Live Strong Recap... a little late

WOW!  Crystal and I left BRIGHT AND EARLY on Saturday morning (like at 5:15 AM) and drove down to Austin!  We made it and checked in to our hotel and then headed down town to the Expo!  The Expo was OK, it wasn't like the Rock N' Roll Expo, but it still had a lot of stuff just more chaotic!  

I did manage to buy so of these babies!

Thorlo Socks www.thorlo.com

 

These are the most comfortable socks EVER... and they kept me from getting Nasty Black toe during the race! :o)

We also got to see these cool cars called "Car 2 Go."  You rent these cars and go wherever, but if someone decides to rent one and your at the same place they can take the car that you rented and you have to get the next one that comes available!  Better not leave anything in their because you could walk in to get your dry cleaning and walk out and your car had been rented!  :o)

Thought these were really cute!

Then off we went to what we do best! SHOP!! Yes, we went before we ran the next day!  Woops... it's a good thing we are not Elite Athletes because I think this would have been a negative in their books!  

Sunday morning we woke up at 4:30 and got all ready!    I wasn't nervous about the race until we reached the parking lot!  I did great that morning.  I got up took all my jazz, ate breakfast, and semi-stretched.  I felt great!  

I am glad that I was prepared the night before because waking up at 4:30 and not being ready I am sure I would have forgotten something!

Heading down to the Capital

We started at the Texas Capital!  

The race was very challenging for me!  I am not used to running hills or lets say mountains like this race was designed!  Miles 1-6 were up hill and then 6-9 were semi down, but mostly up.  I was running a 9:05 pace the whole time or after I got out of miles 1 and 2.  The race was very crowded at the beginning and people were WALKING at .2 miles!  People were walking in the dead middle of the path so if you ran up on them you had to stop or hit someone on the side to go around!  After mile 2 it got better.  When I hit mile 9 I had to go to the bathroom... UGH!  WHY??  So, there was a water station at mile 9 so I used the Porta Potties and then jumped back in the race only to realize that the next hill was going to make me say a bad word out loud!  I started going down hill after mile 9, my legs were mushy, and I was mentally exhausted from the previous hills.  My pace started to drop down at mile 11.  The last two hills of the race literally looked like this! 

Crystal and I Post Race... I have raccoon eyes! 

Overall, I felt great!  I just now know that hill workouts are VERY Important!  This wasn't a PR and I am OK with that!  I had lots of fun!  I know I can do better and push myself harder, but I am pleased! :o)  

We got to go shopping again after the race and we found Crystal her dress that she wearing to my wedding! :o)

Just kidding!

Hope you have a great Thursday!! 
Tomorrow is dessert day at school (which I do NOT need)!