Indian Summer Half Marathon

Last weekend I ran another half marathon. Jared was out of town and I found this race in Tri-cities near my parents.   I really wanted to go out there and push myself and see just what I could do, for me this race was all about doing my best!

I got to my parents house Friday evening and as I was putting the kids to bed, Austin got sick.  Neither he nor I got great sleep that night which isn’t the best way to go into a race.  Thankfully, I woke up and felt pretty well.  It was all those excited nerves I guess. 

The morning air felt nice and cool and I started off feeling strong.  My pace was a little faster than I had planned, but I felt so good that I decided to go with it for as long as I could.  I felt like I was pushing it the entire race and I never let up. 

The last few miles were hard.  It was hot and I felt a little light-headed, the last mile seemed to never end and once I finally saw the finish line, I couldn’t wait to cross it. 

I came in 7^th of all the women (417 runners), and I placed 3^rd in my division.  I got my best time of 1:44:30 and kept a pace of just under 8 minutes per mile.  That felt awesome!!

I hardly remember stumbling over to the nearest patch of grass, but I know I collapsed from exhaustion.  People around me asked if I was okay and I insisted that I just needed some time to recover.  I felt light headed and a little nauseous.   Someone offered to pour water on me which felt really good and cooled me down.  People were asking me questions and I could answer them fine, I was concerned about where my family was, I knew they were planning to be at the finish line which I had crossed several minutes earlier than planned, and by now I imagined them sitting there wondering where I was. 

I could hear a volunteer from the race talking to someone about calling 911 and I argued with them, insisted that I would be fine and I just needed some time to lay there.  I tried to sit up a little and then began throwing up.  I quit arguing, but I still didn’t think an ambulance needed to come.  If only they had a medic tent, someone could have checked me out and it would have been no big deal.

I could hear the sirens in the distance and I thought to myself, “This is crazy!”

The paramedics checked me out, said my blood pressure was low and that I needed to get some fluids in me.  I drank a lot of water during the race, but I probably should have drank more Gatorade.  It was hot and I had really exhausted myself.  They said I had two choices.  I could go to the ER with them, get an IV and be monitored at the hospital for a couple hours, OR, I could spend the rest of the day taking it easy and drinking lots of fluids. 

I responded, “I think I can drink some water.”

After drinking a ton of Gatorade and water, and taking it easy, I did feel fine. 

I know that serious things can happen to people when they push themselves to run marathons and I know that the decision to call 911 was the right thing.  I’ve never before needed medical attention after a race, but I’ve always seen those red tents and I really wished they would have had one here.  I guess it makes for a great story though.

Even with the crazy ending, it was a great race.  I felt better than ever as I ran.  I loved the course and I actually liked how you turned around at the halfway point and came back.  It made the course seem shorter and everyone you passed cheered you on and told you how well you were doing. 

I love the feeling of accomplishment running a race like this gives you.  For me, it’s not about winning or losing.  It’s about pushing myself and working hard, going out there and giving it everything I’ve got.  It’s about doing my very best and that’s just what I did! 

It felt awesome!