Lincoln Half Marathon 5-2-2010

I apologize now for May entries being out of order. Blame it on busy-ness, dying brain cells, lack of organization, whatever. Nonetheless, I'll start blogging now about our early May activities.
I woke up early on the morning of May 2. I took a not-so-leisurely soak in a warm tub, threw some fruit, juice and yogurt in the blender, then hopped in my in-laws van with my family, my smoothie, and my iPod loaded with inspirational praise music. For the next half hour, I tried to tune everything out except my time with God before the race began.
Once downtown, I bid the family goodbye and entered the fray that was 8,000 runners, plus additional volunteers and National Guard members. I found a place to stash my stuff, and about 15 minutes before race time got in line for the port-a-potties. 13 minutes later, the line hadn't moved much and someone started singing the National Anthem. I finally found myself in the enclosed plastic box finding a way to make myself more comfortable when the starting gun fired. Yeah...my life story...I'm in the can when the race begins.I finished my business and found my way to the back of the pack of 8,000 runners. My goal pace was over a 12:00 mile (logically, probably closer to 13:00), and those runners were to line up last. It was really something like "On your marks, get set, shuffle!" as we slowly made our way around the loop to the starting line. About five minutes into my shuffle, I spied my family and gave some excited waves and one last hug to my little five-year-old. Twenty minutes into the shuffle, I finally crossed the start line. At this point, the little microchip tied to my shoelace officially started my time.I ran down sixteenth street, past the sorority and fraternity houses. (Interesting...many sororities were out cheering on their sisters, but the frat houses were surprisingly silent for 7:00 on Sunday morning.) I continued to South Street, which was about 2 miles into the race. I passed what used to be Godfather's Pizza, where a certain young man proposed to me 11 1/2 years ago. I gave him a friendly call and with short sentences relived the happy moment. At this point, I'm feeling really good. I decided to wait until mile three to take my first walking break.

Continuing east on South Street (is that like the University of Northern South Dakota?), I found my way to Sheridan Boulevard and the 3 mile mark. I grabbed a cup of water from the volunteers and forced myself to walk. But you know, I felt really good, so I quickly picked up my pace. I decided that mile 5 would be a good place to stop, so I kept running on Sheridan...a beautiful tree-lined street in an old-money part of Lincoln...until I hit 48th Street. About this time I had hit mile five. I grabbed some more water, slathered some Vaseline on my blistered left foot, and joined a short line for a quick break (I was remarkably well hydrated and needed to take care of it.) Well, the short line took ten minutes! At this point, I figured I had rested more than I would have walking, so I started running again, heading south to Highway 2.

Somewhere along the way, Dan gave me a call so he'd know when to expect me. He would be waiting right before mile 8. I hit the bike trail along Highway 2 and kept running until the mile 7 rest station. At this point, I downed a gel pack for a quick calorie boost and slathered on another round of Vaseline. I walked a little bit, but still felt great. I couldn't believe I'd gone more than halfway already! About a block and a half before Dan, I saw him taking pictures of Dayna and bellowed in my deep teacher voice, "WILSON!" Everyone around me heard...I kept hollering for a block and a half. He finally looked up as I passed him...completely unprepared. Thus, no picture.

I turned up 20th Street and prepared myself for "The Hill." I believed it would be between miles 9 & 10. So, I proceed up mile 8, psyching myself up and gearing up for "The Hill." I hit mile 9, and noticed that everything had flattened out. Apparently, "The Hill" was between 8 & 9 and I had just conquered it. Wow! I got a call from my friend Jordan, who told me that she and Lori would be waiting for me after mile 10. What joy I had to see my friends and give them a big hug!
At the very moment I passed Jordan & Lori, our good friend Brooke called me.
Brooke has been an amazing support the last few weeks...telling me what I should eat, when I should eat it, what I should expect...she's truly a running pro. I'm still not sure why she decided not to run with me...maybe 8 months pregnant is a good enough reason!
The encouragement of Brooke, Lori & Jordan was exactly what I needed as I found my way to 10th Street. I had less than a 5K to go! At this point, the balls of my feet were starting to hurt. I did take another walk break at mile 11. Then I geared myself up for the final push. Somewhere near mile 12, I stopped to give myself one last foot massage. I was sitting across the street from the apartment where Dan lived when we were dating, and where we spent the first 2 weeks of our married life upon returning from our honeymoon. I called him and let him know I was coming in.
Mile 12 was slow but steady, and before I knew it, I was backtracking to Memorial Stadium. An early wave of full marathon runners was coming in at this point, so I was directed to stay to the right while they went to the left (yeah, that's a bit humbling, but they've been doing this longer than me!) I crossed mile 13 and went by cameras that were projecting me on the left side of the HuskerVision screen. That last .1 mile almost did me in, but I came into the stadium (not roaring like I had hoped, but very full nonetheless). I saw myself on the right side of HuskerVision and threw my arms in the air in victory. 13.1 miles. I did it! The gun time said 2:56. My goal was to finish in under 3 hours, and I knew it took 20 minutes to hit the start line. My final time: 2:36:09. Truth be told, if my bladder had cooperated at mile five, it would have been shorter. My average mile time was 11:56. Much lower than the 13:00 I anticipated. And though I figured on walking at least 4 miles, in actuality, I walked less than a half mile total.

I make it to the end zone and look up into the stands for my family. About this point, Dan called me and asked if I was almost there. Um...I had already finished. I had been on HuskerVision twice. He missed me...both photo ops along the way (mile 8 and the finish line), and he missed me. I confess I was extremely disappointed. I had trained so hard, and I really just wanted a picture to commemorate this accomplishment. To his credit, I had completely underestimated what I was capable of doing, and both times, I had reached the destination minutes before he expected me.
Will I do this again? I'd love to. But, I think training and running the race was difficult to do by myself. Somewhere along the line I lost my running partner and never heard back. That was a disappointment, but somehow must have been part of God's plan. I would have never signed up alone. I will say that during the race it never crossed my mind that I couldn't do it, and I never hit the wall that seems to affect so many runners. I had trained well. I was well hydrated and had eaten the right foods. I had a game plan...I prayed for each of the 13 members of my family...one person for each mile. My mind was focused on God and others, not myself. A year ago, I would have never thought this was possible. I couldn't run 3 minutes in place. A mile just about did me in. And now, I have completed a half marathon!

So...anybody want to run with me next year?