Salt Lake 1/2 Marathon

I DID IT!!!!! I started running again in late January. A couple of friends in my neighborhood asked me to start running outside with them in February. It was great to be back running outside and I was surprised at how much I missed running. We would go for 3 and 4 mile runs and occasionally a 5 miler. Then we set the goal to be ready to run in the Salt Lake 1/2. We started a training schedule and it got easier and easier to run. I enjoyed getting up (most of the time) and getting my run in. It felt great. As the weeks approached and our runs got longer it was exciting to think that we could really do this. It was fun getting to know these awesome women better and through it all we really became GREAT Friends ( I guess you have to be to be around someone with no make-up and wearing spandex!)

The week of race day was exciting. We began to taper down and do small runs. We went downtown and picked up our packets, had a great Pasta dinner and tried to get some sleep the night before. We left at 5:30am to head to the starting line. It was at the Legacy Bridge at the University of Utah. The race started at 7am. IT WAS AWESOME!!!! It was so much easier then I anticipated. We set a good pace and just ran....the next thing I knew we had already gone 8 miles. It was flying by. It was NOT easy but it wasn't bad. As we started up State street towards South Temple it was difficult. It was a steady uphill and I was starting to hurt. Once we headed west on South Temple I knew we only had one mile to go. We were almost done. As we approached the Gateway there were swarms of people all cheering us on. That's when I started to cry. I had done it! Then we saw the Finish line with balloons and the American flag. AWESOME! I looked over to my left and saw Kelly cheering me on....I LOVE him! That's what I needed for my last burst of energy. We finished with a time of 2hr 21 min. WAY better then I anticipated. It was such an awesome feeling to set a goal and to accomplish it successfully!





Thanks Kelly for your support and love. You are amazing. Thanks to Maria, Jodi and Arnica. You girls ROCK!