Chomp must have known that something exciting was going on today, because he got up twice at night and was up and happy early this morning. So we had no trouble making the 7:35 start time, except that we wanted to change his diaper, and thought of it at the last minute, so we were a little late at the start. And, we ran! It was such a great, and difficult course. We really did run through some of the prettiest streets and neighborhoods in the town. It actually made me so happy that this is where I live.
We had quite a few friends running and walking the various races today, so it was fun to meet up in the starting area, say good luck, and then take off on our respective races :) They all did fabulously by the way!!!!
We met downtown and then ended up winding our way through the hills of Redlands, tree lined streets and beautiful views on both sides of Redlands. Then, we made our way down past Redlands Hospital and the park where we go all the time with Chompy to the Redlands Bowl. In the summers the Redlands Bowl is kind of like the Hollywood Bowl…with weekly events. It’s one of the historic places in Redlands. It was so much fun. We did a pretty good job. Miles 1-5 went well, but when we hit the mile 6 marker, I started to slow down, and walked portions of the incline. Pushing the stroller up those grades was so hard. :) It kept that way through mile 7-8. Once we hit 9, we were really on our way downhill and 9, 10, 11 were not that bad. However, the distance from mile marker 12 to the finish went on FOREVER!!! It took us down the middle of a big, historic street (Olive) in Redlands, but seemed to go on and on with no finish in sight. With about 1 1/2 miles to go, there was a group of high school students manning the aide station. They had the music blasting and signs and were so encouraging. All of a sudden it hit me that Chomp and I were really going to do it. We were going to finish the 1/2, and I started to tear up. It was soooo cool! Then as soon as I was about to break, Josh came into view. He had come out to meet us for the last 100 yards. Then, of course, as the finish came into view, I got my second wind, and tada finished!!!! It took us a little under 3 hours (we aren’t completely sure how long because we took awhile to get to the start line, so we are waiting for the official results, so even though the time says 2:56:19 it may really be a little faster. We will see). Official Time: 2:55:20!
It was cool also because when I signed up for this race, I knew that I wanted to run it with Chompy. And, that baby strollers were allowed. When we showed up in the race area, there were tons of runners with strollers. It wasn’t until the 10K race started and just the 1/2 marathoners were left that I realized that there were no other strollers in the 1/2. YIKES!!!! But, it was fun because we became kind of something special along the route…everyone was so proud of how well Chompy was doing and so encouraging of me. As we went along and it looked like we were actually going to finish, that I let it hit me that he was going to be the only baby to do it! So fun! And, I felt so inspired!
Here are some pictures of the race :)
Getting ready :)
Our friends the Avis’. They ran really fast.
It really was a beautiful day! A little hazy, but we could still see the mountains on all sides. The flowers were soooo beautiful and blooming. We could hear the bees any time we ended up under a tree.
Josh met us at the end to capture us finishing the race!
That guy was crazy—he ran in long sleeves the whole race. And with his own CamelBak.
This was a very cool part, because there was lots of cheering :)
We did it! :)
At the end of the race, all the runners get oranges. This was Chompy’s first orange :) He liked it.
This is his other reward :) Oh, and in this picture, you can see his secret tooth ;)
Our medal!! :)
We did it!!!!!! We are very proud of each other!!
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