Mission Accomplished!

I apologize right off... this is going to be a long blog post with a lot of pictures.  I just can't help it though.  Sunday, April 22nd was such a great day and I have so much joy to share!

A horse never runs so fast as when he has other horses to catch up and outpace. ~ Ovid

My 1st racing bib and my finisher's medal

I've taken somewhat of a hiatus in writing for the past several months.  First there were the tax returns to get done for the business and complex personal returns... compounded by more responsibilities at work and just trying to keep up with everything in general.  On top of everything, I tried to remain diligent in my running training, knowing I was committed to run the Iron Girl race in Clearwater Beach, FL on April 22nd.  It didn't help when certain co-workers scoffed at my training time, telling me I was running slow.  It was always so easy to try and make excuses why I couldn't train well either... too many meetings throwing me off schedule, the increasing Florida heat, spring allergies not letting me breathe deep enough... you name it... I could make an excuse.

Mini-me bobble-head that Hubby surprised me with for encouragement

But then the first major reminder hit me smack between the eyes over our anniversary weekend on March 3rd when my precious husband of a soul-mate surprised me with this bobble-head rendition of me.  He had diligently been taking notice of me and the efforts I had been making in my training over the past year... right down to the use of my Garmin training watch he originally bought me Christmas before last,  just as something to help me along my fitness goals.  I'm not sure exactly what I was expecting when I signed up for the Athleta Iron Girl event in Clearwater.  I guess I was looking for something just a little more external to really hold me accountable to try to improve myself... not really believing I was capable of even finishing such an endeavor to be honest.

But race day quickly approached us.  There was no backing out of it for me. The certainty of that began to sync in with me with every reminder about the event coming up and the pressure from my training not going very well.  After all, I felt slow and sluggish, with a painful kink in my neck and a stitch in my side the week before that made it uncomfortable to breathe deeply.  Then again, was that another excuse just bubbling up in my mind?

So, what was my excuse after all this?  Nothing really held a candle to it.  After all... I AM A CANCER SURVIVOR and I was invited to run as part of Team Courage as a cancer survivor.  Had I really forgotten what that really meant?  It was just melanoma, but NO... there's not a day that goes by that I don't count my lucky stars to be alive!!

The excitement was incredible watching the 1/2 marathoners start their race.

So, my training over the past few weeks had been extremely challenging.  It's hard to believe this event was already on my doorstep to start.  Now that it's a week in my rear-view mirror, it's even more difficult to comprehend.  I had so much fear and trepidation going into it.  After all, I had never done anything like this and if my last training times had anything to predict about it, I wouldn't even be able to continuously run the route.  In fact, I set the goal for myself that I would be happy if I finished (ideally) if I could run the 5k route continuously without stopping, or if I could finish the route in less than 35 minutes.  Surely I was healthy enough to accomplish one of those objectives!!

Clearwater Memorial Causeway bridge .. yep, we ran up and over that!

On race day, the excitement was incredible.  I couldn't believe Hubby was able to get me up out of bed early enough to make it to the start line.   I'm NOT a morning person, so the 7:30 start-time was definitely a challenge.  And then, I had no idea there would be another 2500 ladies running the same 5k route with me... no wonder there were so many people around!  The hardest part for me was the time just before the 1/2-marathoners started and my start-time... the time where Hubby left me to drive over to park at the finish line to wait for me and we had to be apart for a little while  Although he kept sending me text pictures of what the finished line looked like, I was just so unnerved without him being by my side.

But then, it was time to funnel myself into the chute and get this run started.  All this time of training and trying, the time to show was now.  I ended up in probably the back 1/4th of the runners starting out, so it took me a while to get to the starting line after the race kicked off... there were just soooooo many people!  But, I kept making my way forward, and I kept passing more and more ladies as I kept running the route.  Actually the crowd helped me keep my pace at a pace that was appropriate for me.  I ended up finished the route in 33 minutes and  50 seconds... and I only had to stop once at the top of Clearwater Memorial Causeway bridge when I took a puff off my asthma inhaler.  Hubby was waiting for me at the finish line, but bless his heart he missed seeing me cross since there were so many of us.  Still, I'll never forget it... the good Lord helped me see him right off as I crossed the line and I was able to sidle up to him and touch his hand as he looked for me.  The look on his face with recognition and relief is something I'll remember forever.  I'm so very thankful for all the people who have encouraged me to go after this objective along this endeavor along the way, especially my husband.

Hubby found me after I crossed the finish line at Clearwater Beach!

After the race, we walked to the Sandpearl to enjoy the amenities and just to hang out.  We started to notice a group of people piling up a mound of sand.  You know, in Pinellas County, we tend to convey messages in the form of sand sculptures.  I suppose this is what all that activity turned out to mean.

After the race we hung out in the members' loft at the Sandpearl.  The rain poured down right after we got settled in our hide-a-way.  It led to great conversation time about all I had seen along the way (including the mother/daughter team dressed as Wonder Woman to all the great ladies I saw along the way), as well as the great people who stopped to cheer us along as we ran the route.  I was very grateful to my friends and family following up on my progress.

Chatting afterwards with all my friends and family who were sending me such encouraging words!

So, this past week has been a very long one with a lot of stress.  Thinking back on it, I still can't believe that I did this major milestone.  I've caught myself thinking back to several moments along the way and continued to draw strength and encouragement from it.  I know that I wouldn't be able to have done this without my incredibly supportive spouse who is my best friend.  I'm so blessed to have had such support as I've prepared to take on this challenge!

Me with the best coach ever...and also the love of my life!

There was no one I'd rather have shared this moment of accomplishment with though.  I'm definitely feeling a lot of confidence that I didn't feel before and am feeling strangely confident in areas I felt insecure before.  Even with the little bit of training I got in this past week, I even got to the point of just running to enjoy running... with this beautiful springtime Florida weather, how could I not?!  Feeling strong and positive about the world around me does indeed help me to feel more like an Iron Girl!

I am Iron Girl!!  :-)