A year of work culminated in one moment, and just like that it is over. My serious training started last January and in that span I completed a 12K, 10K, Half Marathon and Sprint Triathlon. All of that was building towards January 10, 2010.
Allison and I flew down to Florida a week prior to the race to visit with my family before heading off to Orlando. Prior to leaving we were looking at race time temps in the low 50's. Perfect, we thought! We packed accordingly and set off. Every day we were there the temperature for the race dropped a solid 10 degrees. INSANITY. First lesson learned, when traveling for a race, I don't care if it is in freaking Jamaica, I am packing ALL of my running gear. Cold, hot, wet, dry... you name it, I am packing it.
I wasn't as worried about the actual race itself, more so waiting at the start line for the better part of an hour and half. The night before the race Alli and I set out to find some cheap sweats and things we could shed at the start and not feel bad about. We probably spent a little more than we wanted at Target, BUT it was well worth it. We also found disposable gloves for $3 at the expo which came in handy. A lesson that I learned the easy was to not totally pitch the gloves if I think I am too warm in the hands. I held on to them and they came in handy, sadly the second time I took them off I did pitch them and I wished I hadn't.
Race started in the dark, which causes problems for me due to my vision. I have a pair of prescription Oakley's that I wear for running, though I imagine I looked a little peculiar running in the dark for the first eight miles or so. Once the sun came out I was grateful I had them.
My pacing was all over the place and I think my lack of experience got the better of me. I was able to get my calories in starting before the race. I had a few mini bagels. As I set out I was able to pack down four Gu packets and two bananas.
At the half way pace I was at 1:52:40 seconds which would have put me in right at my goal of 3:45. I was feeling good, the crowds were starting build along the course as it warmed up a bit (it was 25 degrees at the start of the race) and I was starting to think that this was going to be a real possibility. As I look back though I realize that my pacing was very erratic in that first 13 miles and I would pay for this later on.
At about mile 18 my hamstrings started talking to me. Those of you that have run these distances know what I am talking about. A little pang of something every few minutes, then my calves kicked into the chorus and I had a feeling I was in trouble. The organizers of the race had something called Bio Freeze on the side of the course and I made a decision at this point that I was NOT going to utilize it as I have never used it before and didn't know how my body would react, looking back I wonder if this was a mistake given the fact that I KNEW I was going to cramp at some point. It wasn't a matter of IF, rather when.
Mile 20 rolls around and I at this point I have dropped to an 8:46 pace. At this point this will still get me in under the 3:50 mark, not bad considering. Realistically all I wanted to do was come in under 4:00. With 1:05 to spare that would have meant a 10:29 pace, surely I could handle this... right?
WRONG. All hell broke loose on mile 22. My hamstring quit, my knee was killing me and my will was broken. I pride myself on my will, my ability to keep going when things are stacked against me. However, I did not count on the sheer beating that a marathon puts on ones body. The folks that do these things regularly, you are amazing. You may also be certifiably insane.
I ended up finishing in 4:07:58. Looking back, I wonder if I could have run a little more. Moved a little faster or done a little more to get under that 4:00 mark. Had it not been for Mark, my guardian angel on the course, my time would have been a lot worse. He came up behind me and talked me through the last two miles. He told me he had run ALL 17 of these and his knowledge of the course came in quite handy.
He knew where the crowds would be and where you wanted to run through, and where the good rest spots were. I also think he slowed down a little for me which went further to reaffirm the amazing camaraderie that runners share. I owe Mark a debt of gratitude for helping me through the finish when I was ready to quit on myself.
I got my medal, grabbed the food like I had never eaten before and made my way to the bus to head back to the hotel.
The worst part of this was the flight back on the same day. We got a direct flight and by the grace of God we had three seats in our row and we had the ONE empty seat on the flight. I got up every so often and stretched out and walked the isles but everything below my waist was swollen. My right knee got particularly bad for a few days, probably just some fluid build up but it made me nervous. I took about four days before I started feeling normal again.
One year, countless miles and five races later I realized that I have found something special. Somewhere to help channel my energy and something that fuels my competitive fire in a positive way. I won't be winning my age group anytime soon, but as long as I can continue to compete with and push myself I'll be happy. I am ready to do the next one. Not right away, but soon. I am preliminarily putting together the 2010 race calendar and trying to figure out what is next.
Right now some rest, climbing and light work so I don't put that weight back on is all the Dr. ordered.
such a great experience. congrats..
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