Soldier Half Marathon ~ Fort Benning /13.24 mi/ Time 2:07:44

I have to say, this was probably the most fun half I have ever run. The energy in this race was unbelievable!! I have had my heart set on this one for a year now. Really wanted to give back and run for our fallen heroes. So this one was for "Easy 40", who lost their lives when their heli crashed near Baghdad in 2007. Flight crew: MAJ Michael V. Taylor, CPT Sean E. Lylerly, SFC John G. Brown, 1SG William T. Warren...along with 8 other crew members (guys my friend Brad Williams served with and knew well). Also SFC Jon Lowery and CPT Waid Ramsey, who my friend Shane Higgins knew well. It was an honor to run for these guys and their families, and I am thankful to Brad and Shane for sharing that with me.

Race recap...

Marla and I got to Fort Benning yesterday morning and traffic was really backed up. Parking was a nightmare. FINALLY got parked 5 whole minutes before the race started! There were others behind us, so I wasn't in panic mode yet. Ended up starting in the 8:00/ pace group because we just couldn't make it through the crowd. The start to this race was amazing! Held a pretty good pace for the first couple of miles. Coming up the only hill we had at mile 2, we had drill sergeants hollering at us...it was awesome! Didn't see a single person walking that hill. LOL. Somewhere between mile 6 and 7, we had some good entertainment with the drill sergeants. One was yelling that he had been waiting 59 minutes for us to finish this marathon!! He seemed pretty ticked! LOL. No checking up in front of him either!

Achilles started tightening up pretty bad around mile 10, but kept pushing through. Knew I had to run strong for "Easy 40"! Also had my own drill sergeant running with me (Marla). Good to have that when you're fighting through discomfort and trying to keep running strong. The energy in this race was just amazing!

It was such an awesome feeling to come around and see the finish! So many people lined up...soldiers at the finish line handing out medals. I kick it in gear through that homestretch to pass this dude in front of me and almost bust my bootay...right at the finish!! I really thought I was going down. My body was moving faster than my legs could keep up. I'm sure that was caught on camera...and probably the only pics taken of me that day. But hey, I beat the dude that was in front of me. :) Mission accomplished! and didn't face-plant, thankfully.

Fort Benning is gorgeous! High energy throughout this entire race. The soldiers were so humble and thankful to us for running. Just wanted to stop and hug every one of them. We did a lot of high-fiving! Enjoyed running this with my bestie. Had such a fun time with her this weekend, as always. Definitely going to run this one again next year!

Kudos to these race coordinators! This was a very well-organized race! Cool medal and shirt...and the best variety of after-race food and beverages I have seen to date! This one was topnotch!