Come Hell or High Water Coast to Coast Half 2011

Early morning Miami registration.
A race bib waiting.
A warm sunny day on the East Coast.
Friendly beach-type participants.
Friendly Floridians cheering Krystal on.
Just Krystal and the Miami Half people.
That's how this one rolled out - East Coast.

No registration table in sight.
No race bib to run with.
A sunny cold Nevada morning.
No other participants.
No water tables or friendly cheering faces.
Just me and the Nevada wind.
That's how this one rolled out - West Coast.

And I'm not complaining!

Getting to this place took a lot.
And that's why we aptly named it
"Come Hell or Highwater - Coast to Coast Half"

For a number of reasons, our
-Plans fouled out to get to Vegas for the Rock n Roll Half.
-Plans fouled out to get to the Bay Area for the Walnut Creek Half.
-Plans fouled out to run together here in Reno, and make our own race on Saturday, December 10th.

So long story short, due to unforseen circumstances, we didn't do this half together (same time and place) but we finished well West and East Coast respectively.

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Race Day Report

PRE-RACE
Using Google Maps, James and I looked at a route in Northwest Reno that was 13.1 out and back. Just before the race, I drove three miles in and hid a water bottle in the bushes....that would be an extra water stop if I needed it along the way, which I did end up picking up.

GEAR
Garmin watch was charged the night before to keep track of mileage.

CLOTHES
I was all decked out in "Patagucci" gear.
Capilene 1 silkweight pants -first layer
Speedwork tights- running pants with little pocket for key and Gu.

Zoot tank with runners pocket in the back for Gu and Iphone
Capilene 3 1/4 zip as a baselayer
Runshade Crew over that for SPF protection and the nice lil' pocket that fit one Power Bar Gu.

3 packs of Power Bar Gel - Vanilla, Strawberry, Caffe Latte
Platypus - filled with water

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I started out around 8:45 am. The air was crisp and it was a little chilly but I was ready. Slow and even pace, I kept my first two miles in the 10:30 range. Then the wind hit and I slowed to and 11 pace. As I hit some hills, I looked down at the watch atleast once to see a 12 minute pace. Grrh! Frustrated, i kept reminding myself to just go slow. I wanted to finish and finish strong. The rest of the miles until around mile 8 were fairly good - somewhere in the 10 minute mark, dipping into 11 here and there. But on the way back that 5 mph East wind was definitely felt and frustrating! Combating that for the final 5 miles was brutal, to be honest. Nevada wind sucks!

I did spend my time wisely, as that's one thing about long distance running that drives me crazy. It feels like a waste of time! But I did use the time to connect with my creator, enjoying the beautiful outdoors, including the Truckee River and to pray for people that I know right now are struggling - in their marriages, with their health, in life in general. That helped the time pass for sure.

That and MUSIC!!! Having the Soul Surfer soundtrack, Owl City, Matt Kearney and Brooke Frasier in the music mix to keep me going!

So glad to say I did accomplish the goal - A half marathon in 2011!

First call made to celebrate with my husband.
Second call made to celebrate with my partner in crime, Krystal in Miami who had finished her race.
Third call made to the most amazing place in the world, especially after a half - Thanks to Eclipse Pizza for making the very best meat calzone in the world!! :) The world!!!

Next year I plan to do it - but hopefully there will be a beach, warm weather, other participants, a race bib and after party! Nonetheless, my knees hurt tremendously but my ankles held up. I'm going to spend the next week just taking walks. No workouts through Christmas.