Mission Accomplished

Yesterday day was race day! Here's a re-cap of how it went:

At 4:00pm yesterday, I met up with my Team Challenge teammates. Our coaches gave us one last motivational speech and then we all gathered together for a group photo. (All Team Challenge participants wore orange singlets during the race. There were 1,210 Team Challenge race participants from 75 different Chapters throughout the country.)

Our team - Team Challenge VA/DC Chapter

My friend Jim

Running in memory of Melissa

After the photos, I headed outside to Corral 17 - the area where our group was assigned to start. The Vegas Rock 'n' Roll 1/2 marathon had over 44,000 participants so a wave start with corrals or groups was implemented to control the crowds. I walked around a little more and tried to stay loose and relaxed. Staying relaxed was challenging though because there were so many people!

Corral 17

At 5:20pm, I made my way back to Corral 17 to meet my Team Challenge group and prepare for the start. With so many people and waves of starts, I didn't officially cross the starting line until 5:53pm. The race was an incredible experience. There were runners throughout the entire course! The sights of the Las Vegas strip and the people lining the course cheering kept my adrenaline pumping the entire race. There were runners dressed in tutu's, dressed as Elvis and other characters... I even came across a naked runner - what a sight!

The race

So, how did I do? My time was 1:52.15. That's a pace of 8:33 per mile. It's automatically a PR for me since it was my first half marathon. I felt good, strong, and prepared - overall, I had a solid performance and was proud to be able to run in memory of Melissa and for a great cause.

Special congrats to Jim on successfully completing his first 1/2 marathon. Also, special thanks to our friends who traveled thousands of miles to cheer us on and support us - thanks guys!