Amica Newport Half Marathon Race Report: Does this Shirt Make my Butt Look FAST???

Yes this is ME!!!!!!!!

Here is my race report for the Newport Half Marathon in October 14, 2012....

So the plan is to end the season with a PR for the 1/2 Marathon Distance...In 2010, I ran this same race and beat my PR by almost 15 minutes( previous it was 2:30),,,,I finished in 2:15:01.

The plan Coach Tara worked out for me was to average 10:14/miles.  I have been doing 9:30 to 10 min/mile for 5 k's but can I sustain anything near that for 13.1 miles?

On Tuesday the week before, I had started to get sick...but I kept training all week.





Wednesday was a very emotional day as I had to go to court for my divorce.(As I told you, my life is better then a Danielle Steel Novel!)

Saturday, was an icy swim..Saturday night into Sunday AM: lots of coughing fits, head hurts and chest is banging as well.  I did not sleep well...up every half hour to try to breath!

Finally up and outta bed at 430 am....coffee and peanut butter sandwich as always.. I take some allergy meds hoping it wold kick in enough to making breathing a little easier.  Tried to take a hot shower hoping it would loosen the crap in my lungs.

530 am  I head out to Newport in the Jeep...Still no back window in so I have about 5 layers on.  I am freezing..As I get closer and closer to Newport the more I am thinking I just want to turn around and go home and go back to bed.  Crossing over the Newport Bridge,  I start to see rain drops on the windshield.  Ughh  the only thing I did not bring was rain gear!

615 am  I pull into the parking area and take a few minutes to think, do I really want to do this or not??????  I feel like CRAP, I can hardly breath with out coughing.  Nose is runny and post nasal drip is non stop.  I feel like there is a vice on my skull.

620 am I bet you you can tell by the title of this post I did do the race..or why else would there be a race report....I was thinking to myself I have had a great season, Do I have to set a PR?  I then say to myself "oh just for go it and have fun, walk if you have to!"

625 am On the bus to go to the start...I see Solange and she says I can sit next to her.  We talk the quick 5 minutes to the start line....I go to the port a potty and then go back and find Solange and a few others in the building..Laura then comes up and we all hang out and chit chat for a while...I think this going to be fun...at least it was not raining..but the WIND is WHIPPING like mad.

730 am go check bag and hit the port a potty one more time I see Brad and a friend of his ( sorry do not remember the friends name).  Then I see Norine and Bob.  All three guys are running the full marathon...I have not doubt that these guys will rock it out!

745 am hanging out waiting to the start line...hanging out with Leslie, Laura, Chris and a few others.

8 am standing in the chutes...we are standing there and standing there.   So I am only like four or five rows from the elite runners...the crowd was so thick I could not get back any further.  it is almost 815 before we get started. We are OFF!!!!!

First mile is UPHILL...I can not breath as I reach the top, I am considering DNF'ing...Ugh   I have never DNF a race.  I have DNS one race in the past.  But never DNF.  Oh My GOD, I feel like my head is exploding and my chest hurts with every breath.  With each inhalation, I feel sharp pain on both sides of my chest. I look at my watch I just did a mile mostly uphill in 9:15...REALLY????? 9:15...No Freakin' Way!!!!   Yahoooo.........I can not breath but i just went up that damn hill in 9:15...LOL

So I say to myself ok...Ill just keep going one foot in front of the other at a time....if I have to stop I will.

Mile 2:  small incline..LOL..and another 9:15...WHooo HOOOOooo.

Mile 3-7..lots of wind and rolling hills...i just keep trotting, checking my watch every once and a while  For the most part I am under the 10:14 I need to be to make a 2:15 or less...

1	9:15.3	1.00	9:15
2	9:14.5	1.00	9:15
3	10:03.5	1.00	10:04
4	10:15.5	1.00	10:15
5	10:40.4	1.00	10:40
6	10:01.5	1.00	10:01
7	10:17.4	1.00	10:17
8	9:36.6	1.00	9:37
9	12:16.7	1.00	12:17
10	10:03.0	1.00	10:03
11	9:34.0	1.00	9:34
12	10:22.9	1.00	10:23
13	9:31.0	1.00	9:31
14	2:53.4	0.32	8:55

Summary

2:14:06.0

13.32

10:00

Mile 9 as you can see was a little long... That was a port a potty break after I got to the mile 8 first aid and I wasted 2.5+ minutes there...One of these days Ill be able to run a half with out having to stop and go pee...LOL or as my friends said me "next time just run and go!!!"   LOL   Umm yeah I have the shiest bladder in the world...I do not think I could ever do that.  It has taken me more then two years to be able to do that in the wet suit and no one can tell when you do that!!!!!

Mile 10-12  were awesome....I am realizing I am going to finish and I never had to stop to walk.  I am still breathing and the pain in my chest and head is just about gone....

At about mile 12, I hear a voice I know.  Liz is walking the race with her dad.  He reached a personal PR of finishing 7 miles non stop...WAY TO GO DAD KUHL!!!!!!  Congrats!!!!  So liz runs next to me for a few minutes, encouraging me and making me laugh... Thank you my friend!

Mile 13 is great, I feel good, I now know that If I can keep this pace for another 9 minutes I am going to be able to reach my GOAL OF A NEW PR!!!!!   OH MY GOODNESS: sick as a dog, tired, and mostly likely slightly dehydrated and extremely WIND Blown...I am going to set a PR!!!!!  I see Leslie as I am almost at the finish line...I hear her cheering me on!

Finish Line!!!!!!!  I check out my watch and it say 2:14:06....I DID IT...I took 55 seconds off my previous PR!!!! YAHOOOOOOO!!!  Thank you JESUS!!!

Get in line for a warm cup of soup and some a piece of pizza...Then over to gear bag pick up...over to the port a potty to change my clothes...then to the beer tent to have my "free" beer, not my favorite, but you have to it is free!!!

I drink about half of the beer while hanging out with Scott and Solange and a few other runners.

Then over to the truck with the times listed on it...the official time is 2:14:06...LOL I have never had an exact time on my watch and compared to the official time...

Oh Yeah, I earned the TRIPLE Crown Medal as well, for completing all three half marathons here in RI..The Cox, THe Jamestown and then Newport!

So my race season for 2012 is OVER!!!!  I have had an amazing season....Now it is your turn get out there because if "CAUSE I CAN NOW.....THEN YOU CAN TOO!!!!"  Now get out there and do it!!!!!!