Gasparilla 15K

Reg came and picked me up at 5:15am. This would be my 2nd 15K.

• We parked and walked across the street to the the expo for packet pick up. There were thousands of people there. I told Reg I always get a funny feeling when I see so many runners gathered together. Running can be such a lone sport that I sometimes feel alone out on the road. Like I'm the only person who runs. But when I go to the big races I'm overwhelmed with the camaraderie of my fellow runner.

• Publix was a major sponsor for this race and there were Publix banners everywhere! My husband had to work today and couldn't come with us. As I looked all around at the Publix signs I thought of my husband, who works for Publix. I could picture him in his shirt and tie, looking so handsome. But enough abouthim....and Publix...LOL

• Reg once again let me know he was running this race with me. Once again I had mixed feelings about that. I was glad to have him with me, but I didn't want to hold him back. He gave us a finish time of about 1:30. My last 15K PR was 1:40, so I felt comfy with this goal. I felt hopeful too.

• The first 2 miles were the bunny hop, dodging walkers, stoppers and even a few parked cars. We kept to a 9-9:30 pace for this. It was a little warm and very sunny but it felt great. I didn't really work up a sweat until about 4 miles. By then the crowd had thinned out a bit and running was easier. At about mile 6 I felt the first sign of the dreaded muscle cramping, especially in my right foot. I was worried if I had trouble Reg would stay, so I kinda hung back a little, keeping him in my sights for mental support. By mile 7 I knew he couldn't see me and he did go faster. I think I lost sight of him by mile 8 or so.

• I kept watching my Garmin and was so surprised to see I was holding the 9-9:30 pace. Earlier in the week I decided to try to run this one without any stop/walk breaks. I have a really hard time getting going again once I stop and walk so I just wanted to get as far as I could. This was tough at mile 8. The pain in my feet alone made me want to stop, but I had something to prove to myself today. So I kept going. My doctor did tell me I'd get used to the pain and he was right. A few times I actually let myself think I was going to make it. =P

• Mile marker 9 was a sight, I'll tell ya. The timer said something CRAZY, like 1:17. Plus take 2 minutes off that for my true time start. Wow, no way! As I came around a bend I could see the finish line. Like a true endurance runner, I reached into the tank for a strong finish. I soooo love the feeling of crossing a finish line with some energy left in me. This time I was surprised to find some...haha!

• I looked up at the green and white balloons with the Publix sign as I crossed the finish. I thought of Bobby at work and I could see him smile in my mind. He was going to be so proud of me!

• Reg came running over yelling my finish time.

• 1:23!!!!

• I'll admit tears came to my eyes, I still can't get over it! Reg finished in 1:20!! We are thrilled with our results. All the running we've been doing really paid off. I am extremely happy today. I ran with a great friend. I found a distance I can accomplish. I got a new PR. Shaved almost 20 minutes off my last PR!

• And when I talked to Bobby he said what I knew he'd say: "I'm so proud of you!"