And the nightmare of a half marathon that I just endured this morning.

OH.MY.GOSH…  It was hell.  This race was 85% up hill, and I don’t even know how that works seeing as we finished right where we started, but these weren’t just normal hills, these were all but walls of dirt where you had to start using your hands to climb.  Just insane inclines.

And HOT!  There were long stretches through fields with no shade what-so-ever.  It wasn’t supposed to be over 80 before noon, but it was 93 when I crossed the finish line at 11.  With the humidity, it was like running through water (really fun with asthma).

I am pretty much a walking disaster on any given day, so this trail run with roots sticking out all over the place had me thinking “hello shattered ankle, I can’t wait to meet you later”.  I even started the day by forgetting a glass of water on top of the car and watching it roll of the side of my car and shatter on the street at the first stop sign.  I am hazardous when left to my own devices, much less trying to run over roots and stumps.  BUT, I made it with only getting slightly tripped up about a dozen times and not actually falling (winner me!). 

I met some really cool people along the way, though.  This was unlike any race I had ever run in the effect.  I paced a man for the first half who told me he had open heart surgery a year ago, and this was his ultimate goal.  For the second half, I paced 2 girls from Kalamazoo that were just nothing but fun!  It was such a pleasure just joking and chatting with these strangers that you are basically going through hell with.

I have never been so happy to have a race over with, and even though it was a nightmare, and I feel like I got insanely drunk and then threw myself down a hill, it is over, and I have that experience to learn and grow from.