Yep, you read the title correctly….Thrill of the Hills Half Marathon Trail Run. I chose this race for mutliple reasons, I LOVE TRAIL RUNS, the race was on my birthday, oh and it’s the only race I’ve ever DNF’d. Ideally, I would have redeemed myself and done the full marathon but Coach Katie didn’t think it was a good idea. Just to prove I listen to her I opted for the half marathon and told myself this was all about fun. I don’t run trails much at all during the tri season, I don’t want to risk injury, but off season is fair game.
I was thrilled (tehehe) that Mike Pastore decided to race as well, this meant I wasn’t flying solo. The great thing about Mike is he’s always down for a trail run, he can eat candy bars for breakfast, and still have a faster half marathon split than me and he did 26.2 miles. Mike and I drove the morning of, the sunrise was gorgeous, but the temps were freezing and I’d only brought short sleeves. I’m lucky to have smart friends b/c Mike packed extra which meant I wouldn’t freeze to death.
My goals for race day were to smile, have fun, and be at peace with my life. It’s not that I have some awful life, but there’s been a lot going on with family friends and my never ending health issues. I’ve not had anything major health wise, but I don’t have a thyroid and it’s been acting up quite a bit. I’ve also had a nagging injury for years, and while I’m good at managing it I’ve let it consume my off season trying to get other opinions to see if there’s alternative treatment. I hesitate to share these things b/c of friends and family going through much worse, but sometimes it’s necessary to open up. So, goal for the day, ENJOY myself, forget about work, and everyone else. For one day, okay who am I kidding, for a couple hours it was going to be all about me and the trail. Oh, and Coach Katie requested a negative split.
The race was beautiful. I tried to take the first half easy, I even snapped a picture or two. About mile 2 I vaguely remembered something about powerlines and it being DREADFUL. I don’t recall what mile it happened at, maybe 7 or so but that powerline hill was no joke. I passed a lot of people on that hill, good steady grunt. I kept telling myself over and over, atleast you can be out here. Be thankful. Embrace the pain. I hit a rough spot around mile 10 where I just couldn’t seem to keep my heart rate in check, started to get dizzy. All probably due to the thyroid, but annoying regardless. About mile 11 I made a decision to slow it down and enjoy the ride. I was happy to come in at 2:07, and happy to have stayed upright. This course was hillier than I remembered, just as technical (which I love), and gorgeous. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to “ditch the city” and enjoy a couple hours in the woods.
Special thanks again to Mike Pastore for driving, he even had a cooler w/beer awaiting me since he was doing the full marathon. Good thing he’s fast, or it may have been an empty cooler he came back to. Thanks to our spouses for watching the kids so we could play in the woods, Ashley even had a goodie bag for me when we got back! I arrived home to tons of treats, birthday hugs, and one tired husband. Great way to end another year, and begin another.
