1/2 + 1/2 = 1

Well, today was the day! All of our training came down to this. Our goal was to run the race at a 10 minute mile pace which would put us finishing in 2 hours and 10 minutes. Did we achieve our goal? Stay tuned to find out!

The start and finish were right by the Space Needle!

When registering for the 1/2 marathon we decided to put ourselves in the 2 hour and 30 minute time bracket since we weren't sure how fast we could really run for an extended period of time by the time we had to register. As training continued we were pleasantly surprised that we were able to keep a 10-12 minute pace even as we added miles. Although all our runs weren't the most pleasant. I remember one training in particular where Matthew planned the route and thought a steep hiking trail would be a fun idea. And another time when we were supposed to run 8 miles, but it turned into about 10 because we made a wrong turn and got lost. The long Saturday runs were the hardest on me because of all the time it took out of my day off, but when we got to the race today I knew it had all been worth it.

Kara & friend Mare Bear excited for the race!

The energy was one of the most spectacular parts of the race. The sheer number of people running with you was exhilarating, then to have people lined up cheering you on was encouraging and of course, the beautiful views of the city, Lake Washington and Puget Sound were the cherries on top.

At the start of the race I felt great. A part of me just wanted to shoot out and go for it, but I reminded myself that I needed to pace myself if I was going to hit my time. The first six miles were great and Matthew and I were making good time, then my calf started to bother me a bit. I tried to push through it, but it felt like it was seizing up, it just got tighter and tighter. I stopped a few times to stretch it out and I even had to walk for a little bit because the pain got to be too much to run on. We stopped at the medic tent and they gave me some gatorade and said to just take it easy, but I wanted to finish this race and attain my time goal. After drinking some gatorade and stretching I pushed forward and finished the race! Mile 10 and 11 were rough, but the last two miles went by rather fast.

Matthew and I may not have finished at the exact time we wanted to, but considering the circumstances and the stops we had to make we are pretty proud of ourselves!

After the race we got tons of goodies as well as a medal and the opportunity to go to an outdoor concert featuring Gym Class Heros...I love these guys, so I was pretty excited. Matthew and I enjoyed some music and then headed home to take a nap.

We came home to find a little treasure on our door step from Jack and Steph Quincy! We have great friends who know us soooo well. That chocolate milk was heavenly!