Race starts at 7:30 AM so Kylie, Matthew and I head downtown and arrive at the starting area, Monumental Circle by 7:00. My in laws were waiting for us, they were keeping an eye on Matthew while Kylie and I were running (Brett was out of town). It's too dark to see any clouds but the air felt thick and I knew we'd be getting wet. Kylie was confident in her ability to run the 5k fast as she's in the middle of her first cross country season and has been really fast with that. I talked to her about what to look and listen for if she saw lighting (flags and police officers) and told her to keep with a group of women and get to the finish line. I was a little nervous for her but she wasn't a bit worried. She actually was interviewed by a local new station at the start line. We were ready to run and feeling good in our InkNBurn clothes, she was borrowing my classic Flutter tech shirt and I was wearing Monarch tech with the new Bee skirt, following the Indy Women's Half butterfly theme.
So the race starts on time and Kylie's off like a rocket. I lose sight of her so fast! That's ok, I'm looking forward to a fun time myself, it's good for her to have her own experience. I do catch a glimpse of her as she turns a corner and she's hanging with the front group of women. Nice.
I notice a lady wearing a InkNBurn tie die Run or Die tank so I make my way over to her to say introduce myself. I run up next to her and say hi and she says "Hi Mary!" Well, it's my FB friend Jeanette, who I met for the first time totally randomly at a race last Thanksgiving. She's running a good pace so we fall in step with each other. First few miles go by quickly and easily. About mile 2, we're at the part of the course where the 5k runners are coming at us from their turn around, heading to the finish line. I see the lead lady and mention to J that it would be really cool to see Kylie but that I doubt I would as we were just a 100 yards from our turn away from downtown. Then suddenly, I see a glimpse of a white shirt come around a corner, onto the straightway towards us. It's Kylie and she's rolling just effortlessly! I pull my phone out and grab a quick picture of her while yelling "You're in 3rd place overall, keep going!!!" I catch back up to J and am just so excited, thinking that Kylie is only about 1/2 a mile from a possible podium finish! I did consider turning around to see her but I knew that I couldn't see her finish and what could I do? Nothing. So I kept running. She did text me a few minutes later to say that she finished in 4th place, winning her AG and HUGE PR of 22:26!!! I was so, so proud of her.
Anyways, so J and I continue on with the half. Right as we hit mile 5, the sky opens and the rain comes. Not a nice, "oh this is refreshing" rain, a hard "this hurts my face" kind of rain. Like, I'm completely soaked in seconds rain. But, no thunder or lighting. So, we continue. We're running well, keeping a good pace. Here are the splits for the first half:
Mile 1: 8:29
Mile 2: 8:33
Mile 3: 8:49
Mile 4: 8:57
Mile 5: 9:02
Mile 6: 8:59
J and I are just having a blast, talking very easily about our lives, races, clothes, races, more clothes, mutual interests, our kids, the rain, pretty much just everything. The rain doesn't let up, the road is completely flooded in parts. At first we would try to find a way around the mini lakes but then we gave up, thinking we couldn't possibly get more wet. Sweat is mixing with rain and running into my eyes, stinging them terribly. Nothing to be done about it though. We reach the turn around point, just at the very top of a hill that I've climbed several times in the Monumental Marathon. I know the road coming up isn't very well maintained so the puddles/lakes continue to grow. I noticed another runner taking a gel and realize that we're at mile 7 and neither of us have eaten anything. I asked J if she had any gels and she did. I take mine and within minutes, feel some energy return to my legs. J seemed to be tiring so I say goodbye and go off on my own. Well, that lasted about 1/2 a mile. The energy was short lived and I grabbed a Gatorade and a quick walk break at the next aid station. I hear J yell my name and I waited a second for her to catch up. She had taken her gel as well and was feeling refreshed so we decided to stay together as it really was much nicer to run with a friend.
Mile 7: 8:49
Mile 8: 8:42
Mile 9: 8:34 (Nice!)
Mile 10: 8:56 (didn't last!)
We turn finally south so we can see downtown, where the finish line is. The rain stops and things start to heat up, feeling pretty steamy. Neither of us are talking much, I think we both just want to finish. I'm not wearing a Garmin as I let Kylie wear it so J is keeping me posted on times. She mentions that she's close to a PR but I don't have it in me to keep up with her. I stop for water and a walk break at mile 12 as she continues on, looking strong. I start running again and push hard to catch her. I'm only maybe 10 feet from her when my stomach decided it didn't want to keep pushing and I paused, thinking I was going to get sick. A few runners ask if I'm ok and I am. I know that I get sick at and before finish lines a lot if I sprint too early. So I take some breaths and continue on, a little slower. I see J still in front of me but she's running strong and I'm not, LOL! But I do run my best to cross the finish line and was shocked to hear Kylie screaming "Run, mom, run harder!" I had thought she would have gone home with her grandparents, especially with the rain! But she stayed with my mother in law, waiting to see me finish.
Mile 11: 8:42
Mile 12: 8:37
Mile 13: 9:08 (darn stomach)
I cross the finish line with a smile, receive my butterfly medal from a uniformed soldier along with a pretty rose. J and I find each other and meet up with Kylie and my MIL. Kylie was upset that they didn't have awards for the AG winners which I didn't understand, I thought was weird. After questioning several people, J noticed someone that she knew who looked in charge. That very nice lady found the box with the AG awards and gave Kylie hers, which turned her frustration into happiness. We enjoy some beverages and conversation for a while before saying goodbye.
So this is the 6th time I've run this race, 3rd with the current owners (Carmel Road Runners). It is different than it used to be in some ways but there are also many improvements. I wish the medals were are nice as they were a few years ago, especially now that bigger, fancier medals are popular. But really, that's my only complaint. The race director keeps things very organized and does a lot for the running community in the Indianapolis area. So, I'll be back for year 7!!!
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