I did it! I finished my first Racing the States Race!!! The Horsetooth Half kicked my butt, but I still did it. And I hurt. Ok ok, I could’ve done more hill training, but what really hurts is my left hip for some reason. It’s actually been bothering me for some time now, but I kinda ignored it, hence why I haven’t mentioned anything about it before. I usually slightly notice it after mile 4 or so during training runs. But with the steep downhills, it really stated killing me at like mile 5 or 6. I tried to ignore it, but it was pretty painful. However, I finished the race without stopping. Here’s my breakdown of the race:

Mile 1: Only halfway up the FIRST hill….

Mile 2: Monster Hill Conquered! OUCH! But still feeling good.

Mile 3: Working on the downhill, trying to control my speed, but I feel good. No aches, no pains. I’m breathing well.

Mile 4: DAM HILL! Literally. That’s the name of the hill.

Mile 5: Feeling alright, my hip pain starts to act up, but its not too bad.

Mile 6: About to round the corner and I start heading down along the Poudre River. About half way! I can do this!

Mile 7: Another freaking hill!?! Are you kidding!?

Mile 8: It’s only downhill from here…..right???

Mile 9: Really, 4 MORE miles? Ok, ok, I’m in pain! (I seriously thought about stopping, but didn’t)

Mile 10: OUCH, side cramp! Why the F*CK did I want to do this???

Mile 11: People run FULL marathons!?! HA…crazy people….

Mile 12: O…M…G….one…..more….mile….that’s like 9 min……….

Mile 12.5: I see people!!! (speed up)…I’m still running! Where’s the finish line!?! (Slow down)

Mile 12.75: Ok, I’m seriously almost there…who cares about my stupid hip pain, lets do this.

Mile 13: (sprinting) I’m going to cry, but I’m almost there! Oh, HI MOM! Thanks for coming!

Mile 13.1: Where’s my beer????

I’m waiting for my official time and ranking to be posted, but I saw the prelim printed at the race. I ran it in 2 hours and 8 mins…so I didn’t break 2 hours, but I did beat my last time. To recap, my Goals were: 1) To finish – Yes! I did, I didn’t walk even though I REALLY wanted to. 2) under 2 hours – No, I didn’t make it, but at least I beat my old time. This is a hard course, so maybe a regular half I could do under 2 hours. 3) Be less sore – I’ll let you know later! HAHA Right now, I feel fine in my legs but, like I said, my left hip is killing me!! Overall, I think I’ll be in better shape than last time. 

Other than that, the race was great! Still just as beautiful. The weather was perfect. Lots of people! Great after party! My wonderful Mom came to cheer me on, meet me at the finish line and took some pictures for me (on HER birthday! so nice!).  The Horsetooth Half is a great race, and I highly recommend it to people who want to do a race in Colorado. Great atmosphere – the race ends at New Belgium brewery which has great beer and is great company altogether. I think it was an overall great day!

I updated my Project Page, and next up is the Longmont Mud Hen 5k, this saturday.