Thunder Road part III - post mortem

Ok.  So I really didn't see this coming, but I PR'd Thunder Road again.  (Insert huge cheesy grin here).  It was tough though.  I started off moving well and just went with it.  I was running at a 9:10 pace for the first eight or nine miles.  I was going to PR!  Then the hills started taking a toll on me, and the mile markers started getting farther and farther apart (or so it seemed).  I walked while getting my eater at the water station after mile marker ten for a few seconds and my legs were really cramping.  But I kept running.  The hills after mile marker eleven were brutal.  I wanted so badly to walk up the hills, but I promised Alex* I wouldn't.  I shuffled along, cramping in my side and my legs.  I kept running.  By then I knew a PR was an option, but not a guarantee.  Somewhere in mile twelve I picked up my pace.  When I saw my friends and family near the finish I got that extra burst to finish strong. 

2:02:08 

Nearly a minute faster than last year, and few minutes faster than I thought I would run that day.  I was thrilled!!  This was an accomplishment that I only achieved because of the support of my friends and family, and especially because of my Alex.  

* Alex got up early before my race and wished me good luck while the rest of the house slept.  I hugged him tight and I told him that at some point my race would get really hard and I would want to walk, but I wouldn't walk because I would think about Alex and his good luck and that would make me keep going.  He liked that and gave me a huge smile.