Running for Isabel: Race Update (Really REALLY Late)

I don't know how this is possible, but I missed a race update. From July. Seriously. And then I missed the last half of 2013. Yep, it was that kind of race.
Our good running friend Josh talked Mark and I into doing an all night marathon in July. It was a special all night marathon. We were going to run a half marathon in Farmington, Utah Friday night then drive all night to Idaho Falls, Idaho and run another half then next morning. Mark and I, not being ready to run 2 half marathons in 24 hours decided to break it up and each of us do one of the half marathons. Then I got hurt. So Mark signed up for both. Then I did some running and decided I could push Addison and do the 5k (actually, I went back and forth between doing a 5k or 10k, but since I was supposed to drive the 3 hours, overnight, after the race, I decided that a short race would be best). So after much preparation and excitement, the day finally came.
That night was HOT. Mark and Josh left on the buses to the starting point for the half leaving Addison and I to wait it out, in the mosquitoes for the next 2 hours until our race start time. Waiting with a 2-year-old means running after her and by our 10 PM start time, I was tired, eaten by bugs, and sweaty. I figured that since it was a weird race, I shouldn't push myself too hard and just enjoy a nice run rather than run to beat 30 minutes, the 5k holy grail for a slow poke like me. We were sent off from the finish line (it was an out and back race) and I remember thinking, "How are they timing us? We didn't run over the time setting thing that I have in every other race." But what did I know? Turns out, they timed us all from the start time, not from when we crossed the start line. Hiccup #1 for the race.
The race was thick with people! And they didn't line us up, so I got stuck being walkers that took up the whole freaking trail for awhile. Now here is my runner's soap box moment, if you are a beginner that isn't going to (a) run or (b) know you are really slow, start in the back! You deserve to get ran over by the people that take racing seriously. Another runner pushing a double stroller literally cussed that women walkers out as we all had to off road our strollers to get past them.
We left the fairgrounds and met up with a trail that goes from Roy, UT to south of Salt Lake City. There were many turns and weird paths we had to take to get there, but finally I was there. I remember thinking it was weird that I never passed a 10k runner who, although their start time was 30 minutes before ours, they would have to follow the same path I was on to get to the finish line and a lot of runners should be passing me by now. So I kept my eye out. At some point I looked at my clock and realized I had been running for 20 minutes and I hadn't turned around or met up with the watering station that was supposed to be at the halfway mark. I started to panic. How slow was I running? I was sweating like crazy from the 90+ degree heat and tired and surely, even though I am slow, I should have turned around by now, right? So I kept running. I finally found the watering station and wondered where the hell the turn around was. I asked if I had passed it (I was 25 minutes into my run!) and was assured I wasn't there yet. The frustration was so intense I couldn't believe how slow I was running. 25 minutes for less than 1.5 miles? That is ridiculous.
I kept running into the night. That path was DARK. Finally I found the half way point and turned. But I was tired. I was emotionally done. I had to walk. Pushing Addison in that much heat was just too much. I was passed by some runners I assumed must have been half runners. I thought about Mark and hoped his run was better (it wasn't). I watched my clock. I knew it was going to be a long night. My head started hurting. I reached the water station again and drank 2 cups of water and made Addison drink up too. I ran a little, I walked a lot. I had never had a race go so bad before. I realized I had been out 50 minutes. Pitiful.
I fell behind a young couple just after getting of the trail to head back to the fairgrounds and the finish line. I heard the woman bitching about how the race HAD to have been mismeasured because her GPS said they had been out 8 miles, not 6.2 for the 10k. WHAT? I got to thinking. Yep, that would make since that the watering station was at mile 11 for the half marathon, meaning it was at mile 2.1 for a 5k. And I had to run past that! The woman asked the race official that was directing us into the fairgrounds if they knew they were wrong. Apparently, they figured it out after we had all started. And my 5k was actually 4.4 miles! No wonder!
I finally made it in 1 hour 10 minutes. I walked way too much for a good time, but it was still 85 degrees when I got back and it was past 11PM! It was terrible. And the bugs were thick. I counted over 30 bites. I stumbled into the after race food area and got as much as I could to drink. My head was killing me. I managed to get to the car to get migraine meds and a Mt. Dew. I ate and drank. I made it back to see Mark finish his half in 2 hours 13 minutes. Then Josh came in. We stumbled around getting after race loot and talking about how bad the 5k was. We left Farmington just after midnight and headed to our house to shower and get on the road. But as I was driving home, I started getting really sick. I held it together to get home and get showered. But by time Mark got out of the shower I was throwing up and in way too much pain to even thing about getting in the car. I was in so much pain, I struggled to breath. Mark and Josh talked and decided that maybe we should call off our all night madness. We were all to tired to be that sad.
It was possibly the worst migraine of my life. I was eaten to death, throwing up multiple times, and asking Mark to take good care of Addison because I knew I was going to die. Mark watched me until long after I was asleep because I would stop breathing. Looking back, if Mark was less tired, he would have realized that I should have been taken to the ER. Luckily, I have my guardian angel watching over me and we all lived to tale the tale.
I woke up disappointed and very VERY sorry I had ruined our plans. I shouldn't have ran. It was a terrible race for me and I ruined another race for all of us. Josh forgave me and Mark did too, but I still live with the hurt from it. I am beyond disappointed, even still 6 months later.
And the race officials did do all they could to fix their mistake. They gave all of us medals. They gave us discounts for the 2014 race. And I saw that their New Year's resolution was to measure the races correctly. Now I can laugh about it.