Yes!
I did it. You know, I'm not sure if there's a mental checklist I've been working from, some set of goals that has propelled me onward, but a year ago it never occurred to me that it would be possible to complete a half-marathon. Even a 10k race sounded ridiculously daunting. How could anyone run that far? The answer, I've learned, is patience and training. The training will get you there, and it won't seem all that far anymore.
I'd decided just before the race not to carry my own liquids, but grab the water on the way instead. That was a great way to go. I felt freed from the mental effort of reminding myself to drink, and made myself take a couple of sips at every water station. I sucked on a gummie, but only one, and it never really dissolved (could have used a little more sugar, I think; but it was fine, and I felt well-fuelled by my early breakfast).
Today was such a beautiful day. Sunshine, breeze, country roads, friendly volunteers, family to see me off at the start and cheer me at the finish. In between, the time passed so gently, so easily. I thought about very little. I thought about running. I kept my mind on my pace. At the beginning, it was difficult to force myself to stick to six minutes a kilometre, but I knew it was part of my plan, and that it would help later on. (Oh, and I found the watch yesterday at 4pm, just after it beeped on the hour). I continued to remind myself that I wanted to feel just as good at 17k as I was feeling at 7k. My plan was to go no more than 6 minutes/km for the first 10k, and then I would let myself speed up as long as it felt comfortable, with some willingness to head toward pain during the last 5k.
And that's what I did. I finished the first 10k in 55 minutes, which thrilled me completely. I was still feeling easy and light. But I realized upon turning around (it was an out and back race) that the wind had been on my side all the way, and that on the homeward journey it would be against me. Around 18k I began to feel fatigued. Not dreadfully fatigued, but I was noticing my breathing on the hills (and there were hills). But I also noticed how quickly I recovered going downhill again, so I knew that the pace was good, and that I could continue until the finish line if I was willing to put some guts into it. That was also the point when I realized that finishing in under two hours was within me, which made the mental work that much tougher. Man, I wanted to cross the line in under two hours (a goal that I had not set for myself until that moment of realization).
During the last 2k, I began to pass people (we were very spread out at that point), which gave me a mental boost. The last 1500m was uphill, and I felt sluggish, not filled with a burst of energy, but the sight of the finish line gave me that, and I crossed feeling and looking strong, utterly thrilled at my time, which was under two hours: 1:55. Far better than I'd hoped. Though I did run a Michael Ignatieff campaign: starting out with low expectations, and hoping to surprise myself. But even in my happiest fantasies I did not imagine getting across the finish line that fast. (Good luck, Mr. Ignatieff. I hope your campaign exceeds expectations just as much).
So there it is. A wave to my family. Guzzling water. Eating sandwiches. Revelling in the sunshine. Driving back home again. With visions of a marathon dancing in my head. Maybe that's on my mental checklist, too. Who knew? Next up: more training, and a quick 10k. Now I know I can complete it in under an hour. Of course, knowing that, I now want to complete it even more quickly. We shall see. There will be an endpoint to my ability to improve upon my times. But I won't dwell on that today. I'm enjoying the high.
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