Half a Half

Half a Half with L by tracyrunning at Garmin Connect - Details

I mentioned last week that I was going to run with a friend of mine at a local half marathon. Not as a pacer but more as an encourager or moral support. She has a knee injury and missed the injury deferral date. This race - like many - doesn't let you sell your bib [Though I really don't understand why. Who the heck cares who is wearing the bib as long as it's paid for???] - so she figured she'd rather run/walk it if she had to rather than lose the money altogether.

We read the fine print on the website and the last minute instructions they emailed to runners and nothing mentioned pacers. We figured if they don't say anything specifically, they must not care too much about it.

Of course I brought my own water and fuel. I didn't even use their porta potties. And still I felt slightly criminal....well I did throw my home made arm warmers into a trashcan at a water stop. gulp.

As much as I'd like to think I'm a rebel, I guess I'm just a goody-two-shoes at heart.

I hopped onto the course just after mile 6.

Hanging out on someone's front steps waiting for the mass of runners

The weather people were calling for warmer temps and no rain. It was lightly misting and probably in the mid 50's at the start. Perfect!

My friend L is typically crazy fast and she wanted to stay in the 10 - 10:30 range if possible.  It was clear that she was in pain, a lot of pain, but she is also very strong and was able to run without limping even with just a few quick stops to stretch.

I had planned to peel off around mile 11.5 or 12 - to make for an easier walk to my car, but she was beginning to struggle so I wanted to stay with her as long as I could. Her husband who is also super  fast was at the top of the hill at mile 12.5 cheering so I asked if he'd like to run in with her. He stepped in and I stepped out cheering my lungs out as she made her way to the finish line.

I was really proud of L and the courage she showed by sticking with it and staying strong. It was a great run and I was so happy I could help out.

Now I'm counting down the days till my half. I'm still sick so I'm trying to stay positive and just be happy with whatever the day brings.

** she had the ok from her dr and chiro to run as long as she took it easy, and 10:30-11 is practically walking for her so she followed their orders. ;)