Indy recap :)

Oh Indy! Where do I even begin? 


Upon signing up in January, I was still on a runner's high during my training for the Princess Half Marathon. Then I ran the Princess Half, and went through a total training down period. I just didn't want to run. So, leading up to Indy, I skipped a lot of my training runs and hoped for the best. 


On Friday, I picked up Dan and we headed down 65 to Indy. This is when the stress began. Traffic was TERRIBLE. Between all of the 26.2 stickers plastered to cars, and the mass exodus from college campuses this weekend, there was a long series of slow downs. Mistake #2 was not eating lunch and waiting until almost 3 p.m. to stop for food. By the time we got to Lafayette, Dan was saddled with a grumpy girlfriend on the search for some serious carbs and the task of driving the rest of the way, as obviously I was incapable of doing it without muttering obscenities at the drivers around us. 


After a baked potato and a sandwich, it was back in the car and down to the Expo. It was a pretty standard Expo as far as Expo's go. Lots of vendors, lots of loud music, lots of bright colors, lots of people. We picked up my bib (and my friend Christa's, who was unable to make it) and met up with my former student Melanie to walk around. (Side note: I like the Disney Princess Expo better. Why? More free stuff there, duh!) 


While at the Expo, we were able to see almost everyone I knew running the Mini. SO COOL to be able to greet everyone the night before the race. My coworker Johnna, her fiancee Lyn, Dan, and I all ended up at a sports bar for dinner because it had zero wait and pasta specials. So, we stuffed ourselves on chicken pesto pasta, garlic bread, and pita with spinach artichoke dip and separated. Dan and I headed to Teresa's sister Cara's house to spend the night there. 


At 5:30, the alarm went off, signaling that it was time to wake up and carb up (again! So many carbs!). A banana and half a Clif bar later, we threw on our gear, I forced Dan to get up, and we were out the door together. 


At the race, we hit the porta potties, found Olivia, Jodie, Andrea, Kelly, Sean, and the rest of the crew, and took our pre-race pictures. At 7:15, they made the announcement that runners needed to get into their corrals. I hugged my friends goodbye, and Dan walked me up to F and helped me hop the fence to get in. 


Naturally, at this point, I got emotional and started crying. There's something about knowing you're about to put your body through a torture test that makes me highly emotional. Luckily, Dan was wearing a shirt I hate, providing some comic relief. :) Once he left to go find Lyn, I calmed down and started talking to a woman in my corral. We both commented on the heat and humidity. I checked my phone to make sure my music was set, and my texts were on. Check and check. 


At 7:33, the first racers took off. At 7:37, I crossed the starting line, and was off. In the first mile, I saw the elephants at the Indianapolis Zoo. I missed a lot of other stuff on the run, so I'm glad I got to see those. I'd set up my phone to get text alerts for myself as well as my friends, so when I got to the first 5K at a 9:23 pace, I got a little worried that I was going too fast. But I felt great, and didn't want to slow down. 


Going into the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was awesome. Seeing all the people on the track in front of me was so inspiring -- all those people all doing the same thing? Awesome. I made it out of the track and still felt great -- I was running a 9:22 pace. 


At mile 9, I saw Cara and Dave -- SO what I needed in that moment. In the ten minutes prior to that, I saw a man with the bloodiest nipples I'd ever seen and a woman who had gone to the bathroom in her shorts while running... and yes, we're talking #2, so a little inspiration was in order. 


THEN the sun came up. The beating down, terrible, hot, hot, HOT sun. I got desperate at this point for liquid. I started taking any cup at any station. At the Gatorade station, a woman in front of me dumped a cup of it on her head. It was desperate times, people. 


I'd been doing a run walk method throughout, but really had to increase the walking around mile 11. And by increase, I mean I essentially walked every three minutes during miles 11 and 12. I started texting Dan and my parents for inspiration. I checked my texts and saw that my friends were doing well. And then I was able to breathe a little. When I hit mile 12, I told myself that I had less than 12 minutes left and walking was no longer an option. So, I started to run. Or jog. As I got closer, I kept looking for Dan, knowing he was waiting at the finish. The crowd was awesome -- cheering and yelling and clapping. So, so, cool. 


In other news, there were a lot of young guys wearing light blue shirts. I kept thinking I was seeing Dan. They were not Dan. With the finish just 100 feet away, I gave it everything I had and sprinted to the end. And just as I passed, I heard, "ANGELA!" And there was Dan (and Lyn)! 


I got my medal, got my snacks, got into the park, and was thrilled that this time I had my cell phone so I could get in touch with the others I was waiting for. Guess what? Zero signal! UGH. Anyway, about 20 minutes later, I finally spotted Dan and Lyn, totally by chance, and made my way toward them. I think Dan was shocked when a super sweaty girl threw herself on him, but I was just so happy to have him there. A few minutes later, Johnna made it out to us. And eventually, miraculously, we were all able to find each other. 


Final time 2:11:18 -- almost five minutes faster than the Princess Half. For being so hot and humid, I was THRILLED with that time. I saw quite a few people laying on the side of the street with medics, which was terrifying. It was just far too hot to be running and I was lucky enough to be in an early corral and not in the direct sunlight for more than four or five miles. 


But the best part? I felt great after the race! I felt really excited about running again. It was so invigorating to do a run and feel alive! And it was great to get it done and think, "I'll do this again. I'll do more half marathons." I needed that. I needed to remind myself that I can do this. 


So, today? Some leg pain, for sure. Giant blisters on the toes. The possible loss of three toenails impending. 


Still totally worth it. 


I couldn't have done it without my friends, my family, and my supporter at the finish line. So, so thankful for this experience and the people I got to do it with! 


Now it's on to some smaller races and some fun runs. I need some fun runs for a while. :)