Author: devonpass

The race recap will be posted first thing in the morning… I was pulled away from my computer today by some very important sunbathing (with sunscreen) that had to be done by the pool at my friend’s new apartment.

And then Aaron and I partook of a wine flight at a local Italian restaurant, Perche’no.

Four wines and antipasto for $6!

The antipasto included Caprese salad, a deliciously seasoned zucchini slice, a red bell pepper chunk with drizzled honey, a bit of frittata and OMG THE BEST PORTOBELLO MUSHROOM OF ALL TIME. Seriously. That thing was divine, and Aaron abhors fungus, so I got to have TWO of them!

I also ordered prosciutto-wrapped figs because, uh, why not? The prosciutto was homemade… the figs were fresh… so yummy.

Aaron had gnocchi (also delicious), and we both nibbled on bread with super-yummy herbed olive oil. This is definitely my favorite local restaurant, and the owners (who are actually Asian-American — David and Lily Kong) are so involved and friendly!

One of the best parts about running races is all the eating I get to do afterward!! Tune in for the epic half-marathon recap Monday morning!

Shay! I got it from wbaw’s t-shirt shop. I love it, too! Go grab one for yourself!

And follow wbaw, ‘cause he rocks.

The American Cancer Society put on a nice dinner for all the Seattle DetermiNation athletes last night. I almost didn’t recognize everyone in normal clothes and with their hair down and makeup on!

A bunch of volunteers were on hand to cheer on the athletes as we went into the dining room.

The music, cheers and support got me really excited for TOMORROW!

We had a plated dinner of Caesar salad and pasta with chicken, plus CUPCAKES! My table of eight included three people with food restrictions: one who didn’t eat gluten, one who didn’t eat dairy and one who didn’t eat meat. Unfortunately, our server didn’t quite understand what these needs meant, so she kept bringing out more PASTA with CHICKEN and creamy sauce/CHEESE for these people.

Aaron took advantage of the rejected food and ate FOUR dinners total. Plus, he had at least four cupcakes, maybe even five (I lost track). He just told everyone he’s carb-loading for the marathon… which he isn’t even running : D

It was great that we got to spend some time with people we’ve been training with for months and months, and to be able to talk about our nerves going into the race. The girls who sat next to me are running the full marathon, so I felt like I shouldn’t be nervous at all since I’m only running HALF that! It kinda made me feel better. : D

Oooh, and I goofed up. I planned to go to the expo last night to pick up my bib/switch corrals, but the dinner was actually at 6:00, not 7:00 like I thought! Since I didn’t have time for the expo, I’ll be hitting it right after work tonight. So excited – my first expo!

OK, kids! TWO days until my first half-marathon! Here’s some fun info:

• I did my LAST training run last night – 2 miles at 8:46-ish pace (I forget). Now I just have to trust my training!
• I’m going to the race expo tonight with a new friend to pick up my race number, packet, shirt and swag, PLUS move to a faster corral. I estimated my finish time at 2:15 when I signed up for this race way back when (having no clue what my goal pace was), so now I’m gonna estimate a 2:00 finish to get into a slightly faster corral than I think is necessary – just so I won’t have to weave. Wheee!
• I’ve listened to this song about 50,000 times since Monday. It’s helping with the nerves.

I’ve also read this message about 50,000 times since it was sent to me on Saturday, and I’ll probably read it 50,000 more:

Anonymous asked you:

I just have to say, you’re going to kick ass in your race. You’ll totally suprise yourself and probably break 2:05 – if not better. I know you should just focus on finishing and all that, but if you stay positive, keep a good clip going and just keep moving like you have been, you’ll totally beast this run. Even at 9:20-9:40s on your training runs, you might bring a way lower number on race day. (But don’t over think it!) Good luck!

You, Anonymous, are a patriot and a scholar. Also, extremely good-looking.

The encouragement means so much, and beast this run is totally my mantra for this race!