I have been meaning to write a blog post on completing my first Half Marathon for weeks now – but time seems to be scarce these days. Anyhow, here goes!

So after months (actually a year) of preparation, I finally have my first ½ Marathon under my belt: The Colfax Half Marathon! Race day was about as good as can be expected. The weather was perfect – a cool morning without a cloud in the sky. When lining up I put myself in the 12 minute mile group to be conservative. It was fairly crowded for the first few miles which drastically slowed down my pace. In retrospect, I should have lined up in the 10 minute mile group…maybe next time.

After I was able to break out from the crowd, I kept up an 8 minute mile pace for nearly half the race. Then, I dropped down to a 10 minute mile. About mile 10, I probably needed a bit more energy and dropped down to a 12 minute mile.

All in all, with the slow start and slow finish – I averaged an 11 minute mile or so – I’ll take that – especially considering the crazy weekend I had before the race! It turned out the night before was my sister-in-law’s wedding and reception at a local grill and bar. Needless to say, my food choices were tasty but not great pre-race options! Ribs and oysters are good – just not before running 13.1 miles!!

I actually felt great when I finished! I chowed on a bbq burrito, drank a beer, and headed off for my post-race refreshing drink at the car – coconut water and cherry juice – YUM! No pain the next day either – thanks to my coconut water, cherry juice concoction!!

Looking forward to my next ½ marathon in October and all my shorter races this summer! It’s going to be a great year of running! Now I have a goal too – beat 2 ½ hours in 13.1 miles!