Kim versus the Half Marathon: The OC Half

I flew into LAX on Saturday, 4/30.  My brother Eddie and I had a plan to go to the Expo after we ate lunch after he picked me up from the airport. We both have A.D.D.  At 3:45pm, Eddie reminded me I needed to pick up my packet. We had dinner reservations at Banderas with some friends at 5pm. Ooops. Eddie and April dropped me off at the area near the Expo and then I walked a really fast half mile to the actual packet pick-up. My little swag bag had a sample size Clif Bar, Barnie Butter, a fruit strip , bandaids, and coupons. I was pleased. I would have liked to walk around the Expo and maybe do some shopping (you know how I love to buy me some NUUN), but alas...there was no time.  After my speedy half mile back to the car, we took off to the restaurant...being 25 minutes late. :(

Since we all know I really like having a friend in the race with me (despite the fact that we only see each other at the start), this race was no exception.  My friend and co-worker Carie came cross-country with her husband (and also co-worker), Joe.  Their son and daughter-in-law live in Huntington Beach, the same city my brother and sister-in-law live in.  Though Carie eats 13 miles for breakfast every weekend, she had never actually ran a half marathon, so she was eager to jump on-board my crazy train.

My brother and I met Carie and Joe at Starbucks EARLY Sunday morning and then my brother took us all to the start.  Carie and I did the whole porta-potty thing and hung out until it was go-time and then we parted ways.

My legs felt like lead for mile 1. I was so stiff even though I had stretched. I just couldn't seem to pull the same speed I had in the earlier miles the previous week. Just after mile 1, there was a huge downhill. I decided to run it to gain some time. When I hit mile 2, I was pleasantly surprised to see I had regained my lost time from the first mile and that my legs felt better. This boosted my confidence. Mile 3 offered up another downhill opportunity,so I ran that one, too. I gained more time.

The course was absolutely beautiful.  It offered up a lot of scenic views of the ocean and the mountains.  We ran along some beautiful homes and fragrant flowers.  Shade was offered along the way, as well. 

The race was well organized with 9 water and/or Gatorade stations along the first 13 miles (the marathoners and half marathoners broke off from one another right around 12.25) and there were numerous porta-potty opportunities along the way.  Rarely would anyone actually have to wait in line for their use.  I know I didn't have to and that made me happy!  I was a bit put off when I did have to wait for a light to cross the street around mile 5, though.  I've never had that happen in a race before.

One of the reasons I chose The OC Half was because it offered a negative net elevation.  I think, in my head, I confused this with it being a flat course.  It was anything but flat.  I also know that about 2 months before the race, they changed the course for whatever reason, so perhaps that had something to do with the hills.  Regardless, I totally know why I never drive a course before I run/walk it.  I'm better off not knowing what I'm up against.

The course got kind of weird around mile 7.  I started feeling a little sick and I was moving really slowly.  I started feeling better around mile 8 and then right before I hit 9, it was a straight uphill.  Ugh.  The same thing happened right around mile 11.  Double Ugh.  I just kept marching along.

I told myself no charlie horses.  I carried (and drank from) my new handheld Amphipod 20 oz water bottle filled with water and a lemon-lime NUUN tablet and I stopped at every single drink station and had 1-2 drinks.  I'm proud to announce that I managed to complete this race charlie horse free (and without getting lost like I did the previous week).

Carie killed it with a time of 2:05:02.  She is awesome!  Now she is talking about going back to the OC to run The Surf City Half on Feb. 5th.  It's tempting, so we shall see!  This one truly is a flat course and that truly makes me happy.

Upon completion of our race, we were all handed a bottle of water, a bottle of Gatorade, and a little goodie bag with a banana and a Clif's Mojo sample size bar.

Time-  3:28:55
Finishing Song - Natasha Bedingfield's Touch
Next Stop- The Hottest Half on 8/14 in Dallas - I will be running this race in its entirety (save for walking thru the water stations) - I have a training plan in place - there will be a PR...just you wait and see!

official finisher's photo

Eddie's pic of me