My cheering section consisted of Sheri's younger sister Sara and her kids Pierce, Halley, and Brook - Sheri's older sister Judy and most of her kids, Krista, Jake, and Jared - Sheri and our kids Callie, Caden and Tyler - and Jessica and baby Layna... (14 people cheering me on). They were a great support, and had to get up really early to be there to see me run.
The race started at 6:30 a.m. and was almost an hours drive from our house. I got there about 30 minutes early, and the cheering section arrived a bit later.
As the race was winding down - between miles 11 and 12 I got to the top of a hill and could see the whole family down there at the bottom waiting for me... it was a really cool feeling and gave me a nice boost of adrenalin. Some of the pictures below are of me running towards them, then some of the kids running with me. The last pictures are of me crossing the finish line.
If you click on the link to see the stats of the run - it should be noted that the whole back side of the course is all hills. I was either running up or downhill from mile 3 through mile 11 - which I'm sure contributed to my increased time...
I realized during this race, that I'm not a runner - I run, but I am in no way shape or form an actual "runner". Runners make a life out if this... I've made a goal out of it. Runners wear the perfect clothes and appear to make a hobby out of running. Until now, the only times I'd run was if a coach made me, or a dog was chasing me. Now I run... but I don't think I'll ever be a "runner".
Next up - a full Marathon... I'm glad that it's not until October - because at the end of this race, there is no way I could have gone on for another 13 miles and lived.
Link to see my stats during the race:
http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/8027745
As always - click on the pictures to enlarge...
