Tina Coleman's Whidbey 1/2 Marathon report

What a weekend. Started out the journey with my Husband and my Sons on the Ferry from Mukilteo to Clinton. It was a gorgeous day, the sun was shining down on the Sound and making it sparkle as if there were millions of diamonds floating on the water. My Guys were amazingly supportive and didn't complain one bit about the excursion. The ferry ride was much shorter than I had anticipated and basically I only had time to use the bathroom and walk Nico out to the bow of the ferry and back to the car. I had the directions to the rental house with me, and it sounded like we were going to be the first ones to arrive with Jenn, Clint and Elizabeth not far behind. The rental house was perfect and had just enough beds for the 8 of us. We (the Boys) unloaded the car and put away the food, and headed out to the expo to pick up my packet. Jessi was not going to be to the Island in time to pick up her packet, so luckily I was able to pick it up for her and got the pleasure of convincing the girl behind the table giving me Jessi's packet that I really did want a Medium shirt. "are you sure? they run small" as she's looking me up and down. Just give me the shirt toothpick, I didn't say that but wanted to. The Guys were pretty restless at the expo, as there were only healthy snacks and no "good" food to eat. They were hungry, so we headed back to the rental house. But, I insisted on driving the course first. Not sure that was the best idea, but I had to know. It was bad, but at least I knew. Funny how you can do your mileage on a workout, but when you are driving a new course that you've never seen, those 13.1 miles seems like forever. Plus it doesn't help when your husband is gasping around every turn at the hills.

Shortly after we got back to the house, Jenn, Clint and Elizabeth arrived. I was so happy to see them, it was like reuniting with family you hadn't seen in awhile. We talked about our goals for the race and what our game plans were. I told them that I drove the course and mentioned 2 hills that seemed pretty steep. In hindsight, I realize there were at least 4-6. We talked for awhile and the girls and I took a 30 minute walk (1 pt) around the neighborhood while our husbands started the BBQ. We had a wonderful steak dinner with grilled asparagus, green salad and garlic bread (which I charred pretty good). I think we went to bed about 10'ish and I woke up at 4:51am to the sound of animals running on the roof. At the time I would have thought it was a pack of wolves up there, but in the morning realized it was probably racoons. I didn't get back to sleep but stayed in bed until 6am and decided to get up and take a shower. I planned on wearing makeup for the race too, because I was planning on it being a great photo op day. Good call on my part.

We got to the start and had to park a couple of blocks from the start, as the parking was limited at Oak Harbor HS where the race started and finished. The walk to the start was a great warm up but we all needed to use the bathroom and we couldn't believe the line to the sani-cans! We got a tip from a passing runner that there were about 20 stalls in the HS stadium and we all sprinted for those and she was right, 20+ stalls and no line! After that we headed to the start which they started late to wait for some more runners to show up, as they were having problems finding parking. That's when I started to panic. Jessi was so calm, Elizabeth was so happy, Jenn was taking it one step at a time and was not putting any pressure on herself, and I was crying. I know, shocker, I was crying. I had so many expectations for myself and I was feeling doubtful. I put my sunglasses on but knew my lip was quivering. The girls and I huddled and Elizabeth led us in a pep talk/prayer. Suddenly all the voices of reason were popping into my head. I heard Ang telling me to set 3 time goals. 1 would be my backflip time 3:00, 2 would be my happy time 3:15, 3 would be the time I know for sure I could do it in, 3:45. The loudspeaker was playing "tequila" and I was wishing I had some. I could hear Teresa telling me to have fun and not to put pressure on myself. And I was reliving the presentation at the last RTH meeting that Connie M and Shaun gave. Live in the moment, live in the moment, live in the moment. That was my mantra for this race and it worked.

Jenn's and my plan were to do the 1/4 run, 1/4 walk, walk the hills and sprint on the downhills. I had the GPS to keep track of the distance and our pace and she had the watch to keep track of our time. I think Jenn and I would both agree that the first 2 miles we were both pretty quiet other than just telling her when we needed to walk or run. I knew I needed to start talking or my monkey brain would start thinking too much and I would end up sabotaging myself. Live in the moment. We both started talking and we really shared and opened up a lot about our thoughts, fears and life. Before we knew it, we were running longer and faster. According to my GPS we went as "fast" as 9:39 at one point. It was amazing to have someone to race with like that. Jenn pushed me, not verbally, but just having her there pushed me. Jenn is a great athlete and to be able to keep up with her was a great boost for me. For most of the race we had Elizabeth in our sights and she even ran a bit with us, but she was long gone when we approached mile 10. I can't remember at what mile we saw our husbands and my sons for the first time, but it was awesome. My heart was full and I really pushed hard in front of them so they'd know that I was ok. At that moment, I felt so grateful for what I have in my life. A wonderful supportive family, great friends, 2 legs, 2 lungs and a strong heart. Live in the moment. We saw the guys again at mile 9 or 10 and we ran hard for them there too. They drove past us after that while we were walking and I have to say I didn't like being caught walking. We picked up the pace again and didn't stop until the next hill. At about mile 11.5 we hear from behind "Raise the Bar!" It was Kathy Morrisson! I don't know about everyone else but I get star struck when I see our elite athletes in a race, it was awesome. I'm glad we were running when she saw us. Jenn said that's why she wears her RTB tank in every race, because you never know when you'll see a teammate. It was right about then that I was starting to drag. Live in the moment, yes you are tired, but take one step at time, live in the moment. At about mile 12 we see Jessi coming up one of the last hills, she was looking for us. She just did 13.1 miles and she was back tracking to come find us and take us to the finish line. Who does that? I will never forget that, ever. She talked us up and over the last hill and we sprinted the last 1/2 mile to the finish with the last 1/4 mile being around the track in the Oak Harbor HS stadium. Just as we are entering the stadium, there was Teresa shouting for us and cheering us on. That was awesome and it helped me push. Being on the track was nice and as Jessi was talking us through it she reminded us of the nice cushy feel of the track under our feet. With the last 25 ft in front of us, Jessi asked us if we had anything left and she told us to push it. We did and it was good.

After crossing the finish, I hugged my Brooks, DJ and Nico, Jenn, Clint, Elizabeth, Jessi and Teresa. (I apologize now for the stink). At this time we saw Kathy Morrisson and Karen Nolting in their aluminum blankets and took some group photos. Karen asked me how I felt and I told her mentally I was great but physically I was beat. Then I said, if I didn't feel beat up then I didn't give it my all did I? She agreed, with a smile. According to my GPS, our finish time was 3:10:28. My official chip time was 3:12:01. I did it. I had been training for this day for 12 weeks since January 21st and have logged 138 miles and 34 run workouts leading up to that day. Was it worth it? ABSOLUTELY. Would I do again? ABSOLUTELY. Will I do another 1/2 marathon? ABSOLUTELY. Will I do the Whidbey Island 1/2 marathon again? NOT ON YOUR LIFE.