Zombie Half Marathon

Zombie Half Marathon

I love running! I've been so bummed about my messed up knee that I haven't been able to run in a month (except marathon day). But I had already paid for this race and I really wanted to get out and do it, so I decided I wouldn't race and risk re injury, I'd just jog and if I needed to walk. Half marathons are my favorite race, they aren't too long but they are so much fun. This one was a Halloween one so we had a ton of people in costumes and a lot of zombies. I wish I would have dressed up!

Right before the race

I didn't know we could take dogs on the trail! This zombie runner had a zombie dog. He was holding a calve and foot with a runners tennis shoe on it. he he he. So adorable!

We saw three moose, two on the trail where I was running and one on the way in.

This guy was about five feet off the bike path, and when I snapped his picture he started running towards me and I thought I might be a goner. He was just headed toward a patch of grass right next to the bike path.

Running to the finish. I took it nice and easy and listened to Disney songs the whole way. My fastest mile was mile 12 at 8:55 and the last mile was all up hill! I hate it when they do that! They also measured the distance wrong and we had to run an extra half mile. I also hate it when they do that! lol. I averaged 9:58 min miles and finished strong with a 2 hour 14 min time.

I did start with a shirt, but it was so bloody hot I took it off half way through. Sadie Kodi and Aaron met me at the finish line.

My knee is a little sore but I didn't retear anything

The course was all on bike paths accross Anchorage. About 7 miles right next to the ocean and the rest though yellow trees and around lakes, ponds, and rivers. So beautiful! Aaron played photographer and played fetch with the dogs while he waited for me.

 He got some cute duck ones!

Kenai River Marathon

Jessica, me, Debbi-the before picture

Kenai River Marathon

I tore my IT band nine days before I was going to run my marathon. I was out running Winner Creek and ran 6 miles before it started bothering me. Occasionally when I would step down on my left side there was a sharp pain, but after adjusting it went away. I was running downhill and finally stopped to stretch it because it was driving me insane and it snapped. White hot excruciating pain everytime I bent my left knee. It took me thirty minutes to limp two blocks home and I immediately put it on ice and asked Aaron to give me a priesthood blessing on his lunch break.

The blessing was beautiful! It brought tears to my eyes and Aaron's. He told me "To be healed as though the injury had never happened." I jumped up and gave him a hug and was totally disappointed my knee still killed. haha. I guess it didn't work immediately. I was still terrified it wouldn't be all the way healed before the big day. I waited until it wasn't swollen like a baseball before doing injury massage, RICE, and heat therapy. It was healing quickly, but not in time for my marathon.

I just couldn't let all that training (150+ miles) go to waste. We showed up and I told Aaron I would quit if it got to be too much. Debbie and Jessica were doing the half marathon that day so we met a half an hour before the race started to wish each other good luck.

Start line

Starting line, I was super nervous! There were a bunch of people running the half and relay but only about 30 running the marathon. I was the youngest.

A mile out, running through old Kenai

I felt the sharp pain begin to build up at mile 4 and I knew I should quit or I was going to retear my IT band. I just couldn't do it. I couldn't stop myself and suffer the disappointment of not finishing. Just before mile 5 it snapped again and the pain was horrible. I was begging Heavenly Father to just let me finish. Just let me finish. In my blessing, I had been promised there was an angel on either side of me holding me up. I never felt it more mile 6 and 7. Heaven was on my side and by mile 8 the pain was mostly gone. I was limping, but I didn't feel it so bad everytime I bent my knee. I called Aaron and told him I was doing good and I planned on finishing. He checked out of the hotel room and grabbed all of our stuff and found me at mile 13. He grabbed my knee brace and helped me into it at the aide station and ran a fourth of a mile with me to cheer me up.
I had planned on running a 4:30 marathon which is ten minute miles, but in my practice my comfortable pace was 9:30 per mile which is more like a 4:15. At mile 13 my time was 2:15, so I was right on pace for a 4:30 finish. But my knee was even worse now and at some points I felt like a was dragging it behind me. My breathing was great, I had barely cracked a sweat and I felt great...except I was dragging one leg behind me. I knew I would have crushed this marathon if I was in peak condition and that was so disappointing.

Crossing the Kenai River at mile 13

Soldotna

On the trail at mile 15. Aaron met me every aide station to give me some support...and food. I usually eat a 900 calorie meal before I run and I was so nervous in the morning I could only shove down a cliff bar and an orange. I was starving!!! Every couple of miles I'd down some GU, but I still was in desperate need of the oranges he peeled for me. :) Thanks Babe!

The course was really beautiful! All the trees were yellow and it was a nice overcast day. We ran through the opening of the Kenai river where it meets the ocean and then over the river twice. There were mountains, and rivers, and streams and tons of gorgeous trees to keep your mind off running.

At mile 18 I hit an uphill and had to walk. I knew I couldn't stop or I wouldn't be able to get going again, but I could not make it up this hill. I walked. And as soon as I did, my knee seized up and I couldn't bend it. Tears pricked my eyes, because I knew I wouldn't be able to finish. I pity partied and power walked without bending my left leg. Finally I called Aaron and told him I was going to walk the next 8 miles to the finish. He found me and walked a mile with me, gave me his jacket, and held my hand. Don't I just have the best husband ever! He had to go back and get the car, but he said he would see me at the next aide station. I started downhill and pumped my arms and tried to get to running again, but everytime the excruciating pain in my knee made me stop. On about the ninth try I was running once more. Again it was such a spiritual experience. 

I was slower than ever, but I ran it all the way in. About a half mile from the finish line Aaron started running with me, a little bit later I saw Jessica and Debbi and they all ran me to the finish line. I wanted to cry they were so sweet! 

At the finish!

I felt like the last one to finish the marathon, but there were still five people after me! My official time was 5:20. 12 minute miles. Yikes! But I finished and I am going to rock next years! I could not ask for a more loving and supportive husband. He told me afterwards he even hid the car at the aide stations so I wouldn't be tempted to quit. I'm way to stubborn for that.

We stopped on the way home and got some pictures of these gorgeous swans. There were about a million spawned out salmon dying in this lake.

Can you see all the salmon? They were huge and their fins kept poking out of the water.

Random Happenings

Eklutna Lake

Our cousin Shauna lives out on Richardson Army Base so we went out to visit her for a bit while Katie was in town. Katie was visiting before she goes on her mission to Mexico. We chatted with them for an hour and exchanged phone numbers so we can visit each other more often, and then headed out to Eklutna Lake which is close by the base. I had to do a long run, and I was planning on doing twenty miles, but ended up only doing ten because the trail was harder than I thought. It was right on the lake and many of the spots where covered in water and a lot of ups and downs on gravel. It was gorgeous though, and we will be going back!

I love love love this shot Aaron took of me running. Aaron rode his bike and stayed with me.

Beluga Whales

We were on our way home from Eklunta Lake and so jealous because Katie and Shauna and her boys had saw a whole pod of Belugas on their way back from Seward and we hadn't seen any all year long. But we saw some white waves on the Turnagain Arm that weren't waves. We pulled over and sat on the rocks and watched them swim past us. There were about five of them and they saw about fifteen feet away. It was so cool! Sadly, they just look like floating trash bags in the picture.

But to celebrate we took our bikes out on the bike path to Beluga Point with the dogs.

Fetch

Playing Fetch has become a battle. Sadie and Kodi are so serious about chasing that ball. It's hilarious!

My favorite-check out those teeth haha

Chasing Waterfalls

We went hiking on the Blue Ice Trail in Portage. It's a gorgeous trail and the bridges are awesome. All of the streams were full of spawned out salmon and the bears had been at them because there were half chewed fish carcasses all over. Gross. It stinks so bad. We went on an off shoot trail and ended up at a waterfall from glacial runoff.

Winner Creek is looking lovely in fall colors

We also did the Turnagain Arm trail which was looking lovely in fall as well.

Girdwood's Glacier Creek

Johnsons Pass Trailhead

Fall is starting rear its head. It's cold...in the fourties and everything is turning yellow and orange. It's beautiful, but we are missing the sunlight.

Fairy Ring

It's mushroom season and I found a fairy ring! They are mushrooms in a perfect circle, and are supposedly made by fairies. They will grant you a wish if you stand in the middle of them. So I had to give it a go. :)

We shall see if my wish comes true. :)

We finally had a sunset! Mostly they happen in the spring, but we miss out on pretty much every other season so this is especially awesome!