My First Half-Marathon @ 8:30

No. I didn't run an official race but just covered the
distance which BTW was a personal distance record.

One mile into the hills, I bumped into Ellen and Laura,
running toward me. I hadn't seen them since my ITBS
broke out last Nov. I turned around, jogged with them for
a couple of minutes, said goodbye, and went on with my plan.

The "Dreaded Hill" was not much of a challenge after all. I
kept my cadence and got over it in good shape. I crossed the
bridge, said hello to the owl, and got my first sip of water
at around mile 7. It felt great.

On my way back and close to the Hill, two runners passed me
and I chased after them ;-) But they kept their pace and
over time I gave up. After stopping for my second drink of
water, I kept on with renewed energy and soon got out of the
hills and back on the levee at around mile 11.

The trail was flat now, but over the last two miles, my legs
felt rusty. They were not painful or even tired but just not
as smooth as in the earlier part of the run. This reminded
me of the last mile of last Sunday's 10-mile run. I think it
must have to do with dehydration. I'll try to carry water
and sip more often on my longer runs.

During this run, I landed more toward the center of the foot
to tax the tendons less and did more pronation. All went
well. My plantar fasciitis was mild and my ITBS didn't come
back! Thank You!