Sigh. I am finally getting around to getting you some more details. Also to reveal some addictions.
Short Synopsis:
Miles 1-7: Awesome
1: very fun start, family members were able to see us off, couldn't really understand the men in this part, they were on the side relieving themselves already....
2: very large hill, pretty much the only hill, since we had trained on hills I was grateful for the preparation
3-7: spent a large amount of this time basking in all the people yelling for the pink girls (Jake is also running with us through these miles and would continue thru about the first 14 miles despite having 2 stress fractures, he is insane....)
Miles 7-12: Good
7-10: more laughing, having a lot of fun
10: my dad decided he wants to start running with us (he runs a lot of 1/2 marathons but hasn't done a marathon....yet....) when we meet up with the fams in the first meeting spots.
11 & 12: starting out on the Capitol Mall, lots of cool stuff to see, the spectators are getting tired of cheering however and are sitting there dumbly, presumably bored stiff
Miles 13-15: Starting to Suck
13: it gets very windy :P
14: almost gag on a disgusting Cliff Gel, I'm not kidding, I almost threw up right there, nasty stuff teaspoons!
15: definitely hitting my wall, not laughing anymore....
Miles 16-21: Crap
16: walls are not fun
17: does the wall ever go away?
18: i hate this part of the race
19: when the heck do we turn around to head toward the finish line?
20: bridge....boring....the wall is hard to break
21: Danielle has kept us on a very consistant pace and the only reason I haven't walked thus far is because of her (btw, my dad is STILL running with us, he hasn't trained)
Miles 22-24: Re-energized
22: Sport Beans are my favorite, I see one of my clients running the other way about 1 1/2 miles ahead of us and we exchange jovial greetings
23: I am starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel and am getting excited about the finish line, great music along the way too
24: my dad is still running with us, this is the longest he has ever run, Jake also meets back up with us to run the last bit behind us barking orders (very welcomed in my book!)
Miles 24-26: Kicking!
24: we had already picked up our pace but Jake and my dad were feeding our egos, telling us how good we looked, then Jake proceeded to pick people in front of us for us to catch up to and pass
25: we ran this pretty hard, it is almost a blur to me, we passed countless people and the pain seemed to melt away with the endorphins which then decided to abandon me on this little mini hill that ends mile 26
26: like i said there is this very steep but pointless small hill to get to the last .2 miles and it narrows considerably
Last .02 miles: my legs and mind have had it, I realize that I don't quite have enough left to finish, all that sprinting has almost killed me, this is what I am thinking anyway. I am pretty much in tears because I want to walk to badly. Danielle keeps me going again and we are able to continue to pass more people to reach that glorious finish line!
Our families were great! I loved the signs and the encouragement along the way. It was a great experience and it has left both Danielle and I thirsting for more.
We are definitely running the Blue & Gray 1/2 Marathon on December 10, 2006 and are considering another marathon for the spring. We would like to run the National end of March but you must qualify with a previous marathon run of under 5 hours, since we didn't do that we would have to finish the 1/2 in under 2 1/2 hours.
If that doesn't work I have scoped out other marathons. There is a fun one the beginning of March in Sarasota, Florida that has caught my eye and now I can't stop thinking about it. I am also eyeing the Dublin Marathon the end of October 2007. My cousin Katie and I wanted to go to Ireland next year so wouldn't that my fun??? :)
Anywho, you have now seen my addiction and it is hopeless. When you finish you think that you will never run one again and then 2 seconds later I'm ready to find another one!
Any suggestions for marathons???
See ya on the road soon!
LJB
