The Half Marathon~Running 13.1 Miles

Remember last year's marathon experience?  Emily ran the 4th leg on a relay team...7.6 miles.  Here she is just leaving the exchange chute in 2009.

This year...the half. Just over 13 miles. If one can run nearly 8 miles, does 13 sound like that much more? Umm...Yes...I think it's much harder than any of us non-runners can imagine!  A marathon runner must get up early for breakfast and a little coffee.

Hubby and I went to Fargo to join Jake as her marathon 'support crew'.  (Line decided she didn't want to go.)

There were about 17,500 runners...add to that their support people...Well, the Fargo Dome was full of people.  So, surprise, when we ran into a few of the runners that were there from Aberdeen.

Last year's weather?  Cold.  Here are just some of the thousands of runners lined up in the starting area.

This year's weather?  Warmer...but raining.

Runners didn't report to the start line until they absolutely had to!

By the time Opening Ceremony was finished...

for the Americans,

for the Canadians,

in English,

and in Norwegian,

...it was pouring.

I put my camara away for fear it would get wet.

While Emily was running, the 3 of us drove downtown to cheer for her.

We caught up to her just before she reached Mile 10.

Then quickly, back to the Dome to watch the finishers...Here she is...

She's the one coming under the finish banner...on the right...

Notice her time?  Under 2 hours...

She did sooo well...

Next...the support crew must locate their runner down on the floor of the Dome.

And, there's a lot of runners there...without their cell phones...

How would we ever find her!

The medal is pretty sweet...

Definately a Keepsake.

Congratulations, Emily.

Congratulations to all runners...

5K, 10K, Relay, Half and Full Marathon Runners...

It is an amazing accomplishment.

You inpire me!

Diary of a 10K Winner

Race Day begins early...6:05 to be exact...

...Started the coffee...applied minimal makeup...ate breakfast of banana bread with peanut butter...dressed in layers...arrived at civic center...located running friends...

...Warmup of light jog and stretching...

..

After 45 minutes of running...it is a sprint to the finish...

The finisher medals...

At the awards ceremony, our server was one of Emily's good friends from middle school...

Why is she dressed like that? It is Octoberfest here!



For first place in her age group, she won a gift certificate.

Emily, We are all so proud of you!

Running is Life ~ Make the Most of It

On the eve of a race...
Gather all of your necessary gear...the course map, your number, your computer chip for your shoe...lots of running clothes (it's 27 degrees),...


Emily is registered to run the 10K...her first...

She is meeting up with Natalie and Denise for their warm-up run. Remember...they ran the relay together in the Fargo Marathon last Spring.

Line is staying with Emily...the girls were going to retire early, as they both had a busy week in school.

Good Luck, Emily

Check back later for race results and

more Bison Football.

All Grown Up ~ Day 3

This was Emily's long class day...8:50 till 3:30. So I met her on campus for lunch. See the girl in the pic? Walking away with her backpack? ...all you moms will appreciate this...I had flashbacks of dropping my girls off at OM Tiffany Elementary and watching them walk into school with their backpacks. Now...walking to College Calculus...
Anyway...I loved being on campus again. The Family Life Center was built while I was there (1974-1978). During my Freshman and Sophomore years we raced all over campus for our classes...then in 1976, this beautiful building brought all the majors together...Fashion, Nutrition, Interior Design, Child Development and of course Home Economics Education...with harsh winter weather, it was so appreciated!

After class, we ran some errands, ate some leftovers, did some math homework...then we walked the path where Emily usually runs.

Due to the National News coverage, you all know that the Red River reached record flood levels.

Here is Emily with the monument...you will see that 2009 is not yet posted...

So...we met a cat along the path...

He took to Emily, rubbing her legs...letting her pet him...I, however, could not get close...

It was dusk, but I wanted to get a picture...thinking he was blog worthy...

The Marathon Experience

This was Emily's first marathon. She was running the 4th leg of a relay team...7.6 miles to be exact. Here she is with the 3rd leg, Natalie, at the start . They hoped to get a glimspe of Lily, who started amongst the over 10,000 runners. We, then drove to South Fargo, to wait for Natalie to run there...Finally, we see her in the chute...there they are exchanging the ankleband with the computer chip...











Then, she's off...

Then back to the Fargo Dome to wait for Emily...I was so excited when I saw her finishing, that I didn't get a picture until she had her medal and her banana.

She finished strong for her team...update...according to the official results...based on the computer chips on their ankles...she ran her leg in 47 minutes...that's a 6:20 mile pace.

Thank goodness for cell phones. She was able to find her team mates.

It was the first time marathon for all four of these ladies...and you can tell by their smiles that it won't be their last!