The Marathon

So yeah I've been a horrible blogger.... I ran the marathon last week and have not blogged about it yet. Sorry, not sure anyone reads it anyway but still...anyway the important thing is that i finished it. I know people were thinking I was really hard headed for not dropping out cuz everyone else i planned to run with dropped out but the only rule i've had with myself for running is no DNFs and so i couldn't well... wouldn't drop out.so heres the run down of the race....no pun intended :)

Step one: Getting to the start line

by far my least favorite part of race day. i hate getting up particularly that early, and those buses reek. seriously. i have no appetite at 3 am and icy hot fumes mixed with bananas and oatmeal and generally stinky people do not mix well. the bus ride also absolutely terrifies me. its a fairly long busride and i know that i have to somehow get all the way back....i just hate how long that ride takes...if it takes that long in a bus how long will it take me to run? This year i also had some really annoying girls discussing their prerace diets in the seat next to me...they were crazy health runners...i am not one of those people...while i sat there listening to them i had my diet coke out getting some prerace caffeine.

Step two: waiting for the gun

so this year i decided its much more fun to wait for the race to start with people you know. I really kind of struggled at the start line. I found my own little patch of dirt sat down finished off my coke and oatmeal...breakfast of champions there. used the port-a-potty. wandered around some more had an apple....used the port-a-potty again....wandered around listened to people complaining about having to WALK to the fires...yes they were annoyed that the fires were not right next to the start line. they actually had to walk through port-a-potty boulevard to get to them....sure you can run a freaking marathon but you cant walk to the the fires 300 meters away??? anyway, it finally go to be 15 minutes to the start time so i got ready to go got my ipod ready and dropped my extra layers at the bag drop. then i heard a gunshot....start??? a few minutes later they announced that was the start for the the wheelchairs. seeing that it wasn't super well announced i headed over to the start line so i didnt miss it. just as we all started to line up some local decided he needed to get his huge truck and trailer through the start gate...well... he was just inching through not stopping hoping that we'd all just get out of his way. he was a real peach. anyway the race was about to stop so he had to wait at the front of the start gate :). Anyway no announcement was made and the gun went off again... everyone just kinda looked around at each other then they came over with the megaphone and said ummm that was the start...good luck. with that we all squished through the start line like a flock of sheep.

The first half:

I found the first mile of this race to be really hard for me. I was feeling really alone at this point. I am so used to always having my family there to run with and this was the first time i had no one else out there with me. I got really teared up during the first mile and i'm sure everyone was thinking wow one mile in and shes already crying? she ain't gonna make it. I always have liked the beginning of races being to see everyone in the family out there and trying to keep up or catch up, but i was on my own this time and it was harder than i expected. I finally kicked it into gear and stayed with a big pack until mile 11. I struggled through miles 8-9 getting into the canyon. There were a lot of steep rolling hills through that area and i was just not having it. i also started feeling really sick which would be why i stopped for so long at the halfway point aid station.

The 2nd half:

so i was not feeling so hot by this point i was really sick to my stomach and my muscles started cramping. I took on a new strategy run until the cramp hurt too much to keep going... walk until it released and the run again....this was a painful and time consuming process. I was so excited to get the last really nice downhill portion. The section from nun's park to the mouth of the canyon. I passed a lot of people at this point and it felt really good. I also was thankful for all the cheer i was getting from people stuck in traffic. Cheer makes a big difference. I finally got to the mouth of the canyon and got some cheer from another runners family and started to run again then i saw my brother and his wife and i was SO happy to see them. cheer is good but cheer from people you know is the best. I was so excited to see familiar faces and to know that i was likely to start seeing my family until the end. (this was mile 20) I got my sorry body down to mile 23 and saw my family waiting for me there. This was the best aid station ever. The volunteers were handing out otter pops and I was dying of heat and then once i passed the real aid station i found my aid station from my family. it was awesome to have everyone out there cheering me on. it really meant a lot and i really enjoyed that diet coke...probably not the best idea to run off with it though... just fyi of you run with an open can of coke your hand will get sticky. I loved the course change because by mile 24 I could see the finish line...it was just a matter of dragging myself to it. which i finally did...not a great time but i did it. it was awesome having everyone there cheering me on as i finished and i still just love that feeling of crossing the finish line and knowing that i had given it my all.

what i learned:

1. either misery really does like company or everything is better with family...i think its probably the latter of the 2
2. there is a time where i am really excited to see a port-a-potty
3. i CAN go it alone
4. im blessed that i dont have to go it alone
5. i love my family and am blessed to know that we get to be together for eternity
6. even if it makes you sick---- drink water during the race....i was super dehydrated after...no bueno
7. whether you think you can or you think you cant youre right
8. i can still do hard things.