I am a little disappointed in myself for not posting for so many months. I trained and ran my first half marathon between March and May. The details and excitement of the race have already faded a bit.
Here are some highlights that I remember.
I used a 12 week training program by Hal Higdon. I can't believe how hard it was to stay on track. I believe there were about 2 to 3 weeks that I dropped out altogether. It was just a busy time of year. I was able to finish the last 4-6 weeks strong.
On Sunday, May 26, between 3 and 4 am, I got up and drove down to Waikiki. I found a parking space right in front of the aquarium. The starting and finishing lines were a couple hundred yards away.
This half marathon mirrors the first half of the Honolulu marathon which is held in December. It was a wonderful morning for running and all went better than I expected. The most memorable mile was about the 12th. It was a killer hill to come back up. But at the top, the ocean view was gorgeous! I slowed down to take a picture on my phone.
My knees were hurting during those last miles. I stopped twice to try and stretch, but it didn't help. It was just enough to be annoying, but not to be a big hindrance.
It was wonderful to have some energy at the end and be able to speed up. I saw I had a good chance to finish under 2:00, so I pushed it and made it. My Nike phone app recorded 1:59:20. As I recall, though, I remember thinking that I had no desire to take another step. A marathon seemed totally ridiculous to me that day. 13.1 miles seemed to be my perfect max. So I pushed the thought of a marathon out of my mind for a while.
I didn't stay very long after the race. With God's strength. I was able to drive home and get a shower to get to Sunday school on time with the family.
The metal we received was really cool! This race was definitely a great milestone for me.
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