Race Recap:
The expo was decent. I went at around 3:30 on Friday afternoon. Everything was easy to pick up and the volunteers were very helpful. The t-shirt was a strange design, but a very flattering fit. I bought an additional long sleeved t-shirt from Women's Running because they were giving 20% off everything. (Unfortunately they had it marked wrong and I got an XL). I wish they would have had more at the expo because I enjoy seeing running stuff. They really only had maybe ten vendors there and about half were other races.
Brad and I arrived at the race around 5:45 AM and were able to park in my parking garage before they closed the streets around it. The start was fairly typical. It was a fairly sticky morning so I ditched my sweatshirt early on. The corrals seemed very packed and there was no room to stretch or loosen up.
Once the race got started, it was apparent that the race organizers had identified all the hills in Nashville and figured out how to make us only run the uphills of every single one. (Maybe I'm being a little dramatic, but that's what it felt like). I was seriously debating giving up after 2 miles. I felt dizzy and tired and couldn't breathe. Thankfully I couldn't find anyone to give me a ride back to the start, so I kept going. After GU-ing it up, I felt much better and was able to actually enjoy the second half of the race.
I ended up PR-ing, which was a major surprise! The Country Music Half Marathon that I ran in April was 2:58. The Women's Running Half Marathon was 2:50:12. I'll take it! Still shooting for an ultimate PR of 2:30, but that obviously wasn't meant to happen this time.
The finish area was great! The medal is HUGE and very cute. They offered the standard bananas, bagels, and granola bars at the finish. After the finish chute, they had a whole set up of freebies. They had a "freshen up" tent with face wipes, sunscreen (probably needed that prior to running), and body spray. They had free smoothies from Smoothie King. They offered free massages, but I didn't want to wait that long for one. I was able to exchange my XL shirt that I bought. It was very pleasant!
Overall, glad I did it, but it was a test of me mentally! A test that I passed :)
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