This was my most difficult race ever. The first 5 miles were all uphill and I literally thought I was going to die. It was my first half marathon since January and I was incredibly nervous. It didn't help that I had watched a YouTube video of the course a few days before the race. If I had seen it before I signed up, I probably wouldn't have signed up for this race...BUT in the end I'm sooo glad I did it! Calico Racing (http://www.calicoracing.com) puts on a fantastic race and I'm excited to sign up for more of their races. They had 2 free shuttles for runners to use since there wasn't enough parking in Red Rock Canyon to accommodate all of the runners. I got on the shuttle in Summerlin. I met a wonderful lady on the bus who has done a ton of half marathons and then we both met another girl when we got off the bus at the start line. I chatted with them for about 2 hours while we waited for the race to start. I love meeting fellow runners and hearing their stories! The weather was gorgeous and slightly overcast although it was kind of cold. I was upset that I had left my gloves because I was freezing, but in the end, I'm glad I didn't have them since it warmed up later. About 1 mile in, one of my Team #runDisney teammates caught up with me! I was so excited to see her! I had met Marci before the Tinkerbell Half Marathon and we kept in touch via Facebook and Twitter. We both had on our Team Sparkle skirts too! It was awesome! After the first 2 miles of uphill, I was hurting. My muscles were burning and I was just basically walking. I was so mad at myself. Then I devised a plan. They had cones set up every few yards. I decided to run from 1 cone to another and then walk to the next cone then run to the next one. I used that method for the next 3 miles and it worked! My legs stopped burning and I was able to run a bit. Finally, I reached the top around mile 5. After that it was all downhill. I was literally flying down the hills. I wished that my GPS had a signal in the canyon so I could have seen how fast I was running. I swear I was doing 7 minute miles. The views were absolutely breathtaking. The volunteers at the water stations were so nice. Each station had water and some kind of fitness tea. The tea was good- not too sweet. I actually couldn't believe how fast I made it to mile 11. At mile 12.5 I started to pick up speed. I ran right through the last water station. I was ready to be done. I was so excited to catch up to Marci right at mile 13. I finished about 10 seconds behind her. As I approached the finish line I was shocked to see that I was going to get a PR! I was overjoyed! I couldn't believe it. I got my medal and ran over to talk to Marci. We were starving so we headed straight for the refreshment table. I must say that Calico Racing had the BEST spread of food I've ever seen. Even better than Disney...I can't believe I just said that. They had cookies, cheese, crackers, pretzels, brownies, bagels, etc. I was starving so I basically ate everything. Marci and I chatted for a while until it was time to get back on the buses. We took a picture together to post on our Team #runDisney Facebook page.
Overall verdict: My hardest race ever, but I got a PR. I'll definitely be doing this one again next year. The views were absolutely gorgeous and the weather was awesome! There were more than enough water stations and the bling was great too. No complaints here! Thank you to Pro Compression and Team Sparkle for the awesome attire during my PR :)
Check out the race here...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlsAWTw2LIw
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| Team #runDisney! |
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| Race Bling |
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