New Year's Eve Half Marathon

New Year's was great this year!  On New Year's Eve Keri ran her first half-marathon in the morning. Three years ago on this date she was having surgery to remove skin cancer!  This was a much better way to end the year. She ran the whole 13.1 miles, except when she walked to drink/eat, and yes, the last drink, she took with the sole purpose to walk. 

The temperatures were in the upper 30s (F) and it rained the entire race.  Light rain, followed by sprinkles, and ending in a light rain that was getting progressively heavier.  Brrr!  Don't have the pictures but she sported a lavender shower cap to cover her head and visor, a plastic poncho, and plastic gloves over her light weight gloves.  All the rain gear was shed just half way through the race.  She hit the "wall" just after finishing mile 10 but slowed her pace and kept on.

Despite a light head cold and the weather conditions, Keri met her goal of running the half-marathon in under 2 hrs., 40 min., with a official time of 2 hrs., 38 min., 44. sec.!  She placed 342nd out of 475 finishers, and 199th out of 304 females.  The average time for the race was 2:25:44.

Keri ran, at times, with Sara B., whom she had been training with and Sara is the one who suggested that she was ready for that distance 2 months prior.

Keri was wet, cold, exhausted, and proud to have participated in the event and meet her goal.  This event was the New Year's Double in which there are 5K, half -marathon, and full marathon events on both New Year's Eve and Day.  You can pick and choose which events and what days you want to run.  It being Keri's first time, she thought a single event was just fine.

Upon arriving home, Neal had just finished unloading the boxes we packed from his mother's with our friends Carter, Jason, and Heather.  Keri took a hot shower, popped pain relievers, and with Kari joining the bunch, we all headed out to Torchy's Tacos for a yummy good time.  Later we all went and saw The Hobbit and Neal and I gave it a thumbs up.

Then we headed home and got the house readied for the gathering that evening.  We enjoyed impressively healthy food choices, good conversation, and a group got a game going while others made their exit, Keri quickly fell asleep on the couch ushering the New Year with slumber and probably drool. 

The next day we slept in, putzed around the house while Neal went and purchased IKEA furniture for the kid's play area, got our house in order and ended the day with a one on one date.  It was our first and will not be our last experience at P.F. Chang's and then we were off to see Les Miserables on the big screen.  As predicted we were puffy-eyed messes when it was all done. 

Terrific start to a New Year!