As of 9:26 am on Sunday, I can officially say that I have finished a half marathon! I finished standing up, albeit struggling at the end, but I finished! Final time, and my newest personal best, 2:26:35.

The race was not held under ideal conditions – mid 40s and a cold 20 MPH wind out of the north (which means it was cold since it came off from the Atlantic Ocean). The fact that it stopped raining before we were outside to run was excellent.

Course summary — we took off shortly after 7 AM and headed north for about 3 miles on Atlantic. From there, we ran by both of my children who got out of bed on a cold morning to walk to see me! The kids took the hats and gloves that others wanted to drop. It was really close to the house where we were staying and another water stop. Then, we headed NW on Shore Drive for about 3 miles. Those 3 miles were a boring 3 miles, but were sheltered from the wind by trees. We passed by First Landing State Park, where the eventual Jamestown Settlers first landed.

Next, we turned east into Fort Story, home of the Cape Henry lighthouses (old and new ones). I’ve been on Ft. Story a few times — to climb the old lighthouse and to visit my Mom once (stays there every year for a week with her ex-Air Force hubby). We continued for the 3 or so miles through Ft. Story with the winds whipping off from the Atlantic (you could see the ocean to the left – no break from the trees). Next, we headed out of the west gate of Ft. Story for the 4 miles south. We passed by the house where we were staying, then the water stop where we headed NW (above). This was our Goo stop on the return trip.

Finally, we cut towards the Atlantic Ocean at about mile 12 or so. The elite Marathon runners were starting to pass me (they were heading north, we were heading south), just as I headed towards the ocean. We made a quick jog to the boardwalk and then ran the final leg on the boardwalk to cross the finish line. Done… thankfully.

After finishing, we got our own emergency (space) blanket (foil-like wraps with the Yuengling logo), our finishers medals, bananas, a bag of goodies, and the best part — a hat that declares me to be a 13.1 finisher! I met up with my running buddies who all finished ahead of me and we eventually headed into the celebration tent. There, they handed each runner 4 beer tickets (the race was sponsored by Yuengling), and had Irish Stew to eat.

Eventually, I was able to retrieve my car and head to the house where we packed and headed home. Today, I treated myself to a massage and a day off from work. Tomorrow, the real world will get back under my skin…