simplydaisies
After my wonderful hubby finished his first half marathon he said it was a very humbling experience.
Well, after my first trail race I am going to say it was a very humiliating experience. It was the ultimate mind over matter game I have ever played.
First off, I finished. Amazingly, I was not even last. Secondly, time. I did not meet my goal that I set for myself. After reflecting on the race, I am slowly becoming okay with that.
I had heard about the trail over the last couple of weeks. I stepped up my hill training. I am now realizing that my definition of trails and the true definition are not the same!
The trail I ran on Saturday morning was narrow at times, uphill, and filled with rocks and tree branches. Not to mention heat.
The first 9 miles was actually fun! I was mentally prepared for the hills. And I thought jumping over the rocks and the branches was great. Then mile 9 appeared. Silly me. I was thinking what comes up, must go down. Not necessarily. At mile 9 I turned a corner and saw another upward hill. I was thinking really. Then I tossed my breakfast. Lovely! Never did that before in a race. I had a couple of runners stop and ask if I was ok. I felt bad because I did not want to hold anyone up. Honestly, it made me angry. But I sucked it up and carried on.
Mile 9 to mile 12.5 was more of a wog than running. I guess after nine miles of doing uphill my body said enough. I would not stop because I knew I would not start again.
Happiness! Mile 12 marker. I was great, almost over and the rest will be a breeze. Not so fast. After celebrating at the sight of the sign, I turned the corner and saw another hill. Except this time I could not see the top. I will not share what I said….
The best sight of the day was of course the finish line and Hubby standing there with a smile on his face. He of course finished before me.
The trail won this race. It kicked my butt. I was angry when I crossed the line. I was angry at myself for losing the mental game.
On the way home I became even angrier because I was forgetting why I ran this race.
simplydaisies
This was the shirt we got for running. These are a list of names of soldiers, marines, and civilians that have been killed from this community since 9/11. People were able to turn in names of who they were running for. At the opening ceremony they did a role call followed by taps. It was a very moving experience.
Considering this, my anger subsided. The reality and the importance of the morning filtered in. That trail will be ran next year and I will be on it, but the day was to honor and to celebrate these brave men and women.
I am happy that I finished the race. I am happy that I was able to participate. However, I am honored that I was able to be involved in a event that celebrates our military.
