Indianapolis's Womans Half Marathon: girls just want to have fun

This race is been on my radar for years, so was super excited to finally get out and run it. With last year's black flag on the back of most peoples mind, the field seemed small with a strong possibility of rain. But not us. The Saint Malachy trash bags kept us Mamas prepared for anything pre-race!

Loved the start of this race on the cobblestone road on the circle! And the weather was looking clear" enough" to ditch the bags. Were staying optimistic for some sunshine.

Kelly and I were feeling strong at the beginning-with our goal to hold 8:15's, give or take a few seconds. It was a weird feeling to "hold back," but God knows my pacing skills are AWFUL. But had such a great time to race with someone you have ran hundreds and hundreds of miles with, and we pushed each other along the way. Love the course looping south then west of downtown, up to the Armory, with steady support throughout.

The rain stayed away till about mile 5-6, with a complete downpour right before the half way point. We stayed strong and tried to avoid the puddles, but before we knew it we were inevitably ankle deep. But we hung on, and clocked a great race mid marathon season. And was BEYOND impressed with our pacing skills. Kelly was a HUGE motivator to me those last two miles when I was struggling to stay strong.

We all had a fabulous day to run among ladies...sadly, the weather wasn't what we wanted, but we all had a great race considering the conditions. But no rest...back to training, as we have less than two months to #bemonumental, our biggest race of our running season!

Go Girl Tri: Finishing up the season with the ladies

With tri training taking a backseat to marathon training, it was nice to switch it up for a day. Going back to work time and trying to balance 3 sports and back to school drama is a delicate balance, but it all work out. With 30 plus mile run weeks starting up, I needed the swim to recover. And with the back to work anxiety and stress, I needed the bike to mentally unwind. Win-win, all around : )

Swim: Felt great, swam straight, smooth water...and my goggle strap didn't break. Most of all, for the first time in a while, I felt like a swimmer. Coming out the water 3rd made feel way less old lady.

Bike: With the off and on monsoons, I hadn't got in the biking I needed.  But I felt strong and was more than pleased with my average...so I'll take it. I held my own and only got passed by a few.

Run: I should have rocked this. But already having 20 plus miles in for the week, (which I was calling resting : ) I didn't even look at my splits, I didn't want to know, so I just smiled and ran on. I even got the opportunity to truly be a "tri mom" when I yelled at Jude to get out the road. 

And I LOVED getting out there and racing with my runner girls Jen and Melissa! 

And just like that...triathlon season is over, and so is summer. Never enough time, never enough races. And one of these years, I will actual take advantage of qualifying for age nationals, and actually go. For now, I have my eye on 26.2 here in November, with big hopes of a big PR.