26.2 and done!

Marathon virgin no more! I can knock it off the bucket list, and actually I'm looking forward to doing some more! It was so fun and so exhilarating, even though I was sore and hobbling around afterward, and had a couple moments of thinking "I will never do this again!"

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This race is an amazing one, and I highly recommend it to anyone thinking of running a half or a full. The course is great. It goes through all the little beach towns from Ponte Vedra Beach up to Atlantic Beach, and we even ran 2 miles on the Florida shoreline. The spectator support is just unbelievable. Every street was lined with huge crowds cheering on the runners, handing out water and gatorade, gu's, bananas, giving high fives, playing music, and they decorated the streets and houses and storefronts with pink streamers and balloons and flags. Just the crowd support was enough to keep you going.

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I finished under my goal and was only 4 minutes away from qualifying for Boston! I never thought I would be able to do that, so now I have a new goal for the next race. My law school roommate Erin came out and ran miles 14-16 with me, and it was so nice to have her support and encouragement to keep going.

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I was surprisingly emotional during a lot of the race. Mostly due to the fact that it was a breast cancer run and many of the runners were running in honor or in memory of loved ones. I got choked up a few times seeing people's badges and shirts stating who they were running for. It's really touching and emotional to see and, really, feel all of the love and support at this race. I was especially honored to run for Drew's momma, a survivor for 5 years and counting.

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I am so thankful for my amazing team hot legs who encouraged and supported me, and convinced me I could do it. We have so much fun together, and it is one of the nicest, most caring and compassionate group of women I have been a part of. What I love most about the group is that we are all very different, in very different places in our lives, yet we bond perfectly and love each other so much. I feel very blessed to have found these girls.

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Ready for the next one with my team!

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