The Wallsburg Half Marathon

Many of you may not have heard about the Wallsburg Half Marathon last Saturday. It is a very small, yet prestigious race. In fact, it is so difficult to qualify that there were only two runners who were asked to run in it this year. Rode and Heather had definitely earned their place in this race, though. Training was rigorous (ie 4 practice runs during the entire 3 month period prior to the race, including a whopping 6 miler which laid them both up for days). Although the competition between the two was fierce (neck and neck as you can see below), they both performed optimally, even with a cramped foot for Rode from mile 4 to 13. Thanks to Olivia, who was a superb water girl, sacrificing nap time to attend to her duties.

Feeling good at mile 4

Crossing the very official finish line

13.1 miles later

The Real Story: Heather signed up to run the St George Half Marathon, but due to some scheduling difficulties, she decided it would be better to stay home. She was determined not to skip out on her goal though, so she decided she would just run her own half marathon. I graciously volunteered Rode to be her running partner for the 13 miles, and being the good man that he is, he consented. The training schedule was exactly as stated above- meager to say the least. Hez and Den charted a 13.1 mile course covering the entire city limits of Wallsburg. We headed out there bright and early Saturday morning (ie like 9:30, which shouldn't surprise anyone) and off they went. Liv and I delivered Gatorade to them at designated spots, as well as some Ibueprofen at about mile 8. Denver, Liv, and I met them at mile 13.1 with a toilet paper finish line, which unfortunately ripped in the wind before either of them ran through it. I don't think they cared though- they were just grateful to be DONE!