La Costa Half

The La Costa Half is something new that you have not heard of?
Me either - until yesterday.

D took all 3 boys to Pee Wee soccer so that I could check off my long run for the week.
I was going to drive down to the coast - running from La Costa to Cardiff and back.
8 miles was my target.

After gearing up (in all black mind you - it was a foggy start to the day) I thought I would make a spontaneous change to my plan.  With gas prices at well over $4 a gallon it hardly made sense to drive down to the coast to go running.  I hopped on mapmyrun.com and figured out a course that would total 8 miles and end at Pee-Wee soccer.

With a quick text to D to let him know my plans - I was off.
(Had I been truly observant I would had realized that the text that I sent generated a response within my own home...)
Looping through cul-de-sacs and neighborhoods, running along busy streets, listening to the baywatch theme song (still old iPod - not sure why I downloaded that one several years back...) knowing that in just a little bit I would be in the air conditioned car, drinking water, being taxied back home.

I hadn't received a response from D, but I was certain that they would be waiting for me (even cheering me on) upon my arrival.
As I approached the field, exhausted, I kept running, eyes darting from side to side inspecting every car I passed, knowing that the Tahoe and my fan club had to be nearby.
I made it past the fields - still nothing.  Checked out the park by the field - knew no one.
I had no money, no water, no id (should I pass out along the way) and wanted nothing more than to sit my booty down.
I creeped around for a while, hoping I had missed them - texted again, called - went to voicemail, called home - that went to voicemail too.  Called again, and then again - about 15 phone calls in, it began to sink in...no one was coming to get me.

It was 10:15 - my spontenaity did not account for the fact that this was my first time training outside and not on a treadmill.  There would be environmental factors such as hills, stop lights, car exhaust that would all slow my pace down.  I was 15 minutes late to the soccer party and everyone I know had gone home...

It is 2.5 miles home from the field to my house.
The sun had come out in full force.
My Men in Black running getup began to adhere to the sweat that was coating my body.
I was SOOOooo thirsty.
I evaluated my options - walk home and get home in over an hour or start running again.
I chose option b and began the LONG road home.
I cranked up the iPod and the songs that came on could not have been more appropriate -
Fall Out Boy "Where is your boy tonight..." - Good question - Not at soccer, not picking up his cell and not at home.
Dixie Chicks "Without you..." - Yup, I was left alone to forge for myself without food or water in the middle of the dessert...

In order to make it to my house in the shortest amount of time possible, I had to run along the busiest streets in town.
I kept trying to inconspicuously undo the perma-wedgie that had formed within my sweaty pants as I ran.
After about a minute of running and tugging - I gave up.  I would definitely have made it on the glamour dont's as the runner with her pants up her booty - I didn't even want to know what the front of me looked like...
As I got about a mile within our house - I started feeling light headed.  I was sure I was going down on the sidewalk and was panicking that my "ICE" was not picking up his phone.
Was this my punishment for cheating on my Lenten sacrifice only a day after I made it?
I mean, it was only a blow pop and my throat was killing me, could that really be considered "sweets"?
My phone started to ring - it was D.
D:  "Where are you?!"
K:  "I don't know on the side of the road somewhere struggling to make it home since you didn't pick me up as planned"
(Definitely up to interpretation- "somewhere" defined a stretch of road that I drive no less than 20 times a day and "plan" was one that I made and shared, but he just happened to not receive)
He volunteered to come get me, but at that point I had come too far - I was almost home.
As I made it into the home stretch, I had to preserve my energy and I pretty much crawled in through the front door - sweaty, smelly, bright red faced and super upset that I had to run all of the way home.
Let's just say that it was not a pretty picture.

After downing about 6 glasses of fluids, showering and upping my blood sugar, I promptly hopped online and purchased a fanny pack that had a harness for water bottles.
I am now a "serious runner" - it was time to gear up.
So I didn't officially run a "half" but clocked in almost 11 miles yesterday.

For next weekend's long run I joined a meetup group.
They'll know I'm serious once I strut in with my fanny pack accessory kit.

Weigh in tomorrow - time to locate the tongs.