The Robie Creek Half Recap

Happy Marathon Monday!

Oh how I wish I was in Boston today to watch all those runners competing in the Boston Marathon.

In honor of Marathon Monday, I will share my story of my Half-Marathon from Saturday. You know, the one where I Raced To Robie Creek!

Kandace, Me, Victoria & Marciela (My TNT Marathon Girls!)

Saturday was the big day. The day in which I was going to officially embark 8.5  miles up this crazy mountain and then straight downhill 4.5 more.

I was a wee bit nervous before the race. Mainly because the race started at noon, which sort of threw my pre-race routine out of whack.

We were also really confused about what the weather was going to do. There was a 60 % chance of rain and we could feel the breeze and see dark clouds above. We opted to layer up at this point.

Before the race we engaged in many of activities. Like taking pictures of people dressed up like pirates.

  

Like getting in line to meet Kaylee & Moses from The Biggest Loser!

Fun Fact: This was Kaylee’s first race ever, and Moses actually walked Robie ten years ago weighing in at like 300 something pounds.

And getting pre-race Robie Creek tattoo love!

Then it was time for the opening festivities at the starting line, which was actually pirates ship. (hard to see in the picture)

Complete with a fun little skit about stealing some Pirate’s booty.

And then we were off.

And as if the rain gods were in sync with the blow of the gun at the start line, the clouds went away and the glaring hot sun came out.

It threw me for a bit, as I have been training to run this mountain in the snow, and had over layered a bit. The first few miles, I was instantly hit with a horrible headache and was struggling up the first hill.

I had to remind myself that this was all in the name of fun, and that I could do this.

Then it was time to really rock this steep uphill climb. I just stuck with what worked during training. Run when it’s flat and power walk up the steep parts.

The heat really messed me with me though. I was impressed with the amount of water stops along this race, and definitely took advantage of every single one of them.

Somewhere between mile 7.5 and the top of the Aldape summit I started to mentally freak out. My body was hurting and I was having a tough time.

I just kept making forward movement, because I knew the top was close. At least I kept hoping that it was just around the corner.

Before I could make it to the top, I found “Temptation Table”. There was no alcohol this year, but they were giving out donuts, chocolate, and offering to spray whipped cream into your mouth. So random!

I politely declined and kept making my way up this beast of a mountain. The top was so close I could taste it! And that to me was better than any chocolate and whipped cream.

I finally hit the top and had to take a minute to stretch my legs. The uphill climb was more brutal than it had been during my training runs. But I was ready to rock the downhill portion.

I just ran. I didn’t want to stop until I hit the finish line. So that’s just what I did. I ran and ran and ran.

And loved every bit of the mountain scenery. At parts it felt like I was running through a forest. And due to the trees the temperatures cooled down a bit.

You guys have no idea how excited I was when I saw mile marker 13. I was ready to just finish this race so I began to sprint.

And I hit the finish line at exactly 3 hours and 8 minutes of running. Crazy! I was hoping to do it under 3 hours, but I’m just so happy to say I did it.

Immediately after I looked around to reconnect with my TNT girls. But I was having some horrible leg cramping issues. That steep uphill and downhill pounding did a number on my body.

All I wanted was to get my finisher’s shirt, grab a cold beer and sit down.

And that’s exactly what I did. And you can imagine I was excited to see Bestie Maria at the beer station pouring me a nice cold celebratory beer.

And the grub hit the spot. Nothing like a nice plate of mac n cheese and a baked potato. Mmmmmmm!

We sat and watched the band The Tropical Cowboys, while we chatted about how we could finally check the Robie Creek race off our running bucket lists.

Cheers to tackling what has been dubbed as the toughest half-marathon in the northwest. And I believe it!

I am happy to have done this race. And just proud of myself for staying strong throughout.

I decided that this race was physically harder than my marathon back in October. Though running a marathon is mentally harder.

***

Happy Marathon Monday Friends!

A huge THANK YOU to everyone for all their encouragement for this race. I just kept thinking of ALL of you when it got tough on that mountain. And I seriously could not have done without your support. So thank you!!!

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