I always like to blog pretty close to after whatever even I am blogging about whether it be a race or a dog show. That way the emotions are still raw and on the surface. I had blogged about not being super excited for this race because I had been ill. Add onto that, the weather reports were getting worse and worse for the day of the race which really made me feel even more down about the whole thing. Even though I have been fever free, I still felt very weak and lethargic. I had decided to make the most of it, take friday off and try and rest up. Unfortunately as it usually goes when I am off, I had 100 loads of laundry to do and fold and put up, an oil change to get done on sir stubby, and a house to clean. I had to make myself just sit down several times and rest. We also didn't get on the road as early as I had hoped. Funny thing, I had left andrew at daycare and told them to put him down for his nap like usual and we would be by to pick him up when we got ready to head out. The little stinker actually refused to nap, but was out like a light as soon as we got there and got him loaded into the car. I was a little worried about KC rush hour traffic, especially since we got such a late start. The packet pick up and expo were open late so i figured we would be okay for that but wanted to eat dinner with my friend and her kiddo and hubby and she needed to eat early to get ready for the 5 K that night. We hit rush hour and standstill traffic right at the exit we needed and it was bad. I HATE traffic, it grates my nerves and makes me a mess. Not knowing exactly what exit we needed made it hard to know what lane to even be in. We had to get off to a state highway that I hadn't even heard of, which happened to be in the far right lane ( I was in the far left of course) across about 6 lanes of super bad traffic. I was really lucky that KC people are nice drivers and let me very quickly go across 6 lanes to get to my exit. I never have liked the way traffic is routed through downtown KC and I continue to not like it.
I was super excited to check into our hotel and go to the expo. This one was suppose to be bigger than any of the ones we had lately and while it was the biggest, it was still pretty small compared to the rock and roll series. Oh well, I guess they set the bar extra high. I did get the cool shirt that I put in my previous blog post with the names of the hills and elevation chart. I also found a vendor that made kid's shirts and got one for andrew.
He will outgrow it this year but I couldn't pass it up! I think she will make a killing off of parents like me that eat this type of stuff up! Our hotel was right next door to the expo which was easy as far as parking (we just walked from our hotel right to the next one all indoors) and the hotel itself was super swanky (we even had valet parking). Again, I am not use to having nice hotel rooms so we got way to excited about the single use coffee pot in our room and the super awesome bed with big pillows. Tony and I each had our own bed LOL!
We had dinner post expo and were a little disappointed. The pasta buffet was eh. I am glad they didn't charge us for andrew because he ate one bite and then went into full blown toddler mode and wouldn't sit still. Tony and I had to take turns eating and entertaining because every time we put him in his seat, he started screeching at full volume and we were getting the stink eye from several people. We did have great front row seats to the start of the 5 K and we did get to see my friend finish with her son running across the finish line (he is the same age as andrew). I am really glad I didn't run both because I needed full strength and energy for the race.
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We also visited our first real toy store. They had a whole wall of thomas stuff. Andrew was enthralled to say the least, however he also didn't understand why everything was in packages and why he couldn't take everything out.
That Thomas was 400 bucks. So glad he didn't see it.
This is what the 7:30 am radar looked like. At 5 am it was thundering and lightening and pouring. I was really thinking they would call the race. The storms weren't really severe but I really didn't enjoy running in a storm at the Garmin half. Mentally it just wiped you out. I also really didnt' want to pay for a nice hotel for no reason.
We came prepared. Fashion by Glad. I am really glad we had them, LOL. I think staying dry, although a little warm, helped keep my spirits up. They delayed the race till 7:30. It actually stopped long enough for us to get into our corrals, hear announcements, the national anthem and get started without the typical wave start so we could all get going before the next round of storms. I moved up a corral and found the 2:15 pacer for the start. I really didn't have a time goal, but after the last race, I really enjoyed the talking and joking that goes on with the pacers, so wanted to stick close to some pacer somewhere. I ended up with the 2:20 back pacer and she was awesome! It started raining at mile 2. I had shed my garbage bag because I was getting hot and quickly had to put it back on. I had my phone in a ziploc bag so couldn't take good pictures, but the sights were really amazing (until we got into the residential areas, boring) and looking around took my mind off of the rain. I admit, I was already counting down the miles starting at mile 4ish. The rain was pouring and my ear buds wouldn't stay in my ears and there was no one to talk to. I actually imagined stella was running next to me. I hit the first big long hill and it really kicked my booty. I have trained hard for this race but this week had taken some out of me and I could tell. I tried not to get down and luckily i could't see my pace because I had put my watch under the garbage bag to keep it dry, and I was only getting splits from my phone app. I was hearing high 10s most of the time and even some 11s. I just accepted that. The 2:20 pacer caught up to me as I was slowing down on the later hills. The pacer from my last race had been at the expo and he had warned me that the last two hills were the worst, so I was super glad to have her talking to me through both of those. Broadway hill was the longest and Trinity hill, although super short, was SUPER steep. Like one of those that you feel like a cartoon character running in place and not going anywhere. He wasn't joking about the toughness of those two. After Trinity it was downhill to the finish line, and I had to just tell myself mantras to keep myself going till the end as I really wanted to slow down or walk. I walked through a couple of aid stations to take in water but other than that, I did not walk up any hills. They may have been super duper slow but I will take that.
As usual, the finishers chute was a flurry of activity so I got my stuff and got to tony and andrew quickly. I had shed my garbage bag at the end as it has stopped pouring and the photogs were at the end so wanted some good drowned rat pics. We slowly made our way back to our hotel to warm up and shower before we headed out. Then a very strange thing happened. Looking back I think I know what it was but at the time I was clueless. I usually get very nauseous after a race. In the chute I was super thirsty so I took a whole cup of gatorade and downed it plus water, chocolate milk and half a banana (that andrew ate the rest of). I quickly got in the shower and had a big mess on my hands as my pony tail had turned into a GIANT knot that i had to use a ton of conditioner on to detangle. I think what happened was I was in the hot shower too long and I over heated. I was very sick after wards, dry heaving, shaking and feeling like I was going to pass out. I literally would pack one thing and would have to stop and take a break. I have never felt that weak and sickly after a race. I feel much better now, although starving as I usually am later in the day. I am really glad this race is over and not sure i will enter again. One and done. I am not a fan of huge hills and knew that was what this race was about before I did it. Now I can say I did it and move on. Bucket list race check and done.
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