Olivia Ryan: the phoenix half marathon

so, last saturday i ran my first half marathon.

hahaha and my body still hurts.

there is something about running that i absolutely love- it's both peaceful, challenging, and oh-so-exciting. i ran distance in both 7th and 8th grade but never increased mileage until my freshman year of high school. whenever my sister was in town we would spend our mornings on a pretty run around the neighborhood or tempe town lake (which has become one of my favorites.)

i didn't mind training for the half marathon at all because it meant views like this:

savannah always said that no matter where she lived she would run my first half marathon with me. so, we made the decision to run the race and she booked a flight from D.C. to Phoenix (!!!!!) she really is the best.

having her home gave me a solid excuse to miss school and have a girls day with my sisters and mama (who was also going to run the race with us.) my mom wanted to drive the race course and i think that made my nerves increase x100. tip #1- not a good idea. don't drive the course the day before the race. afterwards we went to the expo (one of the many perks of racing.) we got our bibs and shirts and tried way too many samples and even bought my new favorite running accessory.

of course the day before a race you're supposed to "carb load." we ate at a cute pizzeria called la grande orange. guys. their avocado pizza was scrumptious...we finished every last piece of it. afterwards we spent the evening shopping and prepping for our upcoming race.

we probably got two hours of sleep, if that, the night before. we woke up at 3:15 the next morning and drove into mesa to hop on a bus that would take us to the starting line. i was cold and pretty tired but jittery and excited at the same time!

"runners to the starting line!" there went my stomach. hahaha i was so nervous but ready to run.

and off we went...

this race shocked me. the miles came quickly and the sun slowly showed. we saw our dad and little sister at mile 6 and then again at mile 8. we planned to stray off course and take a quick picture with mags.

running really is 90% mental...the rest is all just painful, haha! during the race savannah told me this story about shalane flanagan and amy cragg. we may not have been running 26.2 miles, but savannah did push me out of my comfort zone and i am so happy we were able to hold hands and cross the finish line together

after savannah and i crossed the finish line, we went back with maggie to cross the finish line with my mom. we teared up because we were so proud of my mom and laughed as maggie casually walked across the finish line.

definitely an experience i will never forget.

we headed home after the race, took a nap, and then went to our favorite mexican restaurant, miamigos to feast (because, you know, we had just ran a half marathon and it was ok to devour chips & bean dip, a chicken sandwich, and endless amounts of fries.)

i honestly wouldn't have finished the race if it weren't for my running buddy and best friend. i am also so proud of my mom for pushing herself and stepping out of her comfort zone.

i really hope to earn numerous medals over the next few years.