Saturday, March 27th I set out with my coach to PR my 1/2 Marathon.  I had wanted to run a sub 1:40, but anything better than 1:43:09 would do.  I have been working hard to improve my speed but after having cancer, surgeries and chemo, I was not sure what the lasting effects would be.

When I met Coach he said that rain was ineviatable.  No worries...I do my best in bad weather.  Kansas City is a small town which makes it fun at the start line.  I felt like we knew everyone there.  Or at least my coach did since he is a "Rock Star" when it comes to the local races.  Sure enough...just as we started the run...it rained. :-)

I think my heart rate hit it's high and stayed there from the first mile.  My legs and body felt strong but I had a hard time breathing the entire time.  Good thing Coach was prepared.  He talked to the other runners, told stories and mostly told me how well I was doing.  At mile 7 he said we were right on target to make our goal.  At that point I thought he meant just PRing.  I did not think he was talking about sub 1:40.  Once we hit mile 9 I was feeling much better about completing the race in a decent time.  It wasn't until Coach said "we are at 1:39" with less than 1/2 a mile to go that I actually realized how close I was to getting my goal time.  That was the hardest part of the race.  I thought I would cry, puke and pass out all at the same time...if I had the energy.  I crossed the finish line at 1:40:18!  19 seconds shy of my goal but I'm going to call it good.

It's amazing what a persons body can do and even more amazing the power of positive thinking.  I have visualized this finish for a long time and it went exactly as planned.  I am so thankful that I have an awesome coach who was willing to pace me and encourage me the whole way.  

What an awesome race!  Did I mention I was 5th in my age!!!  Now who's the Rock Star???