TURKEY DAY HALF

The Atlanta Thanksgiving Day Half was a wonderful experience. My time was exactly what I predicted 2:15. I am very excited about this. It is fun to be able to project your race times. Kellie and I had a blast running together. We had never seen each other run. We have the same background in that running is a newer thing for us. We did not have much athletic training before all this, so we figure we have more years ahead than most.

It was a chilly morning 42, but in Georgia that feels like 35. We packed a check in bag so that we would have warm clothes to change into at the end. Boy, was that smart!! We had a plan to take the first mile slow and gradually pick it up. Kellie and I were both surprised when the mile-marker said 7. We were just shocked at how quickly things had gone and how well we were doing. They gave out Jelly Belly sport beans at mile 7 and then it was down hill for a mile. Kellie picked it up, and I almost lost her. I told her at mile 9 to go ahead, and she finished with a time of 2:10. It was great to run this for the second time because I could feel the benefits of my training on hills. My hip flexors were a little sore, but my cardio was ho-hum. So I realize that for me to improve more, I just need to teach my self faster turn over. This was the first time I completely understood that. I know about speed work and tempo runs, but realizing how far I have come cardio-wise, really inspires me to want to get my legs moving. Next year, I will do this one in under 2 hours for sure!