After 5 months of preparing, here it is my first half marathon. After that amount of time it wasn't a question of completing but a question of doing my best. Mission accomplished.
Morning of the race. Going through the first ribbon crossing the door of my hotel room. I did manage to get 6 hours of sleep. It was hard since the sun never set while I was there.
The half marathon team before the start of the race. Left to right: Chris, Kevin, Len, Karen, Moi, Shyla. In total there was 12 of us from Calgary. We raised 70,000. 980 team in training purple shirts in the crowd of 4000 runners. All together team in training raised 4.4 million for Leukemia and Lymphoma research for this race.
Then the rain came. This is Shyla, she and I ran a good part of the race together. We laughed and I kept calling her "darling" and "girl." She put up with my chatter and banter. Physical activity just brings out the crazy in me.
The first hour rained and rained. This garbage bag was my protection from the start till mile 2. Normally I don't run in the rain. When I ripped that garbage bag off it was like peeling the plastic off a hotdog.
Mid way picture moment. The first 10 miles went off without a hitch. "Did we just run 9 miles?" The Canada flag on my singlet got cheers. The whole run making a point to cheer all the purple shirts passing. This race wasn't about myself so much as it was for everyone. Collective goal!
Through the trees. We ran through earthquake park. What a name!!! The race then took us along the coast. The sun didn't come out for the first 2 hours.
Action shot. (Mile 8) It isn't visible in this photo but on the back of the jersey it said "GIVE ME A YAHOO" Every mile marker we YAHOO'd. Every time I started to feel tired, I yahoo'd. Every time I would get ahead of Shyla she would let me know where she was. It was funny because people only gave a yahoo when they were passing me while I took a moment to walk or stretch.
What surprised me during the run was how many people had frowns on their faces. I smiled my way...Come on it's a half marathon not major dental work. Give it a smile!!!
At mile 11 my left calf seized up on me. Stopping every 5 minutes to stretch. Not wanting to walk the finally yards. My muscle didn't want me to move any further. The last 100 meters were on a high school track. Each step was harder than the next. My smile forced me to the end. Giving all that I had. Hardest run of my life. My grandfather who passed at the end of May was the first person to donate and support me. I called my grandmother with a mile left. She thought I was crazy to be running and talking. It is important to let those around you know how much they mean to you. Jack Cook, my grandfather was the most respectable upstanding citizen I know. He is missed everyday. 
2 Hours and 26 Minutes and 37 Seconds.
2 Hours and 26 Minutes and 37 Seconds. Every step worth it.
The best run of my life so far.
In total I fundraised 6187 dollars.
Thanks for reading and donating.
Grateful,
Mathew John Chyzyk
