Race Day

That's me, just about ready to cross the finish line. Chip had finished about 15 minutes before me, so he got to be the photographer that day. (That's what he gets for being so fast!) As you can see, the sky was a bright, beautiful blue and it was perfect weather for a race.

Chip and me after the race, drinking a refreshing Jamba Juice, and sporting our medals. This race was a P.R. for each of us. Chip ran it in 1:35:58 (9th in his age division out of 61) and I ran it in 1:53:20 (11th in my age division out of 87) It was a fast, beautiful course.

Kim and Eric, both long time runners. They employ the walk/run method for running and swear by it. They've both run numerous half-marathons and several marathons.

Our friends Bob and Carol. They've run so many races I've lost count. The travel all over the country to do so, mostly recently running a 10K while in Boston to watch the Boston Marathon. They're the most knowledgeable people we know when it comes to running. I always just ask Carol any running question I have rather than trying to find the answer myself, because I KNOW she'll know the answer. Bob placed 2nd in his age division for this race!

A group shot of all of us who ran the Half-Marathon this year.

L to R: Chip, Me, Kim, Eric, Carol, Bob

Our race experience actually began on Friday, when Chip and I, along with friends Bob and Carol, volunteered at the Race Expo. We set the timing chips for the runners, which really wasn't difficult, but we kept extremely busy and at the end of our 6-1/2 hour shift, we were beat! It was a lot of fun to interact with and be in the midst of literally thousands of other runners. I love to overhear the dialogue between runners as it makes me realize that there are universal worries, concerns, or things we just like to talk about, particularly before a race. I met people from all over the country who had come to Ogden just to run the marathon. Supposedly 49 states and 4 countries were represented in the race, but I have to question the accuracy of that fact, as I set people's timing chips whose home towns were listed as Fruit Heights, Maryland and Clearfied, South Dakota (Fruit Heights and Clearfield are town within 25 miles of Ogden). I think rather than 49 states being represented, there are a bunch of people who don't know how to put the correct state in when registering! Volunteering at the Expo was a very positive experience and something that both Chip and I would do again. It was a great segue into Race Day.

It was a very early morning, 3:00 a.m. to be exact, as we needed to be in downtown Ogden and ready to board the bus at 4:45. We arrived at the start area about 5:15, which meant we had 1 hour and 45 minutes to just "hang." It was dark and it was COLD! However, there were lots of fires, excitement, and just plain body heat that made it tolerable. The race started at 7:00, when almost 1,970 people crossed the Half-Marathon Start Line to run their race. I realized while standing there waiting to begin that this was by far the largest race I've ever done and I liked it. I loved the energy of all the people; we were all so different in size, shape, age, and appearance, each of us having our own reasons for running this race. The Start Line was the last Chip and I would see of each other as he was always 1-2 miles ahead of me.

It was an absolutely beautiful course and I would recommend it to anyone wanting to do a half. There were only a couple of hills, all very tolerable, numerous aid stations, incredible scenery, and because the majority of it is ran down a canyon, it's a very fast course. I have never been in a race that had so many spectators cheering on the runners and I thrived on that.

About 1 mile before the Finish Line, the course takes you through a tunnel that has a grated surface. Just as I was at the end of the tunnel, my right toe caught the grate and I knew I was going down. My first instinct was to fall as far to the side as I possibly could so as not to cause a domino effect of people tripping over me. Fortunately, there weren't many people behind me and this was avoided. I popped back up, knew immediately nothing was broken, and ran the rest of the way with a scraped knee and elbow that looked far worse than they really were. They did get me a lot of sympathy after finishing, however :)

As you get to the last quarter mile or so, both sides of the streets are filled with people shouting, waving cow bells, and holding up signs. Last year, the kids and I were at this point, cheering on Chip as he finished his full marathon. It's nice to have experienced both sides now.

When it's all said and done, I'm glad I came out of racing retirement. For some reason this race felt different from any other I've ever done. (This was my 3rd Half Marathon, my last one being 5 years ago.) I really can't pinpoint one specific thing that made it different. It is the first Half I've ran by myself, which I think made a difference. My pacing and thoughts were all my own, making it truly MY race.

We're planning on doing the local 5K here in North Ogden on the 4th of July. We have run this in the past, and last year Chip and Sam ran it together. I was in Iowa at my niece's wedding so I didn't run it with them. This year the three of us will run it together and Caitlin will do her part by showing up to take pictures. We're also planning to run a 5K in August near Ketchum, Idaho. This race has been organized in memory of our Youth Director who was killed when he fell while bouldering in the Sawtooth mountains almost 3 years ago. Sam is also planning to run that race with us. I think we'll do another Half-Marathon the end of August, the Top of Utah near Logan. That being said, I guess this was the kick-off of racing season for us and a great beginning it was!