Complete a half-marathon.

“I spent a lot of unnecessary energy weaving in between people and was fairly uncomfortable by the lack of space. Given this was my first half (and race in general), it was difficult for me to gauge whether the road we were running on was too narrow, whether I started too fast off, or whether I should have moved up to the 7 min to 8 min/mile part of the start line. [...] This was extremely tough. There was a turn in the course and we ended up running against the tailwind that I had during miles 4-9. The other aspect that was fairly annoying was the sand that was being blown around. I had to fight bits of sand in my eyes, nose and mouth throughout. The headwind and uphill made these last 4 miles extremely gruelling, and it was very discouraging to note the slow down in perceived speed. The mix of that and seeing other runners pass me made this part a tough mental battle.”

“The first 7 to 8 miles I was feeling strong, running between an 8:05 and 8:20 min/mile pace, which felt comfortable and that I could sustain. I think it was after the 8th lap where I physically started to feel fatigued (my legs were becoming sore, feeling more sluggish), so miles 8-10 were tougher, but I was still somewhere in the region of 8-9 minutes/mile pace. Still on track! Those final 3 miles were particularly hard, the repetitiveness of the 13-loop course started to get to me, so it became more of a mental game and keeping your legs moving. Nonetheless, after 1 hour, 57 minutes and 31 seconds, I crossed the finish line!”

“Immediately after the race, once your legs that have been moving for almost 2 hours stop pumping, I felt pretty dizzy and lightheaded. It took me a few minutes of literally standing there and breathing to catch my breath, and just generally I didn't really know what to do with myself to be honest. I went over and got my medal (which was Halloween themed) and some free snacks that were provided.”