Update #1

The RACE! Two weeks ago I was really dreading the Indy Mini Marathon. I'm not sure why; I think it might of had something to do with several facts - I was going to run the whole thing alone, the longest distance I had run was 5 miles (although I was regularly walking much longer distances), & our plans for accommodations were really last minute. In the end, everything pulled together really nicely & we all had a blast. I drove over to Indy with Autumn & her co-worker/friend Jessica. We stayed with a couple that Jessica knew (she is the ultimate networker; I'm totally impressed by her people skills). They had a fabulous huge house & we were all very comfortable & were able to get a wonderful night's rest. The next morning it was off to the race! I was a little anxious about the time I was going to have to wait in the corral before I got to the start line. I was all the way back in corral U which meant that it took about 29 minutes to get to the start. I am not a crowd person. I get really antsy when I can't move without bumping into someone. And I am super protective of my personal space. Those were the longest 28 minutes of the whole race for me!

I had come up with a little strategy for running. I knew that I could easily run at least five miles. So my plan was to go at least that far before I hit any of the pits or before I started walking. Last year I hit every pit & had to stop to go to the bathroom 2 or 3 times. That was a mistake I did not want to repeat. I ran the first 5 & felt pretty good. So the next goal I had was to run all the way around the Speedway track. I knew that once I had reached that goal I was well over half way through. I wore my Baby G wrist watch & used the stop watch feature all through the race. I'm not sure when I decided it was important but I determined that I wasn't going to walk. I was just going to keep running no matter what. I was willing to let the pace slide if I had to, but I was keeping a close eye on that as well thanks to my Baby G. I was also carrying my cell phone (to make sure I could meet up with everyone after the race - no, I'm really not that psycho about having my phone with me all the time!) & my sister sent me a very encouraging text about mile 10 that gave me just the boost I needed to finish up strong. I completed the race in 2 hours 15 minutes with an average 10:22 mile. Definitely a personal best & I was thoroughly pleased. I think I have discovered that if I want to run the race to have fun I'd best bring a friend. If I want to run the race for a good finish time I'd best run alone. All in all a wonderful experience!

After the race we cleaned up & then headed to P.F. Chang's for dinner. I had never been there before & it didn't disappoint! Great food & wonderful company. I have picture here of Autumn holding her niece Audrey, me, Abby (Autumn's sister) holding her daughter Adeline, & Jessica. Autumn, Abby, & Jessica all did a fabulous job in the race, too! I'm excited for next year & for the next race I run in - yet to be determined!

So that's the scoop on the race. I've been pretty lazy since & I've only been running once. I'm hoping to go a couple of times this weekend though.

And by the way, here's a shout out to Anonymous...who are you???