lot more fun to run with people who run my pace.  The majority of the race I ran alone.  I was afraid I was going to get lost and it didn't really feel like a race running alone...just like any other morning run.  So, I either need to get some speed or find some people who run nice and slow like me!  My trainer seems to think I should train for a half marathon.  I think that sounds like A LOT of work. 

I do think I picked a good race for my first one.  It wasn't huge but it wasn't tiny either.  I'm not going to lie.  It was intimidating seeing people walk around that looked super fit.

The moral of the story is: I came, I saw, and I conquered.  That translates into: I started, finished, and wasn't dead last.  Second to last, thank you very much.  Oh, and I didn't walk at all.  So... hooray!  Ok, I am very impressed if you read all of this and am so very sorry that it became long winded.  I promise I'm done now =)