Bear Lake Half Marathon 2009

WARNING!!! SUPER LONG POST AHEAD!!!

I can't believe this past weekend is finally over! I'm am so excited, but also a little sad all at the same time. We had such a great weekend, it was sad to see it come to an end. Let me start at the beginning...I will get to the race at the end. Our weekend actually started on Thursday, which was our 5 year anniversary. Thursday afternoon I drove the boys to my parents, loaded them in my parents car, gave them lots of kisses, and they were on their way up to Bear Lake. Thanks Mom and Dad for watching the boys! Rob and I really appreciated it! I was so crazy busy Wednesday and Thursday that I didn't really have time to think about the race or get nervous. Except for one thing...my right foot was really starting to bother me. Earlier on in the week it would ache here and there. By Thursday it was really starting to get me nervous. The pain was coming more frequently and stayed longer. I tried to not think about it, but those of you who know me, know that I stress easily.

After dropping the boys off, I headed to mall to relax and shop a bit. It was so fun to be by myself and shop for some jeans. After shopping, I met Rob at the Olive Garden for dinner. I stocked up on some much needed carbs and their delicious salad. Then Rob and I picked up a movie and headed downtown to the Anniversary Inn. We stayed in the Swiss Family Robinson room. It was a lot fun! I had never slept in a tree before, and I was really excited to get some much needed rest. Rob and I couldn't wait to sleep in...but unfortunately we were both wide awake at 7am! Go figure! But we did get to relax and be lazy without getting any juice or breakfast for our boys, or change any diapers. It was really nice. We finally got out of bed and got ready, and headed to the Salt Lake Temple. It was so fun to be there on a busy June morning. There were so many weddings going on, it brought back some fun memories of our wedding day.

After a great morning in the Temple, we headed to my parents to load up the car and hit the road! We had such a great trip up to the lake. It had been years since Rob and I had driven to the lake with just the two of us. We only had one pit stop and made great time. By this time, I was starting to get more and more nervous as the day went on. I woke up on Friday with my foot killing me! I decided to pack both of my pairs of shoes. I had a feeling that it was my new pair of shoes that were causing my foot the problems. I guess that's what I get for waiting until two weeks before the race to try and break in a new pair of shoes.

Later that night, Jess, Jonny, and I went to the park and picked up our packets for the race. Seeing all of the other runners really started getting me excited and more nervous. I couldn't believe that I was going to be running 13.1 miles with 400 other runners. It was crazy to me! I tried to get to bed early that night, but that didn't happen. After wrestling with Wesley for awhile, we finally got into bed around 11pm. I don't think I fell asleep until after midnight, and I woke up every half hour or so. It was a rough night!

I finally rolled out of bed at 5:40 and started getting ready. The nerves were really starting to kick in. My foot was still throbbing, but I tried not to think about it. I got dressed, ate breakfast, and put on my old shoes. Luckily, my foot was feeling better once my shoes were on. A few minutes later, Jonny and Jess picked me up and we were on our way to the starting line. I mentioned in an earlier post that I was nervous about the weather. Well, it started raining on our drive over, but luckily it stopped shortly after getting there. We met up with Lincoln (my cousin's husband) at the start and stood around for a half hour or so waiting for things to start. Since it was most likely going to rain on us, a lot of people had on plastic ponchos and some had even put trash bags over their heads. We thought it was quite humorous!

Shortly after 7:30 the race began! It was crazy. It was quite easy for me and Jess to set our pace. By the first mile we were at our normal pace and were feeling good. I was worried about how the elevation would effect me, and by the third mile I was really feeling the difference. My lungs were burning and I could tell they were working a lot harder. It started raining on us around 2 miles and by mile 3 it was starting to pour a little bit. We were feeling good though. When we were coming up on mile 5, up in the distance I saw my family and port-a-potty. I was so excited! My family was stocked with magic water and shot blocks. It was great timing. I was started to lag a little bit. After a bathroom break and some refueling, we were off. This part of the race was a little rough. It was a winding road and slightly uphill. Every bend we came around, we thought we were a lot closer than we really were. It also started raining on us again which was a bummer because we gave our jackets to my family. But we kept pushing forward. There was the coolest guy (he was probably in his 50's), who was running with us. He would high five anyone who was standing on the side of the road. He was also very encouraging and kept telling us we were doing a great job.

Here we are coming up on on mile 5.

Chowing down on some shot blocks!

When we hit the water station at mile 7, they were out of water, and only had gaterade. I decided to pass and luckily at mile 8 there was our cheering squad again! They saved the day with more magic water and shot blocks! We were still feeling pretty good, except my lungs were really starting to burn.
Lincoln (in front) rockin it! Jonny with his cool yellow trail shoes Jenny and Wesley waiting for my slow butt
Here we are coming up on mile 8. I posted this picture because the awesome high fiving guy is in this (in the front).


Jess and I had decided at the beginning of the race that we wouldn't let each other break down and give up. But after we hit mile 10, that's exactly what I started doing. I was starting to lose it. I was so tired, my knees were killing, and I was having a hard time breathing. Thank goodness for Jess! She kept me going and motivated. She would have rocked the race if I wasn't there holding her back. My family was there again at mile 10.5 cheering us on. We knew we were so close and that we just had to keep going.
Mile 10.5!!!
We hit mile 11 and then mile 12. I almost started crying I was so happy. We were almost to the finish line when we saw Jonny with Carter and Max. It gave us the push that we needed and we were off. Once we entered the park and I saw my family, I sprinted. I couldn't get to that finish line fast enough! When we crossed that line, a wave of emotion hit me! I couldn't believe that I had just ran 13.1 miles! My sister gave me a hug and I almost lost it. And then I realized I couldn't breathe! The last sprint to the finish line nearly emptied my lungs. I didn't care though, I was just so relieved to be done! I wasn't really worried about what time I would finish the race, but I did set somewhat of a goal of when I wanted to finish in, and Jess and I came in 5 minutes under that. I'm a little disappointed that we didn't finish faster, but my main goal was to finish and that's what we did.
Here we are sprinting to the finish line. If you look to the right of me, you can see Wesley running with us. Crossing the finish line!!!

This was a huge accomplishment for me. I have never set a goal like this for me before and it felt so great to accomplish it! Running this race was one of the hardest things I've ever done! I wanted to give up so many times, but I didn't. I had so many people supporting me and pushing me on that the only thing to do was keep going. I am so grateful for my family. They were great cheerleaders and kept us going! I am so grateful for their love and support! I am also grateful for Jess. I don't think I would have finished without her. I am so grateful for her friendship! Thanks for not giving up on me. You really motiviated me to the very end! I don't quite know what to do with myself now. It felt weird not to get up this morning run. I'm hoping to tomorrow. I'm a little surprised at how well my body has held up after the race. I thought I would be in agony, but my legs have just been a little sore. Especially my hamstrings. I feel good and I'm happy I accomplished what I set out to do.
Me and my cheering squad Me and Jess - So happy to be done!!!