2:05

Some things that I learned yesterday are:

• one CAN run a half-marathon even if one has not trained specifically for it, if and only if a) one has previous experiences with marathons etc.; and b) one is fit-ish otherwise (for very specialized definitions of fit that is)
• when one has ran loong distances before (I'm talking beyond 42 km, and yes, even though 45 km is only three km longer than 42, those three km are actually three eternities ONE AFTER THE OTHER), one finds 21 km to be very very short (see below)
• motherfucking unicorns do not usually roam the half marathon paths (see below)
• to run a half-marathon quickly and to ensure the safety of one's ankles might be two competing issues. I chose the ankle.

So yes. I ran a sloow 2:05 and loved it entirely, despite the thunderstorm and being shown, for 21km and two hours after that, that I am not as fast as I used to be (and I used to be very slow). I sucked it up, ran and made the best of it, and totally and completely loved it.

You see, somebody, a while ago, asked me if I noticed that women runners where slower than male runners. Of course, I could have answered quoting various female runners but instead I saw red and

IT WAS ON!

One ankle injury and an overall meh running period (no running partner) later and it was no longer on, but I decided to run the half anyway with the general aim of beating said person by any means possible. Of course, I lost, by 10 minutes or so. Nevertheless, I'm very happy that I did not push said person off the track when I saw, at a u-turn point, that he was about 8 minutes in front of me. Nor did I pretend that I needed help or play the damsel in distress and then just cross the finish line first. 

I did however attempt to chase. And this, friends, is the point when actually training for these things makes a difference. I attempted to chase but my legs wouldn't, despite me feeling awesome then (at 15km). I did not listen to my legs but when I nearly fainted I had to stop, walk for a bit, and talk some sense into me. I did not find any unicorns in the path so had to suck it up and cross the finish line sort of running must mostly shuffling, not because my legs were killing me but because my pride was hurt. Ah well. 

Nevertheless, 21km is still a short distance. The weather and the overall scenery must have made a difference, because I found myself telling myself: "WHA! 7 km gone and ONLY 14 left! This is a breeze!" It's a good thing to tell yourself this considering the situation. And yes, don't run halfs without training. It's just stupid.