:: Race Report - SJ Rock & Roll 1/2 ::

I had an issue of the nerves that morning. Woke up at 5am even though the alarm was set for 545am. Got ready in about 5 minutes and started chewing my fingernails nervously. We carpooled with both Ruey and Derek to get to the start line, and hopefully secure a good parking spot. We did - so that was nice.

We got geared up and head over to the start line. When I first signed up for the race, back in spring, I was not a runner at all. When asked to pick my estimated finish time, I selected the last corral 13 - which also meant i expect to finish in 4 hours. What I found out later was that i wasnt as slow as I thought, should be expecting to finish around 2:45 on our current pace. When we started moving, I realized I had to do alot of lateral over-taking to move up front and meet up with the people in the same pace as us. That took alot of effort actually, and within 4 miles, I started to feel it on the side of my knees. Not to mention we were mostly overtaking on the sides of the road, which were sloping, and again affected the knees.

It took us about 6-7 miles actually to get to the people who were running at the same pace as us but by that time, my knees felt totally destroyed. Everything else felt good though... breathing was strong, feeling hydrated, legs strong, ankles OK... just the darn knees. I tried to reduce over-taking but I couldnt. Big lesson learnt about how important it is to pick the right corral.

The course itself was totally flat - which was nice for a beginner 1/2 marathoner - and totally easy. Not scenic by any means though. Around mile 11, things started to get really tough on my knees and mikee's legs. Our pace slowed down considerably even though we were maintaining 11:30-12 on the first 10 miles. Yikes. We finally rolled across the finish line at 2:42. I'm happy that we completed it together - very emotional moment. :)

Now that I've started to reflect on the race, a competitive part of me is kicking in. I really want to race again and this time I want to have a target time. Not sure when it'll happen but it will happen for sure. There was a time when the most I could run was 3 miles and to be able to complete 13 yesterday - wow. I did it. Goals are great, arent they? Especially when you get there! LOL

Thanks everyone for all your support and encouragement!