Saturday Jan. 10, 2009

We woke-up at 3 am and got on the bus to Epcot. The excitement in the air was almost tangible as we breathed in the moist 49 degree weather. I was so thankful for having ran some 5k's throughout 2008 so that I would know how it felt to be getting ready, and how to calm the excitement that was building inside. The hotel provided us a nice box of food for the morning, full of carbs to burn off. I also made sure I was hydrated for the run, I didn't want to make this more difficult on myself than I had to. On Friday we found out that Clint could run with us. He was going to run in the place of one of his cousins that didn't come. That made me SO happy, I didn't want him to be bored w a i t i n g for me to get to the finish line. It also made me happy to know that, other than Clint, it was all woman who were running. I know that probably sounds silly, but for some reason it made me happy. Okay, so after we got to where we were supposed to be we waited around for a bit and then we all had to walk to the starting corals. A few of us went to the bathroom before we left so that we didn't have to go so much out on the run. The walk to the corals was about a mile or so and there were SO many people there. We exchanged last min. advice, gave hugs and words of encouragement and then we parted ways with our family. In my group there were 3 of us that started towards the end, the slower ones. The gun went off at 6 am and over the loud speakers we heard Micky, Minnie, Donald and Goofy all cheer us on. Then began the mile walk to the starting line. If we thought the excitement was thick before it palled in comparison to what it felt like after the gun went off. As we approached the starting line the clock said about 33 min had already passed and I was thankful that my time would be calculated from starting line to finish line, not from gun shot to finish line. I needed those extra 33 min. The morning really was so very beautiful! The moon was shining and the thin fog was starting to disappear, it truly felt magical. Usually when I run my first mile is difficult, but as I started this run I felt so good that I just ran. I did my first 3 miles in 30 min and then slowed down a bit after that. Before I knew it I was in the Magic Kingdom and I was on mile 7. I couldn't believe how great I felt. After mile 7 though I could feel the pain in my legs and I could feel me getting tired. Mile 10 came and I had to pee so bad it hurt. I had been putting it off b/c I didn't want to wait in line. Well...I couldn't wait anymore and thankfully there wasn't a lot of people stopping and now I know why. After I went to the bathroom I could barely walk much less run. Sitting down for that short min made my body realize just how much it hurt. Never again will I wait that long. I did run again though, however painful it might have been. I think I walked most of mile 11 and by the time I finished that one my feet wanted to continue walking but my legs wanted to run. Truly the hardest part of the race came when I hit mile 12. I was emotionally spent and physically worn out. It's a good thing I'm so stubborn and competitive with myself or I think I may have given up. All the people on the side cheering really made a difference. I didn't know any of them, but they cheered for me and called my name as if I did know them. I will forever be grateful for wonderful people who cheer you on, even when you're so far behind. I kept chanting to myself, "Just finish this, just finish this, keep moving don't stop." When I saw the 13 mile marker and I knew that I only had .1 miles to go I raised my arms in the air with a triumphant feeling covering me like a blanket. As I crossed that final line I had a wave of so many different emotions rush through me all at once that I became dazed and lost in my own thoughts. Part of me wanted to cry, part of me wanted to shout for joy but the more part of was just happy to have it done! My feet hurt and I will most likely loose a toenail, my legs hurt and throbbed like they did when I hiked Havasupi, but I really can't wait to try again. It all seems like a dream now, even though only a week has passed. I NEVER thought EVER thought that I would do a half-marathon. I am truly happy with myself and what I have accomplished. The truth is ANYONE can do it, they just have to train for it and have the determination to not just try, but do. My time ended up being a little ove 3 hrs. 10 years ago if some one would have told me that one day I would run for 3 hrs and that 3 hrs would mean 13.1 miles I would have laughed at you, but now, now I know anything is possible. *Pictures to come later*