FARGO

ONE WOULD THINK THAT WITH THIS BEING MY 18TH HALF MARATHON IN ADDITION TO THE 26.2 RACES AND TRIATHLONS THAT I WOULD KNOW HOW TO PACK BY NOW. SURE SHIT, I GET TO FARGO AND STOP AT A CARIBOU COFFEE BEFORE I HIT UP THE EXPO. IT WAS THERE IN LINE THAT I REALIZED I DIDN'T PACK ANY CONTACTS. FOR MOST PEOPLE IT WOULDN'T BE A PROBLEM BUT I WEAR DAILY LENSES, WOOF. OFF TO A GREAT START! ONCE AT THE EXPO I GATHERED AS MANY PROMOTIONAL FLYERS AS POSSIBLE FROM THE VARIOUS VENDORS. THESE LITTLE THINGS ARE LIKE CASH FOR PEOPLE WHO RACE A LOT. THEY HAVE PROMO CODES ON THEM GOOD FOR $5 TO $15 OFF RACE ENTRIES! JUST REMEMBER, RUNNING IS A CHEAP SPORT, EVERYONE KEEPS TELLING YOU THAT.

​AS PER THE NORM, THE NIGHT BEFORE A RACE IS FILLED WITH DOUBTS, PAIN (SOME REAL AND SOME PHANTOM) AND REGRETS. YOU TRY LAYING EVERYTHING OUT PERFECTLY, SET 77 ALARMS AND TRY TO BE IN BED AT 8PM. THE FIRST TWO USUALLY HAPPEN, THE SLEEP, THAT NEVER COMES. LIKE WHY DONT WE PRACTICE GOING TO BED EARLY AS PART OF OUR TRAINING!? BRILLIANT IDEA IF YOU ASK ME. IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE FACT AMERICA IS FILLED WITH SOME LAZY INCONSIDERATE PARENTS WHO LET THIER KIDS RUN IN THE HALLWAY AS THEY DRINK IN THIER HOTEL ROOM. OOPS, OFF ON A SIDE RANT.

RACE MORNING. THE DAY EVERYONE HAS HAD ON THIER CALENDAR FOR WEEKS OR MONTHS. WENTRAIN FOR HOURS IN HOPES OF CRUSHING THAT 30 SOME MINUTE 10K (BRANDEN) OR THAT 1:30 HALF OR MAYBE TRYING THE IMPOSSIBLE, A SUB 2 HOUR MARATHON. NIKE CAME UP SHORT RIGHT? THE THING IS, IF YOU AREN'T NERVOUS THE NIGHT BEFORE OR YOUR HEART RATE ISN'T THROUGH THE ROOF RACE MORNING, YOU SHOULDN'T BE IN THOSE POSITIONS. IT'S WHEN YOU FIND PLEASURE IN ALL THIS AGONY THAT YOU KNOW YOU'RE DOING THE RIGHT THING, RUNNING!

​THE RACE. NATURALLY I GOT TO THE FARGODOME WITH PLENTY OF TIME BEFORE WE STARTED. SOMEHOW, I STILL MANAGED TO FIND MYSELF SCRAMBLING TO THE START CORRAL. RATHER THAN BEING BY THE 1:40/1:45 PACER, I WAS BY THE 2:15 PACE GROUP TO START THE RACE. THIS MEANT TWO THINGS; IT WAS UP TO MY GARMIN TO PACE MY RUN AND I WOULD WASTE TIME AND ENERGY PASSING PEOPLE. SO FAR, THE RUNNING GODS WERE KICKING MY ASS.

WITH THE START BEING INSIDE THE DOME, WE ALL WENT FROM BEING WARM AND FUZZY TO FREEZING AS WE LEFT THE HOME OF THE BISON. I THINK MOST OF US WERE WARMED UP BY THE FIRST MILE AND SOME REGRETTING THE 7 LAYERS THEY HAD ON. THESE FIRST 3 MILES OF THE RACE WERE BRUTAL. MY FIRST MILE WAS LIKE 8:15 PACE THANKS TO MY INABILITY TO GET IN THR PROPER CORRAL. PASSING HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE MAKES YOU FEEL KIND OF GOOD BUT I KNEW IT WAS WASTING VALUABLE TIME. AFTER ABOUT 4 MILES INTO THE RACE, IT THINNED OUT AND IT WAS GO TIME.

AS THE MILES WENT BY, I KEPT SEEING SUB 7:50 MILES ON MY WATCH. THIS WAS A GREAT FEELING, ESPECIALLY WHEN I DON'T SEE MYSELF AS A FAST RUNNER AT ALL. IT'S USUALLY MILE 10 THAT I START TO SLOW DOWN. SOMETIMES FROM PHYSICAL REASONS AND SOMETIMES A WEAK MIND. THAT SATURDAY IN FARGO BOTH WERE STRONG. I COULD FEEL MY LEGS PUSHING ME FURTHER AND FASTER AS I NEARED THE FARGODOME AGAIN. LIKE I SAID, I USUALLY LIMP INTO THE FINISH, SOMETIMES SICK ENOUGH TO VOMIT AND OTHERS AT SNAIL PACE. THIS WASN'T THE CASE, AND HOPEFULLY A NEW TREND.

THAT LAST MILE, RATHER THAN SNAIL PACE, WAS A 7:20 MILE! YOU CAN THINK LIKE I DID AND BE LIKE SHIT, A LOT WAS LEFT OUT THERE ON THE COURSE. YOU WOULD BE 100% CORRECT. ON THAT DAY IN FARGO, I COULD AND SHOULD HAVE BROKE 1:40 AND PROBABLY HAD A NEW PR. BUT I AM NOT TRAINING FOR A HALF MARATHON PR, I AM TRAINING TO CRUSH MY IRONMAN. IT'S HARD TO KEEP FOCUSED ON THE END GOAL SOMETIMES. PEOPLE GET DISTRACTED EASILY AND THAT CAN BRING HAVOC TO THE END GOAL. SO YES, I AM DISAPOINTED THAT I DIDN'T RUN AS FAST AS MY BODY AND MIND COULD BUT I AM MORE CONFIDENT NOW. I SHAVED OF EVEN MORE TIME FROM MY HALF MARATHON TIME THIS YEAR AND THE RACE FELT EASY. IRONMAN WISCONSIN 70.3 AND GRANDMAS ARE NEXT!

​"THE HARDER YOU WORK FOR SOMETHING, THE GREATER YOU WILL FEEL WHEN YOU ACHIEVE IT."

"EVERY MORNING IN AFRICA, A GAZZELL WAKES UP. IT KNOWS IT MUST OUT RUN THE FASTEST LION OR IT WILL BE KILLED. EVERY MORNING IN AFRICA A LION WAKES UP. IT KNOWS IT MUST RUN FASTER THAN THE SLOWEST GAZZELL OR STARVE. IT DOESN'T MATTER IF YOU ARE THE GAZZELL OR THE LION, WHEN THE SUN COMES UP, YOU BETTER BE RUNNING."