the other half

hubby, dad and I all went into the beginning of this year with one goal in mind. obtain the triple crown award in moab, ut.

we started out by racing the canyonlands half marathon in march.

the next race on the list was the other half in october.

summer got busy. my training plan fell apart.

hubby and I went into this race with little to no training, but I was just totally going to have fun with it.

dad ran too. this was race 2 of 3 that need to be completed for the triple crown award.

after a little discussion…our faces changed from smiles to “what the hell are we thinking?”

temps were a little cool at the start.

as long as you found a fire pit and could stay close enough to it you were good.

hubby and I made sure to wear our recovery socks. with us…the idea “the more obnoxious, the better.”

before we knew it, it was time to toe the line.

I felt like I was dressed perfectly…for the race AFTER the first five miles. the first five miles were in all canyon, in shadows at 830 in the morning. it was a little chilly. my hands became numb at one point and I remember wishing I had worn gloves.

I thought at this point everything was going to be ok. aron and I were planning on shooting for a 9 minute/mile pace…still trying to get aron a half in sub 2 hours.

the race was on sunday…on friday night I had this weird stomach ache (I get them every other month or so…haven’t figured out the deal yet). basically I can maybe compare it to what contractions feel like (although I’ve never experienced them!). the pain builds and builds and builds and then releases for a few minutes and then it happens again. I usually take some zantac and within 30 minutes the pain is gone enough I can at least sleep. I woke up saturday morning still not feeling 100% and felt a little twinge in my stomach. I drank some sprite saturday night and took some more medicine to try to get it better by morning. sunday morning I was able to eat my normal pre-race breakfast with no issues and I was feeling good at the start.

we had gorgeous weather and gorgeous views.

aron took off on me about mile 3. and mile 4ish is where I lost my entire breakfast…literally. at that point I knew I just wanted to finish.

I took a gel shortly after…breakfast resurfacing…just to get something in my stomach and it didn’t stay down long. I saw the ambulance at mile 6 and gave great consideration to just get a ride to the finish, but I felt so many people up above screaming at me to finish the race on my own two feet.

I was able to keep water down at mile 6 and 8. tried a little more of a gel at mile 8 and was able to keep it down.

I decided to enjoy the views I was surrounded by. do what I could to finish the race and stay strong.

when I hit the top of the last hill I knew I was home free and was going to finish the race.

there was no amazing PR to be had. but finishing was enough for me…with everything that was against me.

they had a beer garden. I was really not wanting a beer, but I wanted the glass.

we tried a sip, but knew there was no way we were going to finish them.

hard earned medals. and race 2 of 3 complete!

winter sun 10K here we come!