Redemption

It's been a little while since I last posted in here.  I've been crazy busy - mostly with running and traveling.  On St. Patrick's Day, I made the trip home to Virginia to start my vacation week.  I hadn't been home or seen my parents since New Year's, so I was really excited to head back to Virginia.  Plus, the very next day was the Shamrock Half Marathon - a pretty big event back home.  I ran the Shamrock Marathon back in high school, but never tried the half marathon before.  Since I was gonna be home anyway, I figured, why not?  I'm not one to turn down a half marathon. :)

But I was super nervous about my IT band since it started acting up at the Miles for Music 20K.  I rested it for a few days following the 20K and then did a short 2-mile run a couple days before Shamrock without any issues.  I hadn't had any pain in several days, so I decided to go ahead and give Shamrock a try.

So glad I did.

It was a really fun race - great crowd support and a nice, flat course.  And, best of all, I set a new PR!  This was just what I needed.  I'd been feeling pretty down about running due to a not-so-great race at the Mercedes Half, followed by a very disappointing 20K.  Now I'm mainly just running for enjoyment, so time is not a huge concern for me most of the time.  But I was starting to feel pretty discouraged that I just kept getting slower despite running more.

This was a great victory for me.  It totally reinvigorated me and reaffirmed my love for running - just what I needed!  Granted, I didn't PR by a whole lot.  My previous PR was 2:06:12 set at the Norfolk Freedom Half Marathon in November.  My official time for Shamrock was 2:05:21, but my Garmin time was 2:05:08.  I had to stop to tie my shoe around mile 8, and I paused Garmin.  Now I'm not sure which time I should count as my new PR.  Big, big problems, of course. ;)  Either way, it's still a PR, and I'm super happy about it.

   Post-Shamrock Half: yes, I ran with a tiara and wand.

PLUS, no IT band pain!  It was amazing.  Things really couldn't have gone much better for this race.  We had great weather, a nice course, fantastic support, and absolutely incredible finisher premiums - a gorgeous medal, hooded finisher sweatshirt, and finisher hat!  Throw in a PR to boot, and this is about as close to perfection as I can imagine. :)
  
And it was a great motivator for my double the very next weekend...but I'll save that for another post. :)