Especially for the men in the room, who didn't get to read about my race yet . . . I got to run my first 26.2 on the day, well, no, pretty much the hour, the cold front moved across Tampa. Conditions were dry, though coldish, for the first eleven miles of my race. We had one hard sprinkle there for a while, that hard cold rain of a cold front, and then after that it was more like a mist machine with occasional hard gusty winds. In spite of that I was hitting my splits pretty well through mile 21--I was trying to slow down because I was a little faster than my intended 10-minute miles, but was deceived, I think, by the fact that I was behind the 4:20 pacer, whose pace was supposed to be 9:55. At any rate, when I started feeling terrible at mile 21-22, it would have helped if the heavens HAD NOT opened and unloaded a deluge of rain and 30mph gusts of wind. As it was, that is exactly what happened, and my pace went all to pieces. I started taking LOTS of walk breaks, and I was one of those people I've never really been in long races, who hates it when people tell her "Only 3 and a half miles to go!" I felt like saying, "Great, why don't you run them and I'll stand there yelling out platitudes?" But I knew they were trying to help. My hands were so cold I couldn't feel them. My feet were soaked through, my shoes waterlogged. The 4:30 pacer passed me at about mile 25, and I did everything in my power just to keep her in my sights. When we got home on race day, my chip time was recorded as 4:30:31. Today, though, it stands at 4:30:04. What could I have done under normal conditions? Do I want to find out? Maybe in another year or so. Right now, I'm a little sore, and planning an easy walk tomorrow. A fall half is still on the books. The medal is big, heavy, and beautiful, and says "Maiden Voyage" right on it--like I'd ever forget where (or under what conditions!) I ran my first.

All I can say is "WOW"! I am really impressed......Simon.

Yep, your report puts a smile on my face!!

Thanks, guys. Yes, I finished, and I'm happy. I took a two-mile walk today and it was nice just to be out again in the early hours. I'm planning a break from formal training for a little while. Running for fun sounds like just the thing.