10/3/2011: Lewis and Clark Marathon! 26.2Miles of fun…
5:30am
We all got up early, were moving slow and ended up leaving about 30min late. I got about 4 bites of my pinole (no where near what I wanted fuel wise)
6:45am (race starts at 7:15)
We are sitting in TRAFFIC 3 miles from the parking lot for the race we were all getting stressed.
About 3 cars ahead of us someone got rearended! So “First Things First” at least we didn’t get into an accident!
Put everything into perspective!
7:00am
We enter the parking lot at The River Port Plaza and I jump out of the van to head to the starting line. I pass several lines for the porta johns thinking “Thank GOD I don’t have to pee or poop!” When I exited the van the outside temp was 42F…. COLD!
7:10am
I’m in my pace “slot” around 8min/mile and ready to go!
7:15
The race begins with a quick walk to the starting line then a slow walk across since there are around 7K-8K runners… Sarah and the girls are there but I didn’t know and I didn’t know where they were so I just took off.
I ran at a comfortable pace for the first 5 miles. I was feeling great but drinking very little. People EVERYWHERE…
#1 Grosser than gross: snot rockets EVERYWHERE people are disgusting!
#2 Gu and other race gel packets EVERYWHERE. I am not really a greenie, but GIVE ME A BREAK people…
#3 Skipping the porta johns before the start SEEMED like a good idea, it was not… Having to pee for almost 14 miles sucks…
13.1 Miles:
I crossed the 1/2 Marathon line after 1:48 into the race. 3 mintues slower than my Mckendree University “Super” Half Marathon.
I was ok with the slower 1/2 since I wanted to take it easy so I had some in the tank for the second 1/2
I saw Sarah and the girls cheering me on… Tears welled in my eyes and I fought back a strong wave of emotion, these waves visited me on and off the the last 13.1 miles. Distracting but unavoidable. My feelings for my girls is so intense at this point I couldn’t do anything but keep going and RUN!
14 Miles:
PEE PEE PEE I hit the aid station as I was planning during the last 10 miles I ran (about 90% of the runners were 1/2 marathoners so there was no line here! YAH!)
When I left the porta john my knees felt stiff and difficult to run on but after about another mile the loosened up.
Miles 15-18 were all about the GU BABY! I needed fuel and I was taking every chance I got! GU GUMMIES, GU GELs…
My miles 18, 19, and 20 I started seeing the GU Gummy wrappers on the ground and wondered “Maybe someone dropped a full bag! 10 second rule does not exist after running 20 miles!” Then: “What A WASTE OF GOOD GU GUMMIES!”
At this point I didn’t really care about the environment, just the wasted fuel…
Miles 21-24
I was locked into a speed. I could have walked, but there was no variable speed I could go. At times I tried to speed up only to realize my body was not interested in doing what my mind was telling it to do. I hit no “Wall” but I did hit a point. My point was a disconnect between what my mind knew I was capable of and my body telling my mind to STFU.
So by mile 24 I owned and when I say owned I mean OWNED that speed. At many times during the race I was passed and I didn’t care. At this point I was starting to pass people!
Miles 25-Finish
I was actually alone for almost a mile! I was a beautiful morning and I was able to appreciate it even at this point. Coming to the finish line I saw Sarah and the girls cheering me on and I almost broke down on the spot. I was emotional beyond belief. I love my family so much and to see them almost made me want to quit and get hugs right there, but I soldiered on… I was passed right before the finish line by a guy who (after he finished) looked like his legs were made of rubber. They were flopping all over the place! GROSS!
I got my metal, and grabbed some snacks for my girls (all 3 of them…) and left the race. My left ankle was sore but I was walking! I even carried Katelyn for a little while.
I knew when it was all said and done, I was NOT! I had a 10K on 10/17/2011.
Post race my ankle swelled up and took 3 days to look normal. Then I got to experince achillies tendonitis! Thus I ran 5.5 miles on 10/11/2011 testing out my left leg. It was a mistake… I ran the Go! Saint Louis Halloween 10K in a little over 47minutes! That was fun but again agitated my tendonitis…
Now I am babying my ankle… I bought some Virbam Five Fingers KSO’s and some Terra Plana Daharma’s since while I am babying my leg I want to transition to minimalistic footware. I also ordered some New Balance MT101 minimalistic trail running shoes.
Currently I am signed up for Psycho Waco Ultramarathon (50K) on Feb 12, 2011 and plan on running 3 or 4 marathons next year.
My 2011 tag line?
100+ miles in 2011!