Category Archives: Gasparilla

It is 4:10am in the morning, the alarm goes off and several things immediately run through my mind…  1. Race day is finally here and I have to get up because Kim is going to be here for photos at 4:30  2. What is the weather going to be like today and 3.  It’s Andy’s birthday!

I can hear the wind blowing outside and I just shake my head and say, “Oh well…”.  12 hours earlier Kim, Kelly and I stood outside and stared at this image on our phones.  The weather channel predicted an 80% chance of rain with winds 25-40 miles an hour.  All we could do was laugh.

Kim and Kelly arrived right at 4:30, we took a couple of photos and then hopped in Kim’s car to pick up the other girls carpooling down.  By the time we reached the parking garage outside of the convention center it was pouring and the wind was ferocious.  We stayed in the garage and out of the rain until the last-minute possible.  As we headed down the stairs, the rain stopped.  We had no idea if it was going to return or not, but we were thankful for the dry spell.  As luck would have it, the rain had moved on and we stayed dry.  We felt horrible for all of those who got soaked and then had to run in the wind.

We lined up in the second wave and then we were off.  We knew that going over the Davis Islands bridge was going to be congested, but this year it went at a snail’s pace, and I am certain it affected my overall time.  Kelly and I ran together until mile 5ish and then from mile 7-9 I ran with Tracy.   Andy and the boys posted up at the finish line when I was around mile 8, and for the rest of the run Andy and I text back and forth so we would both know the whereabouts of each other.  Miles 10-13 were the windiest of the run, I can’t help but wonder how I would have done if there had been no wind…

My goal was to finish the race in under 2:30, but I came in at 2:33 39.  All things considered I am thrilled and all my guys were there to watch :)…