A record-breaking 42 #IndyMini Ambassadors are training, recruiting and inspiring others in preparation for the 42nd running of the OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon. We’re sharing their stories through a series of blog posts; 2018 Ambassador Features. Here is one of their stories.
Katie’s Story
I never considered myself a runner. In high school and college, I was a marching band kid and my experience with running never exceeded three miles. I always wanted to run a half marathon because I was so impressed by my friends who had done it. I felt like it was an obtainable goal, but I would always say, “well, next year maybe I’ll attempt it when I have more running endurance.” It wasn’t until 2015, when I went running with my roommate who pushed me to run four miles, that I realized I was capable of running a half marathon. Everything just clicked. I thought running more than three miles was impossible, but I did it – so I knew I could do 13.1 too! That March, I signed up for my first half marathon (which was of course the Indy Mini)!
Katie’s #IndyMini Experience
I remember going to watch my boyfriend (now fiancé) run the Mini in 2014. This was the first huge race I had ever attended and I had no idea what to expect. After experiencing the race as a spectator, I knew I had to be a participant in this race someday! I had no idea how or when, but I knew I wanted to be a part of it. The next year, I finally signed up! I fought hard during my first Mini-Marathon, but I came out disappointed that I didn’t hit my goal time. It took me a few hours (and a few thousand calories) later to finally feel the enormity of what I had accomplished. It didn’t matter if I was fast or slow, if I hit my goal or didn’t – I completed 13.1 miles and that was more than enough!
Once you are able to look past goal times and PRs, you realize how special this race is. At that point in my Indy Mini experience, I knew I was in this for life! I love this race and the sense of community. For my fiancé and me, the Mini-Marathon is basically a holiday – we would never think of skipping it. It’s a yearly routine; sign up, train together and peer pressure everyone (seriously EVERYONE) I know to run with us. To me, the Indy Mini is all about dreaming big, crushing goals and having your friends, family and community there to support you. There’s no place I’d rather be on the first weekend of May!
Katie’s Advice
Be conscious of your body on race day. The biggest mistake I made during my first half marathon was thinking that whatever I could do in training, I could do on race day. Race day is difficult. Between the nerves, excitement, water, etc., your body won’t necessarily feel the same as it does on training runs. Everyone has good runs and bad runs. It’s unfair when our bad runs are on race day, but when that happens, the most important thing is to just stop, look around and really soak it all in.
Feeling inspired by Katie’s story? If you’re interested in participating in the 2018 OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon, click here.
Katie, along with our other Ambassadors, will be sharing her training experience and motivation leading up to the race. Follow along and share your experience using #IndyMini on social media!