I gotta feeling...

WoooHoo!

So I did it. I ran the San Diego Half Marathon. Before you ask, No, I did not beat Valerie. But I don't want to talk about that right now.

Its been a week since my plane touched down back in D.C. As I've gotten back to my real life, I've been thinking about the race. Strange thing is, I hardly remember most of it. Which to me, is a little crazy. I ran 13.1 miles for pete's sake. Wouldn't a person remember that?

To be honest, I only remember small snippets of the race.

THE GOOD

• The beautiful scenery - the sun rising over Point Loma, boats on the San Diego Bay, the beautiful homes along the race course.



• Running with Joel and Brian - we crossed the starting line together and as they pulled away from me, watching their shirts disappear among the 8,000 other racers.



• The homeless guy at Mile 11 - as I climbed the massive hill at the end of the course, a homeless guy was there cheering us on and yelled "Hey, sweetie, smile! This is the best part!" Thanks, friend, I needed that.



• The turn into Balboa Park after Mile 12 - after running a 300 foot change in elevation during the last half of Mile 11, the course took us on a turn into Balboa park. The road was lined with American Flags and cheering people. Just as I turned into the park, as if on cue, my ipod started playing "I Gotta Feeling" by the Black Eyed Peas. How appropriate.



• Finishing 13.1 miles - 'nuff said.



• Having my family cheer me on - Until now, I had never run a race where I had anyone cheering me on from the sidelines. I knew my family would be at Mile 10 waiting to cheer as we ran past. That knowledge kept me going. I cannot describe the feeling you get as you see the people you love standing in the distance, waiting to cheer as you run past. It is priceless.

THE BAD

• The 300 foot climb at Mile 11 - aka "The Death March." You try climbing the equivalent of a 30 story building over the distance of about half a mile, AFTER you've already run 11 miles. Holy Crap, that was hard.



• Having to face the fact that Valerie Bertinelli is faster than me. Don't even get me started. Now, Jenny Craig is airing commercials about Val's half-marathon. Is Valerie trying to rub it in!?!?!?!

THE UGLY

• The realization that in 5 months I'm going to have to double that and run 26.2 miles. What in the world was I thinking?

On Monday night, the day after the race, we went out to dinner. My in-laws took us to a restaurant that overlooked downtown San Diego. As I took a sip of my champagne, I asked my father-in-law to show me where Point Loma, the starting point of our race, was. As he pointed off in the distance, I was overwhelmed. Looking out from that beautiful restaurant, San Diego and the entire 13.1 miles unfolded before me. I ran that. I totally ran that.

I am extremely blessed.