I was blessed to have an awesome friend, Elle Hill, as my running partner. Elle and I attend a Mom's Bible Study together at our church. She's an inspiration to me - she ran 6 miles with me (at an incredibly slow speed for her) my first time earlier in the month, and she teamed up with me to make "See Mommy Run" - hence named for our four year olds, Sammy and Kaia.
I have to be honest and say I was extremely stressed out the day before the race. Extremely is a mild word. Mike's parents were in town to attend the 2nd annual Survivor's Celebration for Precision Radiotherapy Center in Clear Lake, right across from the Wings Over Houston airshow. We spent all day outside in the heat, chasing around both of the kids. I'm so glad Robert and Rita were there to help!
The night before, I ended up taking Advil PM just so I could fall asleep. I did lay down at about 9 pm, and then woke up at 4:30 am to pick up my running partner at 5:15 am and get downtown by 6 am. Talk about an early morning! I was smart and had all of my clothes laid out, my bag packed, and even my water bottles filled the night before. That way, when I woke up groggy, all I had to do was dress, grab, and drive.
I picked up Elle right on time, and we were lucky enough to grab one of the last parking spaces on the street before the huge influx of runner traffic happened. We pinned our race numbers on and got ready to go into the KatyFit runners tent.
Of course, as soon as I got there, I had to pee. I had drank an entire cup of coffee on the drive up there, and it went right through me. Just what I needed - a visit to a port-a-potty in the dark . . . However, I noticed the bathrooms were running out of toilet paper, so I quickly rolled up several sheets and placed them in my runner's belt . . . just in case!
Over at the KatyFit tent, I ran into my coach, Bob, and his wife, Peggy, who cracked me up with her tales of her first race. The most memorable comment from Peggy? "It was the first time I took my shirt off in public." Not like that, people - she took one off and put another one on, with a sports bra underneath, since her original shirt was so sweaty! Talking to Bob and Peggy really calmed my nerves and helped me to laugh before I set about getting focused.
Next, Elle and I prayed together. I was so nervous, and Elle prayed and calmed me right down. Good thing she did, because seconds later I set off walking to the start line. Since it was my first race, Elle was gracious enough to let me start the first leg. This would give me experience starting in a large group, and running with over 6,000 competitors!
When I got to the starting line, I walked about midway back and ended up getting right next to Roy, one of the regular KatyFit Red Continuous Halfers. I'm so glad I found him - this calmed me down so much more! Before the bell tolled to begin, we had a moment of silence, and I remember closing my eyes and praying to God to give me peace, and also to give me joy as I completed my first race. I'm so glad that I prayed for both peace and joy! Once we got started, the peace fell over me quickly, and the joy was incredible!
I am here to tell you that despite the heat, despite the fact that there were only water stations every two miles, and despite the fact that there were many hills on Allen Parkway, I seriously had the best run of my life the morning of the Houston Half Marathon Relay! I also did something 'highly illegal,' and I texted while running. NO, I was not texting to say hello! I was texting my husband and my running partner single words, such as "one," "two," "three" to let them know which mile marker I had reached. Apparently some people thought that to be pretty funny!
At mile six, one of the fellow runners I'd been next to for quite awhile looked like she was ready to quit. It was hot, it was humid, and she was just about ready to die. I can't believe I never got her name, but she was wearing a green shirt, and she had the best smile. I turned to her and said, "Come on, Girl - we've got about a half a mile to go! We can do this - let's take it in style!" She beamed and took off with me!
My dad got an awesome shot of me tagging off to Elle!
Check out the awesome shirts my parents made for everyone - "Team Lindsey!" Every one - my parents, Mike's parents, Mike and the kids had one on! I felt so proud!
The best feeling coming off the course? Hugging and kissing on my kids and knowing they were proud of me!
The support of my family meant the world to me!
After hanging with the family for a bit, they headed for home, while I headed for the KatyFit tent, grabbing a banana and a bagel on my way in. Talk about being hungry! After fueling up, I headed back out on the course. I'd seen several other relay teams do this, and I didn't want to leave my partner in the lurch, so I waited about a quarter mile out from where the course ended. When I saw Elle coming in, I jumped back onto the course and finished the relay with her. Crossing the finish line with my partner was awesome! Looking back, I only wish I would have had a banana and water in hand for her . . .
Overall, my first race was awesome! I can't wait for the next one! Oh yes, and one more thing I learned . . . when you see puddles at the end of a race course, please don't step in them. Nine times out of ten, they are NOT rainwater . . . and no, I will not elaborate on that any further!
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