I DID IT!!!

Thanksgiving Day has come and gone and I am just now getting around to being able to blog about the amazing experience running the Detroit Turkey Trot. 

It was something that I could not have pictured and I was full on jitters the night before and the day of, simply because I didn't know what to expect. To be honest, the cold temperatures were truly scary for me to accept and had I not had several people doing the race simply because of me, I might have turkey-ed out.

The plan was to get up at 4:45 and then get the boys ready and be downstairs by 5:00 to meet my cousin Jessica. Then we'd all drive over to my brother Scott's house to pick up Dave and then head downtown by 5:30(am).

Hugh was NOT impressed with being up at 4:45am.

Jes had sent me an article that a guy who had run last year wrote and it was kinda scary to read. He said it was unorganized and to get downtown and in your parking spot by 6:15/6:30 or you'd be SOL.

We stopped at Dunkin Donuts and grabbed bagels, coffee, and donuts and headed to Joe Louis Arena's parking deck. We arrived and were parked at 6:20am and noticed a steady stream of cars filling the structure. 

At 7am we got out and decided to head into COBO to use the bathroom before the race and to warm up there before heading to the starting line. The 10k started at 7:30 and the 5k was at 8:30 so we had plenty of time.

 I love her. I really, really do.

By the time we walked out of the underground tunnel that goes under COBO and came out, it was 7:30 and the National Anthem was playing for the 10k start. We stopped in front of COBO for some pictures and headed inside.

I've got to say, the sounds of the 10k getting started got me excited and instead of being jittery I was excited to do it. I was really excited to be running the Turkey Trot with my dad, my brother, my cousin, and my husband. 

We headed into COBO and used the bathroom, we changed Gus and Hugh and got them out of their toasty warm snow suits, and then we relaxed a bit before heading out to get ready to start. At 8am, we decided to head to the red starting area (the slowest pace).

When we walked outside, IT WAS SNOWING!!!! I was so excited to see snow and to be outside in such awesome conditions. 

 The RenCen

 Dave enjoying the snow

 Dave and the Joe Louis Fist with the RenCen

 The snow was coming down really hard!!!

 Gus and Hugh were happy in their snowsuits and warm under their blankets!

 This race had over 22,000 runners!!

 It was FRIGID

 Only one missing is Steve!

 The race started at 8:30 but we didn't actually get to start until 8:50 due to each wave starting at different times

 Gus wanted out of the stroller for a bit

 Gus and his God Mother

 Steve, my dad, and Dave

 Love it

 We started moving forward

 Hugh was so excited to be moving!

When it was time, I set my Nike Run and C25K app and I was ready to get moving... and then my phone died.  :-(   I had to rely on Jes for a picture at the start and Steve for pics through the rest of the race.

 I started off actually running. While it was slow, I was running. However, people started falling all around us due to the ice that was on the road. We decided to take it slow, but we were moving and I was warming up.

 We ran down Woodward past Comerica Park and the parade watchers were gathering for the 10am parade. It was so neat to be on the road and hear the cheers from the sides... I have been on the side watching the runners and here I was, actually running this!! I was super excited and very pumped up!!

As we appoached mile one, I hit a patch of ice and totally fell on my left side. It was so quick and fluid that I fell and immediately got up. I was covered in snow, and my right knee and ankle hurt, but I was okay and kept moving. 

What I found to be amazing was that as people fell (and people were falling left and right), other runners immediately stopped to help people up. No one kept walking/running, they always stopped to assist and it was very incredible to see and experience for myself.

The first mile came and from that point on, it was just harder and harder to even walk. It was like being on a sheet of ice the whole time. Everyone was walking at that point because it was too dangerous to run.

 My dad and Dave

 Solid sheet of ice here... but there were cheers coming from the sideline and they made the best posters (Run, Stranger, Run!! and Why do the cute ones always run away?)

 Mile 2

Because there's a 10k as well as the 5k, there were markers on the road for the 10k runners to see. Here's a picture of me and Jes posing with the mile 5 sign

By the time we got past mile 2, it was feeling like the race would never end. It was like being on an adventure with each curve bringing a new twist to the journey. We weren't dead last, but we were definitely at the back of the race and there were a lot of people walking toward us with their medals and heading to their cars, because they had finished.

 We finally made it to mile 3, and we knew that just around the corner was the finish (a 5k is 3.1 miles). We were so excited to get to the finish and I was thankful that there wasn't a line... the article that I read said that there had been a HUGE line last year just to cross the finish-- it was so backed up.

 There it is!!

 We were SO EXCITED to cross the line!!!

 Steve and his medal

My very first medal from running, I GOT A MEDAL. ME. A NON-RUNNER ACTUALLY EARNED A MEDAL FOR RUNNING A RACE!!!!

My official time was: 1:11:29 which is truly remarkable considering the icy conditions that we were up against. That's only 11 minutes slower than my slowest race so far and I am so pleased with myself. Just think had I been able to actually run more, who knows what my time would have been!!

I want to run it again in 2014. My dad and Jessica had a GREAT time. I'm not sure about Steve and my brother, but I definitely enjoyed it and even though it was freezing, the atmosphere and entire race environment was so wonderful. I just enjoyed the company and the experience of running with the people that mean the most to me. It's probably one of my most favorite memories that I've got now and something I'll always remember.

It means the world to me that I am surrounded by people who love me and care so much about me. They ran this crazy race with me and were there to watch me finish and get my medal. It was wonderful, touching, and memorable.

My dad and Jessica are for sure running again next year and are trying to recruit other family members to join them. We're hoping to go back to Michigan next year and if we do, I definitely want to run it again. I'd like to make it an annual tradition.

Gobble Gobble.

I AM A RUNNER!!!

And yes, I wore my medal for the rest of the day and into the night. I wore it to dinner and in all the pictures taken that night. I am proud to own one and think it's awesome!!