Indianapolis Women's Half Marathon and 5K

Wow! What a race this was! I signed up for 5K since Ewelina was running it with me and she just now got into running. I didn't really know what to think about it at first. I am kind of skeptic when it comes to races that charge you extra for a T-shirt. Not that I really want another cotton shirt added to my collection but a lot of times when you are being charged extra for additional race accessories it kind of makes you wonder about the organization of the race itself. As the race was approaching I was getting more and more excited. This was a very unique event. Only women were allowed to race. It also felt special since Ewelina was running it with me. Sharing this special moment with my best friend made it AWESOME! We arrived downtown around 7:15 am...yes Ewelina was not very happy about it...she is not an early bird :) Half marathoners started at 7:30 and 5K started 10 minutes later. My Garmin watch did not find location until about half a mile into the race...love my Garmin don't get me wrong but if I forget to start it early sometimes it takes forever to get a signal...it's frustrating!! Ewelina kept up with me for about half a mile and after that she fell behind and found her own pace. The weather was not our friend. At 7:40 it was already humid and hot. First mile went ok but I sure was glad when I saw a water station at mile one marker. The water was warm but it tasted soooo good. I made it to mile two and achieved my goal of passing two women in front of me. Yeah I do that during any races I participate in. It helps me run faster somehow :) Mile two was also a Gatorade station which definitely tasted great! At that point I knew I have to give it my all with only one more mile left. As the sun was coming up it started burning more and more but I knew I will be able to maintain my under 9 minute a mile pace. Finally I saw a finish line...that's when you get the final boost of adrenaline and start running like a zombie was chasing you. There was a woman running right in front of me that I decided to beat to the finish line...well I think she got the same idea as soon as she saw me coming :) In the end I think she beat me by 0.3 second. When I finished I picked up my medal, rose and water of course! I hang out at the finish line waiting for Ewelina. Finally she made it! She beat her personal record and so did I. Post party was a lot of fun as well. There was a band called The Lemon Brothers Band which provided entertaiment. Those young band members were very good and fun! We had chocolate milk, fruit, sandwiches...and then free beer :) Our final official results were: Ewelina 32:12 at an average pace 10:23, I finished at 27:07 at 8:45 minute a mile pace. We were both happy with our results. We had a lot of fun and I hope we can run another race together again soon. 

I love the medal!!! It's my first one and I hope this is a beginning to a big collection :)