Lake Perry Rocks Half Marathon

Lake Perry Rocks Half Marathon October 2013

For some reason, this was never posted last fall, but it was saved in my drafts.  So, here it is for your reading pleasure.  Better late than never...

4:30am alarms rarely cause me to smile, but race day alarms are often a welcome respite from fitful pre-race attempts at sleep.  On this cold, damp morning I am feeling particularly unsettled.  I haven't trained quite enough for this race, and I just signed up on Wednesday night in order to run with my friend, Speedy Beth.  We've decided to run the entire race together and just treat it as a good long run for the week.  No particular time goals, no aspirations for PRs.  (Although after starting the race, we discover that despite the various racing opportunities we've had at distances both shorter and longer, neither of us has run a trail half marathon, so it will be an automatic PR.)  As I'm attempting to quietly prepare my breakfast and pack my bags, I start getting some pre-race nerves.  Since I just signed up for the race, I haven't made plans for fueling, hydration, times, etc.  my watch is missing, and my son lost his, too.  Should I drink coffee or not?  Well, when in doubt, always opt for coffee.


I finally get everything gathered for the entire day's events.  (Did I also mention that after this race, I am headed to a mini-reunion bonfire with several friends I haven't seen since I was 15years old?  So, I'm also packing up clean clothes, pies for the potluck, chairs, blankets, etc.  *sigh*)

I finally get myself, my oatmeal, my coffee, my race stuff, and my bonfire stuff all ready, and I start packing it into the car.  It's a cold, damp, foggy morning with a lingering full moon.  It rained all day yesterday, so I am anticipating slick rocks and copious amounts of mud for today's race.  The temperature is currently hovering right around freezing with a race start temp predicted at 38F.  I grab Lucy's leash and leader and head to the car one last time.  She jumps in and we're ready to go.  We get a full 6 blocks from home before I realize the first thing I've forgotten.  We turn around and get my wayward items, and hit the road again for our 1 hour 45 minute drive to Lake Perry.

Around Lawrence, the coffee has kicked in and I need a pit stop.  I see that all the car windows are frosted over.  It's a bit chillier here...  While stopped, I find a cute, pink sportswatch for $8.  It doesn't have all the functions of my missing watch, but at least I can use the stopwatch mode to keep a total race time going.

Around 7:20, we finally arrive at Branded B Ranch.  The moon is still out, but the sun is coming up.  It's going to be a beautiful day.

















I find a parking place, and Lucy and I head toward the packet pickup location.  We find Speedy Beth's family along the way.  Lucy and Daisy are excited to see each other.

Trekking back and forth from car to packet pickup and back to the car to drop off shirt and mug, etc. and back to the start has me realizing I'm seriously overdressed.  So, I trudge back to the car one more time to shed a layer of shirt and trade my hat for a headband.

Promptly at 8:00, Bad Ben gathers us at the start, and gives us our last minute instructions.

...and we're off.  I usually start at the very back, but I'm feeling skippy today.  We hit the woods in the middle of a group of half marathon and 50k runners.  I'm not sure how long I'll be able to keep this pace, but I'm going to hang on for the ride run.  About a mile or two in, the pack is beginning to spread, but we've got a group that's hanging in together.  Despite multiple offers to let them pass, the majority insist they like the pace and are happy to let me keep leading.  Well, this is an interesting change of pace. (pun intended)

Remember to smile for the camera...

We hit the 6 mile aid station in 1:08.  Still feeling groovy.

And then, somehow we're off on our count of unstaffed aid stations.

This race has been about 18 miles, right?  Eventually we work our way through the woods and out to the last aid station.

We finished and were feeling good with our new race bling.  

After the race, I got to go visit a friend I hadn't seen in years.  You know you have a good friend when you can show up muddy and stinky from a trail race, and all she does is give you a big hug, say congratulations, and point you to the shower!!  We ate lots of food when the rest of the group showed up...including these three amazing pies that I made instead of sleeping the night before the race.