End of the Road

Here's the final installment of my marathon series. In the previous blogs, I talked about the build up to the event, my support crew, and Bob. Now, I just want to share with you my experience. Many times over the course of my training, my mom remarked to me and to others that she didn't think I was having any fun. I have to admit, some of those training runs were far from fun, but the marathon...that was very fun!

No one had quite warned me about how the race starts. Those of us in the "open" corral (read: not really fast) are jammed in shoulder-to-shoulder. Some people sit in groups on the ground while they wait. They were a bit of a tripping hazard. However, the biggest tripping hazard was what they left behind.

From where I was, I couldn't hear the starting horn. In fact, I had no clue the race had started until the man on the PA system told us. Slowly, we all started to move forward. That's when I noticed all the bottles, sweatshirts, etc. lying on the ground. People were kicking bottles left and right. I tried to shuffle my feet. I didn't want to go down before I even crossed the starting line! Actually, I did almost fall down within the first mile or so. They place rugs over parts of the grates on the bridges. There was a wrinkle on one and I tripped. Fortunately, my athletic prowess and balance (okay...luck) kept me from falling.

Kristina ironed my name onto the front and back of my shirt. From watching the races in the past, I knew people appreciated me cheering their name. That is a MAJOR understatement. Hearing people cheering your name and telling you that you're looking good (even when you are suffering) provides a major boost. I made an effort to say thank you or acknowledge when people called my name. That definitely contributed to the "funness" of the marathon.

During the entire marathon, people (especially children) would reach out for high-fives. If I was near the side, I would slap all hands within reach. At the 20 aid stations, volunteers handed out gatorade and water. They would call out our names and to cheer us on. Several times, I would just shout out "Thank you, volunteers!" to which I would receive more cheers. When I crossed, the halfway point, I lifted my arms and shouted, "Yes!" The man on the PA called out my name and said I was doing a great job.

I loved being able to see my family at Miles 9, 18 and 22.5. I know my breaks may have cost me 10-15 minutes on my finish time, but I wouldn't trade those moments for an hour off my time. They're love and support was another boost, and watching my dad cheer so loudly for all the runners going by was also fun. By around Mile 22, I was starting to feel pretty hot and tired. Knowing that my support crew was going to be only half a mile ahead helped push me along. I can honestly say, that despite the heat, the pain, and the convulsing muscles, I was actually enjoying the experience.

The emotions I experienced when I crossed the finish line are hard to describe. I almost felt like laughing, crying, cheering, and collapsing all at the same time. I did none of those in the emotional confusion. ;-) I received my medal, and they took my picture. I was done!

Well, that's it. I won't be writing anymore about the marathon...at least not about this one. I am positive I will run another marathon (this statement will stress out my mom, I'm sure). When? I'm not sure. I'll probably try to get better at my 5 & 10k paces and do a half marathon, but I will be back! However, I now have a much more important marathon to start...one that lasts a lifetime...parenthood!

I have several other marathon pix on Flickr.

Christopher