13.1 Miles to Sconiville

I wanted to write about this run on Saturday (race day) but I had serious writer's block. I must have been to mentally tired to recap the race, but I am giving it a shot today.

The run started at 8AM in Stillwater and ended in Hudson, WI. It was our longest run of the year and the results were favorable. Kelly shaved over 12 minutes off of her half-marathon time from last fall and I cut my time down by 7 minutes. We ran hard for most of the race, but it was tough going towards the end. We both had some serious doubts as this distance is only half way of our end goal.

So as far as races go, this one was down on my list. I like to be rewarded for running 13+ miles. I am not looking for the royal treatment here, but when fat people run that far, is it too much to ask to have some refreshments within 100 yards of the finish line? Usually at these races, they cater to the runners to the full extent. I was expecting a medal (seriously) and drinks close to the finish line. No dice on either request. Also, every other race we have done have the chip timers that attach to your shoe. They start when you cross the start line and logs your time when you cross the finish line. It gives one their real time in which they finished the race. This run, however had no such technology so we had to rely on our trusty Garmin watches. Kelly didn't have as much of a problem with the accommodations as I did, but I am selfish and I expect to be catered to when I run for over 2 hours consecutively. I will admit, the t-shirts were pretty nice. By the way, you know there are not a lot of husky runners when you go to get your race t-shirt and they have to get your size out of a "special" box. They had all other sizes out on a table, but the XL's were behind a table still in the cardboard box they were shipped in. I think I am developing a complex.

Kelly's mom was nice enough to show up and cheer us on and I cannot tell you how much motivation it gives a runner when people are cheering you on. So, thanks Jean for showing up and supporting us. This week we have a 4.5 mile training run with our group on Wednesday and another 13 miler this Saturday. We have now completed half the distance of our goal, but it seems like we are a long way away yet.