Back in October or November Scott and I signed up for the Little Rock Marathon 10k. I've only run a couple 10k races, and neither of them gave medals at the end. When I saw the medals for the races at Little Rock I knew I HAD to do one of them. Since race weekend was only a couple months after my Disney World Marathon I didn't think I should do the half marathon (certainly not the full!), but I wanted to do more than the 5k. So I talked to Scott and we decided he would join me and we'd both do the 10k. About that same time, my friend Kyla asked me if I could make up a training plan for her to run a half marathon. Turns out, she planned to do the half marathon at Little Rock.
After I got home from Disney I planned to take a week or so off from running and then get back to preparing for the 10k. I was thinking I could MAYBE go for a PR. A week or so after I got home I was talking to Kyla about her training and decided I would do her long runs with her while my daughter stayed with her kids. I hoped by doing this, Kyla could break through the mental block she was having (training for her first half marathon on her own, plus work schedules, plus being a single mom, all working together telling her things that were not true) Of course, doing the long runs with Kyla would have me over trained for the distance I was doing for my own race so I got it in my head that maybe I could do the half also. Five weeks before the races, I signed up for the half marathon. I also emailed the race director because the combo option had been sold out, but when I registered for the half it didn't say sold out anymore, I just wasn't able to choose the option even though it was there. I never do that kind of thing. I typically would just accept that it wasn't available and move on. I wanted to do both races either way, so no big deal. The race director got back to me pretty much right away saying that the combo option was definitely sold out and there was a waiting list, but she'd add me to it if I'd like. I had nothing to lost by being added. I had no expectations for getting in. With so few weeks before the race and over 100 people on the list, I knew the chances were slim to none.
Training carried on. I made up a loose training schedule for myself for the last few weeks before the races; aiming for 4 runs a week, two of them being with my running buddy, Angela, who was also training for a different race, trying to do some speed work each week (which happened most of the time), and get the long distances in with Kyla. Just over a week before race weekend I got an email with a confirmation for the combo. I was stupidly happy to get in! I would have been fine if it hadn't happened, but when I saw the confirmation I was more excited than I expected to be.
On Friday, before the races, Scott and I planned to go to the expo after he got off work. I was anxious because we had an hour drive, and I knew we would probably hit some traffic. I was relieved when Scott was off work an hour early, but it turned out it wouldn't matter. We were just 5 miles from our destination and we hit standstill traffic. Over half an hour later we had only moved half a mile. I'm sure I've mentioned in past blogs about how much of a control freak I can be. I was starting to freak out. At this rate, we wouldn't make it to the expo before they closed. The expo was also open on Saturday, but since we were running Saturday morning we had to get our packets on Friday. After creeping forward a little longer, we found a way to take backroads. Less than 15 minutes later we were parked and walking to the Statehouse Convention Center where the expo was being held. The panicky feeling quickly disappeared as soon as I had my bibs in hand. After walking around the expo for a little bit, we decided it was time to check into our hotel and find some dinner before aiming to get to bed at a decent time.
We woke to near perfect race weather on Saturday morning. It was sunny and right around 40 degrees. Normally that's too cold for me, even for a race, but it was great this time. By the time we walked from our car, made a pit stop at the port-a-potties, and got to our way to our corral, we only had about 20 minutes until we were supposed to start. There was some great music and even some beach balls being hit around the corrals to pass the time. It was pretty fun!
As it got closer to start time, the MC had the corrals move forward, closer to the start line. I was a little surprised they did not have us do a staggered start. When the race did start, it was pretty congested for a little bit. Scott and I were in corral E, but actually Scott's bib said C, and I'm pretty sure mine would have based on the completion time I put in when I originally registered for the 10k on its own. But when I added the half marathon, I put in a time that was slower because I know Kyla and I would be walk/running that one. I don't mind at all being in a further back corral, but it would have been nice to be with others that were about the same pace as me a little further up. I know this is a frustration many people have if they miss the cut off for proof of time and now I know how they feel. The situation would have been made a little better had the corrals been released a minute or two a part. All that not to say that my race was ruined, or anything like that. It's just an observation. Maybe they can allow the combo runners to put in two different completion times and not base corral placement for both races on just one. Anyway, back to the fun stuff!
The first half was fairly uneventful as far as the course goes. In the first mile I thought maybe the GPS on my running app had veered off course because I was hitting the quarter miles sooner than I thought I should be. Turns out, I really was just running much faster than I anticipated. In the beginning there were "gentle" inclines and declines, but not major hills. That gradually changed until the last half had rolling hills.
Up to mile 3 I had been maintaining a sub 9 minute average pace. Which totally surprised me. I mean, I knew I could do a 5k and that pace, but I had not planned on doing this race that fast. My fastest official 10k was a little over an hour. In order to get a PR I needed to average a 9:30 pace. So at mile 3 when I was still at 8:59 I was happy that I had gotten there fairly comfortably. I also knew that we had to be getting close to the hills I assumed were coming. I didn't know anything about this course, other than the fact that Little Rock is hilly. I just figured the hills would be there somewhere, and since they weren't really in the first half, they were certainly coming in the second. So knowing that, I also figured I'd have a big slow down coming. I was pretty sure I'd still PR though, so I tried to settled in and enjoy the hills. It didn't take long for me to start hurting once the big hills showed up. I spent a good chunk of that last half with a cramp that hopped back and forth between my chest and my diaphragm. Through out this time I was telling myself it was supposed to hurt. It's the kind of hurt I can push through. Just a couple more miles.
I recently stumbled across a fantastic blogger/vlogger who I relate to in so many ways (minus the fact that she's much faster) and has been an incredible source of inspiration and motivation for me. Kelly Roberts at Run, Selfie, Repeat is as real as real can be. I feel like I've known her my whole life. She speaks to me and only me. Well, a couple days before my 10k race, I was listening to a podcast of Kelly's (yes, we are on a first name basis... even though she has no idea who I am) and among other things, she was talking about how working for a PR at a race isn't meant to be easy. You have to push hard. You have to accept the pain. But you also know that when you finish, you'll know that you have done the absolute best you could have done. I thought about this podcast for most of the last half of the 10k. I hurt. I was tired. I had a cramp. And still, I repeated to myself, "Heather, you're supposed to hurt. This is what a PR feels like. DO IT!" My pace did slow a little bit in the 4th and 5th miles. That's when I talked to myself the most. I was averaging 9:04 going into the 6th mile. I knew I had my PR, clearly! So I started letting other thoughts take over and I talked to Scott about them. If I know I have the PR, why should I keep pushing so hard for this last mile, when I don't feel like I can push any harder to get my pace back to a sub 9? Why don't I just let up a little on the pace, to where it's just a TAD easier, but will still give me the PR? You know what Scott said? "Heather, why WOULDN'T you push for the sub 9?" And that was all. He didn't say anything else. I hit the mile 5 flag and had a nice downhill. I been hearing 9:04 average at each quarter mile for over a mile and decided I was tired of hearing that. When talking to yourself in your head is no longer enough, the next step is to just say it out loud. So I'm running down the hill and I was telling myself out loud to break that 9:04. Even if I didn't get the sub 9 back (because I truly did not think I would) just push and break it. After that I stopped hearing my app tell me my pace. I hadn't turned the sound off, I just was so focused on the course and how I was so close to finishing, I didn't notice. There was another uphill at the end of mile 6. I was not thrilled, but at the top, I saw the finish line just down the road. Just a quarter mile to go. And it seemed like the finish line was at the end of a decline. I didn't think I had anything left to give, but off I went. My kick came in and I flew down the road. As it turns out, that last quarter my pace was around 7:43. WHAT?!? I don't even know how that happened. It also explains why I was seconds away from losing my breakfast as I crossed the finish line. Quite a few deep breaths later, and I finally looked down at my app and saw that not only had I had gotten my PR, but I HAD gotten a sub 9 average! I was ecstatic!!
Something I had never seen at a race I've done before was an instant results tent. I've had results almost right away before, but not with this much detail. We put in our bib number, pulled up the results on a little screen, and with the click of a button we got a little print out that had not only our finishing clock time, chip time, and average pace, but also our standings. So here's what I have.
Chip Time: 56:06
Average Pace: 8:59
My overall placement and standing within all the woman participating was right around the top 30%, which is pretty typical for me, but the best thing I saw on this piece of paper was my placement in my age group for women. I placed 11th! I was THIS close to being in the top 10 women!! And yes, I'm thrilled about that. I have never been that close to placing in any race I have done. There isn't a reward for for placing in the top 10, but in my head, that's a pretty big deal. I just can't get over it. I am just so happy to be that close. :)
After the race we went back to the hotel to get cleaned up and wait for Kyla to get into town. With lunch at Panera and a delicious treat from Gigi's Cupcakes taken care of, we headed back to the expo for Kyla's packet pickup. I'm pretty sure I was more excited about this than she was, but I do remember those feelings from my first half marathon. Excitement definitely was not at the top of the list. :)
It was still a little too early to get dinner so we rested back at the hotel for a little bit. I had a growing headache that refused to leave, and we were all just plain tired. That carried on through dinner, and in the end we turned in early. I was asleep by 9. That never happens, especially the night before a race.
Sunday morning we woke up early to rain. It had been in the forecast with the chances varying each day. I was still hoping it wouldn't actually happen. Of course I wanted Kyla's first half to be perfect, and rain wouldn't allow for that. To say we were a tad grumpy could be an understatement, but there was no use dwelling on it. The race was happening either way. So we layered up and happened to find some ponchos in the car. I have never been so grateful for being a packrat. The ponchos definitely helped the situation! Once we parked and started making our way to the starting line my poor mood left me. I think I was more anxious than I realized. And the rain wasn't a horrible downpour, more like a very heavy sprinkle. My perfect kind of running rain. It invigorated me.
We crossed the start line 7-8 minutes after the clock started and not even half a mile into the race we came to our first hill; a bridge that crosses the Arkansas River. I think it's an appropriate warning for what is to come on this course. Particularly in the last half (again). After we crossed the river and the runners had thinned out a bit, it was time to shed some layers. Literally, but also symbolically for Kyla. Doing a half marathon is something that was on Kyla's bucket list after she was told she could never complete one by her ex husband. No one should ever be told they can not do something. No matter the situation. Through out training Kyla has proven strong, physically AND mentally. When I was talking to her about having a layer that could be tossed on the side of the course that she wouldn't want back, she said she had the perfect thing. It was a sweatshirt that was her ex's that had still been hanging in the closet. So not quite a mile into the race it was time to get rid of all the awful thoughts that had been weighing on Kyla's heart and mind. We giggled through the struggle of working with a wet poncho, but really, watching her chuck that sweatshirt in the mud and stomp on it was amazing.
The next couple of miles before crossing back over the river were fairly flat and uneventful. I don't know if it was the weather, or the location, but there were not many spectators. I know this part of the course was not as convenient to the start and finish lines so it could just be that. We crossed the bridge and all of a sudden there were a ton of people on the side of the course. As we were approaching the mile 4 flag, we saw Scott for the first time and a mile later we got to step out of the rain for a quick picture with some llamas at the Heifer International sponsored aid station.
The next couple miles were quiet. We were in a part of Little Rock I had never been in and there wasn't much to see. Again there were not many spectators, but the ones we did pass were wonderful. About mile 7 the bigger hills truly began. Our plan for this race was to run every 4-5 minutes, unless there was a hill. We planned to walk up those. Interestingly enough, we didn't have to change the intervals too many times. It worked out really well. Around mile 7 is also where we started seeing many spectators again. And that carried on for the rest of the course. Scott found us again between 7 and 8 and gave us a banana. By the time we saw him for the last time before the finish line, near the mile 9 flag, Kyla and I were ready to get rid of our ponchos. It was still lightly raining off and on, but it was getting increasingly hard to run with them. We decided we could handle the last few miles if we did get very wet, it would be worth it to not have the annoyance.
I don't know if it was the freedom of not having the poncho or the amazing sideline support, but the last few miles for me were so much fun. At the same time, through out the race I know Kyla was working through stuff in her head. Once in a while she'd tell me she had stuff on her mind. Each time, I feel like she felt a bit more free. What an emotional roller coaster this race was! Casting out lies and gaining freedom and confidence all while running through high fives and fist bumps make for a pretty amazing last few miles. We made conversation with people around us, we thanked the volunteers (those people are AMAZING), and I was continuously reminded why I love the running community so much. In the last mile we saw many people who had already finished on the sidewalks with their medals. The reality of what we were doing hit me then. Of course I knew we were doing a half marathon, but time had passed surprisingly quick and I really just felt like Kyla and I were out for a training run. I went back and forth between talking to the finishers we passed and telling Kyla how proud I was and that we were so close. Until she told me to stop because she kept crying. :) She and I are the same that way. I have had to tell a couple friends to stop saying encouraging things because if I cry I can't breath.
As we got closer to our final turn we could hear the sounds of the finish line. I told Kyla once we turned we were running that final stretch. To be honest it was further than I expected, but I knew even though our runs had been shorter, that she could do it. We maneuvered our way around people as we ran down the street. I was so thankful that it was the same street as the 10k finish, so we were on a slight decline. The closer we got, the louder it got. There were so many people on the sides of the course, plus music, plus the man at the finish line announcing marathon finishers, and all the while I'm shouting at Kyla. I don't even know if she heard me. I was so incredibly happy, and PROUD of her!!
It's not polite to stop as soon as you cross the finish line, so as we walked towards the medals I gave Kyla a walking hug and excitedly pointed towards the most fun half marathon medals ever.
The last picture we had together at the race was at the backgrounds that were set up after the medal stands. We had a normal finisher picture taken and as we were about to walk away the photographer says, "Hey let's do one more. Show me your strong!" She has no idea how incredibly appropriate that was.
The last stop we made before leaving the finishers area was the Challenge Tent. I was giddy as I showed the lady my printed results to get my challenge medal. I may be a little addicted to these combo races now. :)
This was a fun half marathon for me. Not to say it was easy. I was definitely feeling the effects of Saturday's race. I just really enjoyed the process. It was great to experience Kyla's first half with her!
So what's next? Apparently a half marathon towards the end of April. More on that later... :-O
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