Pacing At The Timp Half!

Do to the high cost of racing, it is a rare thing for me to spend money on a half marathon, when I have so many other marathons and ultras I am trying to save for. I love the half distance, so when I get a chance to help others achieve their goals and get a free bib, it's a win/win for all involved!

Thanks to Jorge and Holly from RYR Pacers for putting me on the roster for the Timp Half! I was scheduled to pace the 2:30 group (which honestly scared me on such a downhill course). Pacing can be hard if you pace a pace too fast for your ability, but it can also be hard to pace a pace too slow for your ability. Trying to keep a pace much slower than I am used too on a downhill course is hard! You start talking to folks and fall into a pace that feels good and you realize that you are way ahead of where you should be and that is no good, so I was relieved when my friend London asked me to switch with her and pace the 2:20 group. 

I was happy to pace 2:20, but my friend Rob was running his first half and I told him to stay with me. He said he would be OK and I offered to run back and run with him to the finish when I got done. He had worked really hard and I wanted to show my support!

The good and bad part of this race is that it starts at 6:00am. That is a blessing in July as you beat the heat, but the 2:30am wake up call to get to the bus on time is the worst! Rob drove with me as he was a little nervous about what to do, so I walked him through the race day routine.

We drove to the finish line at American Fork High School and caught the bus up American Fork Canyon to the start of the race. It was fun seeing so many friends out there!

Rob at the start of his first half!

Always great to see Sue and her hubby Don!

Joshua and I rocking our best "Blue Steel"!

 I had the pleasure of pacing with a great guy named BJ! He was a lot of fun to pace with! We took turns holding the sign every mile which made it really easy.

Woo Hoo!

BJ and I having fun!

The first half of the course has a nice gentle downhill. We had to watch the pace very closely as not to get to far ahead of it. Gravity is your friend, but going too fast as a pacer is a no no!

The course is stunning!

The second half of the course is along a bike path. Here is where we get to run a few rolling hills. They are not hard unless you have blown yourself up on the down hill.

One thing I love about pacing is the stories you hear from the people running with you. This race's feel good story comes from a man named Brian and his daughter Shelby. Brian suffered a massive heart attack and his daughter was running his very first half marathon with him!

Brian and Shelby showing us how precious and resilient life is! 

With 5 stints in his heart, Brian most certainly beat the odds!

I love races that finish on a track! The Eugene Marathon finishes on the most famous track in the world and the Timp half finishes on the American Fork High School track! There is something about finishing on the track with all the spectators watching that is really exciting!

BJ and I running to the finish!

1:59:59! You don't get closer to pace than that!

After I finished as promised, I ran back up the course to find Rob. When I saw London (the 2:30 pacer), I figured Rob may have been having a rough time of it, but not too far up the road there he was! He was keeping a nice steady pace and was in great spirits! I was so happy for him!

Go Rob Go!

I ran with him a little bit and told him I wanted to run ahead to get a picture of him crossing the finish!

Rob finishing his first half marathon!

Well done Rob! He was happy to earn that bling!

We want you to get off your butt! LOL!

So great to see these cute ladies at the finish!

I was a sweaty mess, so I might call BS on this sign! Ha Ha!

This was a really fun and organized race. The medal was gorgeous, but the t-shirts, while cute, ran about 2 sizes too small. This made for a lot of unhappy ladies. I ended up having to exchange my shirt for a men's small as the didn't have any larger sizes left over. That was a drag and I hope the rectify it. I understand that mistakes happen, but this is something that they can fix if they choose too.

Other than that, the race is great and I totally recommend it!! I would really love to see the Sogo marathon come back to this race too!