Jackson Bound

My training is finished; my bags are packed. In a few short hours Lynn and I are rolling out of Nashville and heading west to Jackson, Tennessee for tomorrow’s Andrew Jackson Half Marathon. My friend and training partner is nursing a nagging injury so she’s not doing the half but may run the 5K. She’s primarily going to support me as traveling to half marathons isn’t hub’s idea of a good time.

My goal is simple. I just want to finish. As I’ve shared before, this will be my first half marathon in more than two years. I’m very undertrained for this one, but then again I’m not injured either. I did two 10 milers, but my foot (the one that was operated on two years ago) hasn’t been tested beyond that distance. I plan to do a lot of walking and basically take my time.

Wednesday night I began experiencing the pre-race jitters. I awoke at 2:30 a.m. and tossed and turned until it was time to get ready for work. It’s strange. I’ve completed 9 or 10 halfs, and once I had the first two under my belt I stopped getting nervous. But the layoff has made me feel like a newbie. And newbies get nervous.

Last night I packed my bag. I always build a “runner girl” on the floor as a way to make sure I haven’t forgotten anything. Building runner girl helped my nervousness morph into excitement…kinda. Observe…

If you happen to know my boss, please let her know I packed my agency tech shirt. Note how I placed my Garmin to the left of my shirt and my Road ID at my shoe. I’m a stickler for details, well, except I reversed my shoes.

I’ve checked my list again and again. I’ve got enough Gu to cater the entire race.

As they say in the south, “It’s all over but the cryin’.” Wish me luck and I’ll write up a report early next week.