half marathon

My hunger lasted all week long. I ate last week like it was my job. Two dinners and still waking up starving. 

This weekend was the MO' Cowbell Half Marathon in St. Charles, MO (right outside of St. Louis). Went out Saturday with plans on going up into the arch but it was sold out for the day. Still got to look around a little bit and it was a beautiful afternoon! Also I got some new running shoes, yay!

Sunday morning it was 35 degress out. I was not prepared for that cold of weather and had a mini freak-out session. I had brought with me a long sleeved shirt from the Surf City half marathon that I ran last February so I wore that. I even got a compliment during the race on my shirt, and I finally felt like I was "IN" in the running crowd!!! 

The weather warmed up really nicely and it ended up being a great run. St. Charles is a really cute little town and the race took us out to New Town, MO which also was a really neat little new town. All story book with cute houses and sidewalks and green grass, trees lining the street. It looked very new but the houses were built with an old style to them. It was neat.

My right hip and left knee were bothering me a little at the beginning of the run but luckily that went away after a few miles! Then I felt great! It was sunny, in the 60's, couldn't have been a better day. Scott and I ran the whole race together and finished somewhere around 2:10 or 2:11. My GPS watch ended the race about a tenth of a mile before they actually ended it so I'm not sure who was correct. I would say them, but all along my watch was beeping at the mile markers along with others around me, so I don't know what the chances are they we were all off? Either way, I finished somewhere around there. Surf City I finished in 2:14...and thinking back to that, I felt terrible during that race and don't even know how I pulled that time off. I remember finishing that race and thinking, OMG i have to run this twice in 5 weeks!!

So this one, I ran faster and felt AWESOME. Around mile 12.5 there was a volunteer who said to us, you look like you have 13 more miles in you!! And I don't know if he was just saying that to be nice or what, but I felt like I did! What a great boost to my running self-esteem. Also, congrats to Scott for finishing his first half marathon!!

On some sadder news, if you have been following my facebook, the dad of my best friend from college (Sophie) is missing. He went hiking on Thursday near Brainard Lake (west of Boulder, CO) and never returned. He hikes almost daily and is very familiar with the area so they don't expect that he got lost. He is also in great shape. It's a really confusing and sad situation. They had major search efforts going on all weekend, and are continuing to search the area today. Sophie and her dad have been in my thoughts and prayers all weekend and so for that reason, it's been a strange weekend, as I have felt torn inside between feeling great and so excited about my running and then feeling so so sad and scared for Sophie and her dad. So please send prayers/positive energy/thoughts or whatever you believe in out to Sophie's dad, the rescuers, and Sophie. 

Sophie's dad talking to my mom at my CU graduation party.