Rock 'N Roll San Antonio Half Marathon - RunHalf Marathon

They counted down and the horn went off... and we stood there. That was corral 1, I was in corral 14. Slowly we inched our way forward listening to the announcers cheer everyone on. Finally it was our turn, I had positioned myself to the far right and back of the corral because I knew I was going to be slow. The horn went off and I started my slow jog past the start line. I looked around and people were passing me like I was standing still. But this was my race, I wasn't out to beat anyone, only to prove to myself that I could do it. All the anxiety and nerves just went away and I felt great. I had a nice pace going, got passed by Elvis and laughed about that.

At about .75 miles in the stomach and abdominal cramps started. What?!? I had NEVER had cramps like this, usually a side stitch here and there. Ugh... I tried to be careful of my breathing pattern, breathed deeper, sipped some water, nothing made them go away. I decided to just run through them hoping they would ease up. Around 1.5 miles the anxiety came back because of the cramps. Already I was thinking of giving in. I couldn't imagine myself actually being able to finish 13.1 at this point.

Just over 2 miles in I slowed to a walk. The cramps eased up, but I was in a low place, very low. I was looking at street names wondering if my SO would be able to find me and come pick me up. I kept walking past the 5km mark, then slowly started to jog again. The cramps were gone, but the anxiety had its grip on me. F

or the next 5 miles I would jog until I felt like I was going to vomit from the anxiety, then I would walk to compose myself. I found out that I was in a better place physically and emotionally if I kept jogging, so that's what I tried to do. I was walking up to the 8 mile mark and decided that at 8 miles I would jog until I just couldn't take it anymore. So I did, and I felt better. I was finally getting control of my anxiety. At about 10 miles I slowed to a walk to drink some water and powerade I had in my fuelt belt. I had been sipping it all along and found that the powerade was too sweet and was making my mouth feel gross. So I would take a sip of powerade then a sip of water to dilute it. That seemed to work. I didn't walk long that time before hitting a jog again.

I was finally starting to pass other people, even with my measly 12:30 jogging pace. I made it through the half/full split, less than 3 miles to go. I kept jogging. My feet, calves, knees, hips and lower back were aching more than I ever though possible at this point. The anxiety was controled, the cramps were gone, but everyting just ached. I slowed to a walk just before the 12 mile marker but quickly found that it hurt more to walk than run, so I took off. I passed the 12 mile mark and decided to kick it up a notch and just get done. I was all the way to the right hand side of the road and passing people. I was jumping on the sidewalk, almost hit a stop sign and a spectator holding a sign, but I was on a roll. At the 13 mile marker was one final nasty hill under the Alamodome and I just couldn't pull the whole hill had to walk, a cramp had started in my abdominal muscle just below my rib cage. I've had this cramp before and it is brutal.

At the top of the hill we turned and I could see the finish 200 yards away. I broke into a jog and and the cramp tightened its grip, I had to walk 5 or 6 steps because I couldn't take a breath or stand up straight at that point, but decided screw it.. and just jogged over the line with a grimace on my face and half hunched over. It was done. I made it. It wasn't pretty, but I made it.

Everything? Endurance wise I think I was ok, when I was jogging I wasn't winded and never walked because I was tired, only because of anxiety at the start and aches and pains at the end. For sure need more long runs to deal with those aches and get my nutrition taken care of. I'm sure the cramp at the end was because I had not been drinking nearly enough. Mostly, I just need to get my anxiety and fears in check. This was my big test to see how far I had come. Just finishing was a big accomplishment for me, now it's time to start doing more running and less surviving.

Crossed the finish line and grabbed a bottle of water and my medal. I was an anxious mess again and just wanted to get home. Wandered through the masses of people trying to find a way out. I'm not good in big crowds and I was shoulder to shoulder with people, I was close to tears at this point. Couldn't stomach any food, or even the thought of any food. Made my way to where the SO was waiting in the car, hopped in, took a xanax and shook off my anxiety on the way home. Shower, nap, pizza, rest.


Myself. I let the anxiety and fears get to me. I never saw anyone vomit, nor did I vomit myself. Even though at times I thought I was going to, it was just the anxiety messing with me. Once I get that in check I think I will be much better off.


This is my first half marathon and biggest event I have ever been involved in. I can't imagine the logistics nightmare involved with running something this huge. With all of that said, they have this down to a fine science. From expo to finish line, everything was well organized and under control. I found out later that some of the front corrals had gotten delayed by an unscheduled train, but they are adjusting times.
Aid stations were well staffed and had plenty of water and cytomax, even for us BOPers. Bananas were handed out at one station and Gu at another location. Med stations were well placed and seemed equipped, handing out bandaids, vaseline and anything else people needed. Thankfully I didn't have to stop. Finish line area was really crowded but they were doing there best to keep people moving. Medals were awesome.