Notes
I did it.
Weather was cool, but I expected worse. There was a little bit of wind, especially after mile 8 or so when we got away from downtown and it was more open. My legs felt fine up until about mile 9. There were times when I felt like I had nothing left, but somehow I pushed through, and my fastest mile was mile 13. I'm pleased with how steady my pace was. Someone behind me complimented me on how consistent my pace was, so that was pretty cool.
I left my Gu at home, and I didn't realize it until after I got back from the expo. So at each aid station, I went with Gatorade, and just before 10, when they were giving out Gu, I took one. Looking at the color of the packet, I thought it was vanilla bean, which I've had before, but it turns out it was salted caramel, which I haven't. It was OK, and it didn't bother my stomach, but I still prefer strawberry banana.
I knew at around mile 6 or 7 that I'd be about a tenth of a mile over, so I spent most of the last few miles doing math in my head to figure out if I'd get a new PR. I knew I could get to 13.1 on my watch faster than 2:08:01, but I wasn't sure if I'd get to the finish line in time. I kept pushing, and I don't think i knew for sure until after the 13 mile marker. My official time was 2:07:48.69, so I got it by just under 13 seconds.
I probably was just a little faster in the first 3 miles than I should have been, and maybe the last 5K would have been a little easier if I had held back, but ultimately, I got my PR.