In mid-April we had the chance to spend a weekend in Charlottesville, Virginia, home of the University of Virginia, Monticello, and...the Charlottesville Half Marathon. Nick was inspired by friends of ours to train for, and run, his first real race.
The evening before the race, we were able to carbo-load at a great local Italian place in town and enjoy dinner with friends. (I carbo-loaded too, even though my knees, sadly, make it impossible to run more than a mile anymore.) We were even able to meet up with an old friend of Nick's who is now coaching at UVA. He held Mia almost the entire time he was there.
We are all smiles after puting some good food in our bellies.
Race morning came early, but Nick was ready. He stuck to his pacing strategy and felt really good the whole race... a whole lot better than the lady next to him here, at least. Apparently Charlottesville's marathon and half-marathon courses are one of the highest rated and most challenging in the nation because there are so many hills. Nick didn't know about that until he had registered, but he actually liked the hills... he would.
As he realized that he was already at the finish line, Nick kicked it into gear and passed everyone in front of him in the last 100 yards at a full sprint. I thought he started running faster because of my awesome cheering, but he couldn't hear me, he had some lame song pumping from his iPod and had no clue we were even there to see his finish.
The official time for each individual is based on when you cross the starting line at the beginning and finish line at the end. There is a little sensor in everyone's number bib so they can get an accurate reading. I think Nick's official time is a minute or two less than the time on the clock because he was in the middle of the pack at the beginning, but either way I think he did a pretty good job! He was just glad he didn't get beat by any of the marathoners. (Some 1/2 marathoners really did. I think the guy who won the marathon came in at around 2 1/2 hours. Crazy!)
Some of the fearless racers after their task was complete.
After showers and food, a group of us headed over to Monticello (Thomas Jefferson's famous home) to take a tour. I've been meaning to get to Monticello since I moved to DC and was glad to finally make it happen. It was a beautiful day for it.
All the runners were feeling the effects of their early morning exertion, especially after lunch, so every time the outdoor tour guide stopped, this is the scene he was faced with in the back of the crowd:
Nick can truly fall asleep anywhere, anytime he wants. I wish I were blessed with that talent.
While we waited for the house tour, we did a little Mia photo shoot on the grounds behind TJ's home.
Waving and doing her squinty face. I love it.
Getting her first real grass stains.
Prowling the gardens.
The happy fam.
I've got to say that despite the recent tragedy there, I was totally charmed by Charlottesville that weekend. It made me want to go back to college and to go there. I would even love living there now if it were a little closer to a major metropolis. It was a great college town... beautiful, quaint, historic, and hip all at the same time. Everyone should get there at least once!
No comments:
Post a Comment