Race day came and it was perfect. We woke up early and had our coffee and bagels, then drove to the lot where the buses were driving everyone up to the starting line.

There seemed like there were A TON of buses. They left at 6:30 in the morning and the race didn’t start until 8:00. At first we felt like this was way too much time to be up there before it even started. Let’s get this thing going so we can get it over with right!? Turns out, the extra time was amazing. Changed the game. We had time to shake out the jitters, fuel up, pee (three times) and find our spot in line.

The starting line up was looooong but it was great. They spaced it out extremely far based on pace because it was on a very narrow trail. No getting stuck behind people or getting slowed down (or slowing down others.)

This was also the first race that we stayed together the whole time. Sarah is a faster runner than me so this is always a challenge but we were both feeling good and keeping a great pace. AND THEN I SET A PR!!! My 11th race and I finally made it under 2 hours. 1:57:30 to be exact! (Sarah’s time was 1:57:29, of course!)

The “after party” left a lot to be desired in our opinion. A few people in a small room in a nearby casino with tiny cups to be filled with Bud Light, some watermelon, pretzels, and peanut M&Ms were not going to cut it. We had such a great race experience that we didn’t care, and it turns out there are some pretty great breweries in that area. Hence, our own after race party for two. Cheers!