Finally Over

Saturday I raced the Monster Dash Half Marathon for my last race of the year (as of now). As great as Big Woods was I just didn't feel like I ran my best race and didn't have as much fun as I had hoped. I did a few things different to include leaving the Ipod at home, dressing so I wouldn't overheat and most importantly, threw on some face paint for the occasion. I LOVE theme races where you get to see a lot of people having fun. This one was definitely no different.

I hit the portajohn first and saw Cathy Yndestad walking by. Cathy is one of if not the fastest amateur triathletes in the country, not to mention super nice. I saw here again at the start line and chatted for a minute. Cathy was wearing a Wonder Woman costume and definitely fit in with the crowd and ended up taking ninth overall for the females. Awesome job!

I started off more conservatively than last time with a 6:05 first mile. I was shooting for a 6:15 but felt very good with the pace and didn't adjust for mile two. Last race I came out way too hard with a 5:49 first mile and was feeling the effects by mile four. I did start to feel warm at mile 4-5 and took off my head band and gloves. The all black outfit I wore to go with my zombie face worked perfect. I was the first person through in the half marathon with any sort of costume so a lot of people were shouting Go Zombie! It was awesome. The coolest part was my makeup smudged just a little from the sweat and actually made it look even spookier. I was amazed it even stayed on the whole race much less improve.

Since the ten milers didn't have to run Lake Calhoun I had to run threw about 2000 people and had no idea what place I was in. I knew I was around 10th but there was no way to tell for sure. I was hoping for a top 15 finish at the start of the race and it was looking good at the halfway point to achieve my goal. I then picked off a couple of Halfers between mile 8 and 11 and I started to realize that I may actually crack the top 10.

I saw Steve Stenzel was in around third for the ten miler and yelled a go Steve. Steve rights an awesome blog called Steve in a Speedo, Gross. I gave Cathy Yndestad a thumbs up on the way back. Then I started to feel like my legs were just not moving as fast as they were earlier. I didn't mind as I was enjoying the race and no one was passing me so I just kept the comfortable pace.

With About 3/4 of a mile left a guy came up from behind at a pretty good pace to pass me. It reminded me all to well of the Minnetonka race were I was passed by Josh Blankenheim and legged out by 1 second. I was able to get in behind him and kicked to stay with him. My legs felt good and was able to keep his pace. I actually felt surprisingly comfortable and thought if he had made his move too early I may be able to stay in his draft and make a move late. I could feel him trying to drop me but I had plenty left in the tank and my confidence said I could do this. Just when I expected it he started his last push and I made my move. At first it was pretty even and then I found that extra gear I didn't have at Minnetonka. I managed to leg this one out by 2 seconds and take 9th overall. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw 1:22:16. I love an exciting finish even if I come up short. Luckily I came out on top this time. I definitely would have to rank this race up there with Baxter as one of my best races of the year.

My ever supportive mom braved the cold one more time and was there with a huge smile on her face to greet me at the finish. She told me she thought around 8th and later found out that it was in fact 9th. I would have been thrilled with top 15 but top ten, awesome!

After the race I met a friend who is trying to live a healthier lifestyle for the 5K. It was his first race and has only been running for a couple of weeks. I've been telling him about setting goals and thought this would be a perfect race for him to set an initial goal. He would then have something to set a goal against for his next race. He told me he was hoping for 30 min but had been sick a few days prior and didn't know if that was feasible. I went over the basics with him before the start as to be a few rows back in a 5K because most people go out way too fast, pace yourself and don't worry about anyone but you. We started a little ways back so we wouldn't get trampled and away we went. My friend was able to talk a little during the race and I felt like he could have gone much faster. We came in at a very respectable 29 min and had a minute to spare for his goal time. His next goal is going to be 26 min and I don't think he will have any problems with that. It's good to see your friend putting themselves out there and trying something new for their own benefit. It's even better to feel apart of helping them reach their goals.