Notes
Kent City Ridge Run aka Jills Hills, aka The Hills From Hell. Once again, this course has kicked my ass, but I managed to pull off a course PR...ok, so it was only 6 seconds, but it was a PR...and I finally beat Kirsten (not her course PR, but I did beat her this year!). The first three miles were painful. My gastroparesis has been terrible lately & my stomach was not happy! My shins hurt, my calves hurt, everything hurt on the downhills. Kirsten & I stuck together for the first three, but then she easily pulled ahead of me for a few miles. Mile 4 felt good & I love that stretch of the course. At 5 or so, it was back to gravel & the toughest stretch from me. Miles 5-7 were a bit brutal, as they always are. This race really needs one more water stop. The wind was crappy, as usual. I finally caught back up to Kirsten around 6.5 or 7 and managed to pull ahead. I joked that no matter how into biking she was, we would continue to run this damn race until I beat her. I stayed ahead, but was convinced she'd be blowing past me around the 9 mile marker. My pace improved in miles 8 & 9 and I gave whatever I had left. At 9.2 I asked a couple of spectators if there was a girl in orange behind me, they said yes, but she was a ways back. I gave what little kick I had left, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't much. Good thing I stayed ahead of Kirsten or she would have kicked my butt in the end. My stomach was still not happy & I'm having the groin pain thing again if I sit for more than a couple of minutes, but I'm alive. Overall, I guess it was a good race. I PR'd, I beat Kirsten which means we never have to run it again if we don't want to, and I was sort of able to walk at the end.