great bay half

race #4 in my 12 in 2010 series was great bay half in newmarket, new hampshire. this year was the third year ive done the race, and for the third year it was fairly uneventful haha.

im slowly developing a nice collection of race shirts, and got my first finishers medal of the year at this race. not quite sure what im going to do with all the shirts just yet... maybe ill make a quilt or something?

there werent that many great professional pics taken this year (not that i really get many good ones at any race)... maybe ill have to start scoping them out and put on a dance or something. see where that gets me. a hot pink tutu perhaps?! (idea courtesy of http://www.chicrunner.com/)
this pic was taken directly at the top of the most ridiculous hill on the course at mile 7ish. the three of us were having a great time cursing that hill when he snapped this shot.

there were a few shots at the end and the progression of shots show me kickin' this guys ass right at the finish line :) i always like to give it all ive got at the end of a race, and with this finish being on a downhill and with that guy just trotting along, i definitely enjoyed it.

overall it was a great day for a race. it was hotter than i thought it was going to be (when i saw the weather at 64 apparently i thought that was chilly.....fail.), so by the second mile i was less than pleased with my choice to wear a long sleeved shirt underneath my race shirt. i had also sprinted the first two miles (about 7:50's for both) to catch up with my friend melissa who i hadnt seen before the race started. also not a good idea.

so i decided to attempt to take my long sleeved shirt off but tried not to stop running while doing so. wearing a belt, headphones, and carrying a handheld water thing did not make this an easy endeavor. clearly looking like some sort of inexperienced fool, a guy running behind me asked if i needed any help or could he carry something for me. probably not shocking to anyone, i said i was alright. eventually this whole process got the best of me and i just ripped off both shirts, one of which i ended up dropping on the ground. lovely.

after all that ordeal, i was finally a lot more comfortable and cooler. but now i had my shirt to deal with. lucky for me there was one random house on this backroad we were on and the people who lived there just happened to be out in the driveway cheering us on. so i went right up to them and asked if they would just keep my shirt in their yard. they just smiled as i dropped it by their mailbox and took off running.

i did not PR at this race. it was over 70 degrees and i am used to training in 45 degrees. my headphones, handheld water, and fuel belt bothered the everloving heck out of me. but i am still smiling and still giving it two thumbs up. why? because i love to run. period.

and for those of you who are curious, the friendly spectators hung my sweaty shirt on the tree in their yard for when i returned.

next up: MARATHON MONDAY(!!!!!!!!!!!) and a report on being a race volunteer! :) good luck to all runners in boston!