The Divas Half Marathon was an awesome experience in Long Island!  It was a fun girls trip for four of us and I scored a personal record with my time.  I ran the 13.1 mile course in 1:47:05 which is about an 8:10 pace… my running partner, Alison finished at the same time.

The “buddy system” really works in a long race.. as soon as I felt like I was running out of fuel.. she would have a burst of energy and I pushed on and then… I might be on my second, third or fourth winds.. and hope that I was a small motivator for her when she was feeling a little sluggishness trying to creep in.

Our other two friends Laura and Lindsey finished their first half marathon ever with a time of 2:19 and Laura was running with a bum knee.. again.. the buddy system was a benefit for them too.

Since I started running several years ago… I have come to the conclusion that running is about more than exercise.. it is about more than burning calories… and it isn’t at all about beating others but about bettering yourself.. not just physically but mentally… it is also about building friendships and supporting fellow runners as they make and strive for new goals…

I don’t think of running as a chore… I think of it as my therapy… it is a time when I am alone with my thoughts and my latest music downloads… no blackberries dinging… no phones ringing.. no e-mail to be answered or texting to be done… just the steady cadence of feet hitting the pavement… the gliding motion of arms swinging back and forth… steady breathing… or quick breaths for a speed workout… endorphins kick in.. and sometimes it feels like I could just run forever… on some runs I am sad when the run is over and wish I had more time to go farther… 10 years ago I would have laughed at someone writing these words…

I just ordered new running shoes because the ones I have are worn out.. part of the tread is smooth from the miles I have logged… and now I am looking for another race to sign up for… that keeps me motivated… I am definitely running the Jingle Bell Run for Arthritis in Roanoke December 11th… but it is a 5k and there is just something I really like about the half marathon distance… Divas was my fourth one and I am trying to talk my running “quad” into the Country Music Marathon and Half Marathon in Nashville April 30th 2011… we’ll see…