Nebo Half

For the past few years, I've had a goal to complete a half marathon.  Ever since I got home from the Wasatch Back, I knew I could do it.  I looked and looked and got a suggestion from my friend, Mandi, to do the Nebo Half.  It was the inaugural year and was a perfect 12 weeks away for plenty of training time.  Plus, the canyon is beautiful and the weather would be cool and lovely. 

I started my training with the intention to run the whole thing.  I didn't have a time goal until a few weeks before the race but I knew I wanted to run the whole time.  There were two girls in my neighborhood that started out with me.  They both got injured during training and were back and forth on whether they would actually run it.  It scared me to do it alone, but I was determined to finish what I had started. 

While running my 9 mile training run after a completely exhausting week, I hit a wall and could only run 8 of the miles.  It was a bump in my road that I happily overcame with rest and dropping a day of running.  I talked to two of my Wasatch Back teammates and they gave me lots of encouragement and advice that helped me on my long runs.  They both signed up for the race and ran along side me on my last 3 long runs.  Kim and Mandi will both deny it, but I don't know if I could have kept going without them.  They are wonderful, supportive angel cheerleaders.  I was happy to know they would be with me along the way.  Just before the race, one of the other neighborhood girls decided not to run (which I think was a hard, but necessary choice) and the other decided to do it.  Her injury was painful but not made worse by running.  I worked hard all summer and put in countless hours of training and rest so my body would be ready to endure 13.1 miles. 

I had butterflies the whole week before the race.  Any time someone mentioned it, my stomach would flutter with nerves and excitement.  The night before the race, my friends sneaked into my garage and decorated my car with 13.1 and other messages for me.  They left a cute card and some gifts including some Halloween nail polish (they know me so well) that I used for my race manicure.   We had a pasta party and it was nice to sit with them and ask questions and ease my mind. 

I got up at 3:30am the morning of the race.  My alarm was set for 4, but I just couldn't sleep thinking about it.  My heart was pounding and my mind was racing.  I gathered my things and got dressed while taking deep breaths to calm myself down.  Jeannette picked me up at 4:30 and we drove the Payson High School where the buses were ready to pick us up.  Interestingly enough, by the time we got to the school my nerves turned into excitement.  I knew I was ready.  I knew I had worked hard and put in my miles.  Mandi and Kim got there just as we did.  I was so happy to see them! 

The bus drove us up the canyon we had to run down and I'm glad Kim distracted me by talking during the ride up or I would have spent the bus ride wondering how in the world I was going to run down every inch of the canyon. 

There were fire pits at the start because it was so cold!  I stood by the fire for a few minutes while the music blasted and people were stretching and hopping up and down to get warmed up.  It was a tiny race - only about 150-200 participants.  I'm glad it wasn't intimidating because I don't know if I could have calmed down enough with more people.  They gathered us at the starting line and blew an airhorn to signal the start.  I didn't start my gps right then so I didn't get a completely accurate time/distance but it was close. 

The first 8 miles flew by.  Mandi and Kim stayed right with me and helped to pace.  They were great distractions and we talked about Hawaii (where Kim grew up), our kids, running, Willie Day (as in Willie Nelson), and life.  We saw cattle, deer, and a really cool caterpillar.  It soon warmed up and we trusted our warm gear with a girl named Jazz at mile 7.  We stopped to use the honey buckets twice but ran the whole time.  It really was a beautiful run.  Before I knew it, we were at mile 11.  Then it got hard.  My legs were stiff and it was warming up.  The course began to level off and go up and down a little before we were out of the canyon.  At mile 12, Kim and Mandi started yelling encouragement and I could feel my body resisting the run.  I didn't want to slow down and I knew I could run one more mile.  I didn't slow down and pushed through it.  At .6 miles left I wanted the throw up but they told me not to stop so I kept running.  and running and running.  I could see the 13 mile marker as I rounded a corner and just after that I saw Jarom standing on the sideline.  It was just the boost I needed and I gave my last burst of energy right then.  Cannon saw me and decided to race me to the finish instead of holding my hand and running through with me.  The last number I saw on the clock was 2:38.  The last .10 is the hardest thing I've ever done (aside from childbirth).  That .10 is there for a reason and it's what makes you reach down for the last piece of effort you can give.  I crossed the finish line and I was relieved and happy.  I still can't believe I did it!  I ran a half marathon.  It was hard but I did it.  I'm so happy with how it went and I wouldn't change a thing. 

I paused my timer when we stopped for bathroom breaks and my time was 2:31 but the official time on the clock was 2:39.  Either way, I just wanted to be somewhere under 3 hours and I was.  I ran faster than I have ever run before.  I was on such a high all day.  I got home and couldn't sleep - my mind was jumping from one memory to the other and I ran errands instead of sleeping.  The next day, however, was a different story.  I'm still so sore and I can tell it's going to be a while before I can walk like normal, let alone run again.  Now for my next goal! 

Here's the pics.

Starting line

Finish Line - Mandi, Jeannette, Ashley Kim

Almost there

Still smiling

I finished!

My cheerleaders

Kim, Ashley and Mandi in front of my pimped ride!