Santa to the Sea Half Marathon!

I made it! I ran a half marathon! I wasn't sure that I was going to make it. But I did, and it was fun :) I ran the Santa to the Sea Half half marathon. I loved the Christmas theme, even went so far to get a skirt and some accessories.

It was COLD. It was 34 degrees. For a southern California girl, that is crazy. When I signed up, it never occurred to me that it would be that cold! The shuttle system worked well, but I was nervous and so got there way too early. I had an hour to hop up and down and try and stay warm. Luckily it took while to fight my way to the "Toys for Tots" drop-off. I found Santa to pose with too :)

Finally, the sun started coming out. But then the starting line was right along the freeway - a huge wind tunnel! I lined up between the 2:00 and 2:20 pace group - set my music and got ready! Lots of bells, smiling faces and cold looking people :)

The first three miles were so fast, it didn't even feel like it was that far. I was amazed. Lots of lost Christmas gear, people shedding layers, and long restroom lines. The picture below is going up the one and only hill in the race (thank goodness!). My first 7 miles were between 9:50 and 10:04...perfect as my target was 10 minute miles!

One of the most awesome things about the race was the music and "neighborhoods." There were drummers, school bands, regular bands, people supporting you with chants, signs It was great!! Lots of kids giving runners high five.

At the half way point I was a a little jealous of the relay folks that were done running - but I kept powering through. Mile 8 was my slowest (took advantage of the brand new toilets!)

Finally, I made it to Mile 10! the furthest I'd ever run :) Right about here I passed the bell people for good! Can I tell you how annoying it is to run for over two hours right next to people wearing bells???

Best thing about the race? Seeing my family at mile 11! Kick detour for a kiss ;) I don't think I would have made it otherwise. I was feeling great, almost there, keeping up the average 10:00 mile pace. Then somehow the miles got longer. I swear. 

Miles 11 and 12 sucked. I was 100% convinced that they were LONG miles. My times reflect that (couldn't possibly be that I was running slower)...with 10:40 and 10:52. It was a long street that never ended. The worst part? The u-turn at the very end. You think you are close, but no, haha, have to turn around and then around another corner! But I made it, and finished strong! It helped to hear my husband cheering for me as I finished :)

So glad I didn't bag check! Apparently the line took up to an hour - and it got cold once we stopped running. Luckily I had a cute 2 year old to hug, tamales to eat, my sister and husband to congratulate me, take awesome photos and make me feel awesome about my accomplishment! 

Can you believe this guy ran almost 7 miles in a train costume???

I definitely could have trained more 0 but I rested my knee and heel due to injury the last few weeks, so I hadn't run more than 9 miles before the race. I could have started in another layer. I could have pushed a little faster at the end (maybe?). But overall, I feel great! I finished in 2:14:38 - 15 minutes under my goal! I ran 13.1 miles while the most important people in the world cheered me on. What's better than that???