I started this blog back in July when I had just begun training for the FitOne Boise Half-Marathon.  There are quite a few of my blogging friends who have followed me through this journey from the beginning, and a few of you have come along at a later time, but I really want to thank all of you for the encouragement and keeping me going at even the worst of times!! This past Saturday was the day that I had been working towards for 12 long and trying weeks, and it was worth every minute of it!

I hadn’t got much sleep the night before, but I’m not sure anyone sleeps well the night before a race, do they!  We got to the start line without a hitch.  There were 4 of us running it… my husband James, my father-in-law Rick who just turned 70 four days before, his running partner Roberta, and me. This was Rick’s very first half-marathon, and having just turned 70, what a fabulous way to celebrate!!  Anyway, we were all lined up at the start line, I was doing my normal freaking out (per usual) and eating my Shot Bloks, but when I bit down on my Shot Blok, it completely lifted a crown off one of my back molars. Thankfully I wasn’t in any pain.  I was more shocked that it happened than anything… and really kind of irritated. Ten minutes before the gun was to go off!  Are you freaking kidding me?!!

No worries.  I sucked it up and put my crown in my belt to deal with later.  We all managed to cross the start line together, said our goodbyes, and off everyone went.  James was leading the pack, then Rick and Roberta, and I followed up from behind.  I’ve never really said how slow I actually run, but my goal was to get this done in 3-1/2 hours.

The race was fabulous as I knew it would be. The scenery was gorgeous.  We started off in downtown Boise, ran through a few beautiful neighborhoods of big historic houses, through the Old Idaho Penitentiary Site, across the Boise River down to the Greenbelt (which I had run back in July), up through downtown Boise a different way near the capitol building, up a mother of a hill, and down on into Ann Morrison Park to finish it off.  Okay, so I’m not the best at details, but if you ever want to see the heart of a city, run a race to get a close look at the beauty.

James and AJ at the finish line!

Jamesy finished in 1:47:57, a screaming finish and a great confidence boost for Chicago!  My father-in-law and Roberta, so proud, finished it in 2:22:03!!  And I came close to my 3-1/2 hour goal at 3:32:18.  I was only 2 minutes off, but I consider this race a huge success!!  First and foremost, I finished and got my bling!!  I’ve also knocked off another state in my “50 in 50” quest (James still needs Idaho for his marathon).

I know I still have some things I want and need to improve. My breathing for one… I need to increase my VO2 max so I can become a more efficient runner.  That is one of my downfalls, my breathing.  My legs are strong, but my breathing gets me in the end.  And I also need to work on getting stronger with hills.  But don’t we all, hehe!

Next up is Maui in January with a goal for me of 3:15:00!  And that’s going to be one helluva runcation!!  Bling, family time, and snorkeling all in the same trip!  I just don’t think life could be any better!

Not only did Rick receive the normal bling, he placed 2nd in his age group and got extra bling for that! Wow!