Sun FPOL Half Marathon:
Yesterday it was 78 degrees and humid and I was a little worried about the race. But this morning I got up and it was cloudy and cool, even a little misty. The perfect day for a long run. Our little team of 9, very amateur runners, headed to the start line. This is the first year for the "Five Points of Life (FPOL)" Marathon. They are raising money and awareness for blood, bone marrow, plasma/platelet, organ, and tissue donation. My company, Chiron, was a major sponsor so that is why we put together a little team. Since it was a long weekend my Mom came down to spend the weekend with me and was there to cheer us all on and take pictures.
At the start my colleague Mary and I discovered we had the same goal, try to hit 2 hours, so we decided to run together. At the starting gun we wished each other luck and off we went. The first half of the course was great, we had a good pace going, it wasn't crowded and the course is nice and flat, just a few little rollers. We chatted a bit, set our sights on a few fading runners, and picked them off one at a time. But then we started seeing the signs that this was the first time the city had hosted this race. The water stops weren't where they were supposed to be, the cups were too full so that we spilled half our gatoraide or snorted it up our noses, the mile markers were missing in a few spots, but the spectators were great. A friendly man giving water in front of his house saved us at mile 6. We were just under 54 min at this point, right on our pace. We stayed strong and determined until we passed the 10 mile marker. We had to run through the stadium, not on the track but the dark scary part that you walk to the stands. We were both getting a bit claustrophobic and ready for this race to be over. We were worried about our time and there was no mile 11 marker, sure we had passed it we starting looking for mile 12. That one never appeared either. Knowing this was the spot I DIED in my first half marathon, I was determined to stay strong. Mary was fading, I would ask her how she was and got a little squeak of "tired". There was a girl in yellow shorts who had been just in front of us the last couple of miles, she looked strong and consistent, so I said "let's stay with the girl in the yellow shorts." I stopped thinking about anything else, stopped checking my watch and worrying where we were. I focused on her back and staying right behind her. A few minutes later we saw it, the mile 13 marker. We were going to make it in under 2 hours. I was ready to be done and picked it up a bit, Mary was tired but determined and settled in right behind me. Then I saw my Mom cheering and taking pictures and I crossed the line. I even beat my goal coming in at 1 hour 55 min. We were so excited. Mary and I both said "I couldn't have done it without you"! It was a great race, I really enjoyed it!

Run = 13.1 miles (in 1:55!!!!!!!)

Fri Swim:
I arrived in FL after a pretty long flight at around 8 pm. I decided a nice swim would be a great way to unwind. So I got ready and headed for the pool. It is very nice out, still a little warm and the pool is big and empty. I got my goggles and cap on and jumped in, then almost jumped back out again. It was freezing!!!! I suffered through about 600 meters and couldn't take any more and headed for the jacuzzi. That hit the spot!

Swim = 600 meters