My First Half Marathon:)

I woke up bright and early this morning to some yucky weather.  It was cool, cloudy and a little bit rainy but I had to get up anyway.  Today was the big race!!!  I was out the door at 6:15am and on my way to an amazing day.  I got to Niagara Falls at about 6:45am and wondered how I was going to find the Runners' Edge gang in the huge parking lot.  I then had a little giggle when I got out of the car and saw Benny parked two cars over.  That was easy, probably the last easy thing I would do today.  We hung around chatting for a few minutes then it was time to warm up.  Once we were all warmed up it was time to head to the starting line and get ready.  I got into the area that was designated for my pace and chatted with a couple of the other ladies from our group.  Next thing we knew it was just about time to start.  Before we could start though the Laura Secord Drum Line parted the group and lead us off.  Now it was really time to start.  The timer started and we were off!

I felt really good from the beginning and was a bit faster than usual.  I knew this was a bad thing but it was a slight downhill and it felt right.  At about 2.5k or so I saw the ever familiar blue jackets of the Runners' Edge support people.  I said it was like a beacon of safety throughout the race and I don't know what I would have done without them out there.  I was able to run my fastest 5k and still felt strong.  At about 7k I was getting a bit tired and it was time for a GU.  I walked a minute to eat that and have some water then it was off and running again.  Things were pretty uneventful until about 11k when I got a rock in my shoe and had to stop.  I got the rock out but tied my shoe to tight so I had to stop again.  I still felt okay but was starting to fade.  I made it to almost 14k and decided it was time for another GU.  All this time the blue jackets were popping up all over the place.  Just around 14k I started to have a pain in the outside bottom of my foot and had to walk off and on for a while.  At about 16k along came Benny on his bike.  He stayed with me until almost 18k and chatted away.  It made the time go quicker and I was just thankful to have the support.   At 19k I ate the most delicious orange slice of my life, at 20k I found Benny and Geoff encouraging me along the last 1k and next thing I knew I was rounding the corner and could see the finish line. 

Everyone was there waiting for me and it was so awesome!!  Adrian, Meaghan, Celine and the little girls were on one side of the road and the rest of the Runners' Edge group was on the other.  It was very hard not to cry at this point but I managed.  I had just enough steam left for a sort of sprint to the finish. 

The end was full of hugs and tears but it was one of the happiest moments of my running life so far.  I was so honoured that so many people waited just to see me cross that line.  It really means the world to me that so many people care about me and want to see me do well.   Here are a few pictures of my wonderful day:)

Almost to the finish:)

All done!!!

Race Bib

The beautiful medal:)