Race Recap, Part Three - The Big Day (Miles 13-26)

It's 11:30PM, and I just got back to my house after a long photo shoot with my band Penny Blacks. I planned on going on my first run since the marathon today, but I couldn't get my duff off the couch after work. I need to come up with a new goal soon, or I'll end up getting out of shape again.

Tonight, my goal is to finish my marathon recap. Let's get to it, shall we?

Mile 13-19: A Mighty Wind, and a Mighty Good Friend

I hit the halfway mark in 1:36.05, and noticed I was catching up to a couple of marathoners. I passed one gentleman shortly after the half-marathon checkpoint, and caught up to captain Corona around mile fourteen. He was still in good spirits, and offered a few words of encouragement as I ran by. Captain Corona ended up finishing about ten minutes behind me, which made me wonder how fast he would have run without the six pack in his belly. I guess I'll never know.

Mile fifteen offered my a pleasant surprise in the form of Clinton Charlton. He agreed to bike with me for part of the race, but I never followed up for fear that I was driving him crazy with my marathon obsession. However, Clinton is a man of his word, and picked my spirits up before I succumbed to the mid-race doldrums. He informed me that I was in sixth place, but worried about my pace. "Dude, the speed limit here is 50," he said, without a hint of sarcasm in his voice. "You better slow down."

Unfortunately, the conditions forced me to take his advice. The strong cross wind became a strong head wind shortly after we joined forces, and the once easy course became quite hilly. I maintained my effort, passing another runner in the process, but knew the conditions were taking a toll on my time.

Luckily, the worst of the hills ended around mile sixteen, and a change of direction at mile seventeen eliminated the headwind. I was back in business, with less than ten miles to go.

Mile 19 - Finish Line: What Wall?

I was starting to venture into rarely charted territory, and wondered if I had enough gas left in the take to avoid the dreaded wall. My body felt okay, and Clinton was keeping me alert, but I wasn't convinced that I could make it to the finish line without walking. Instead of worrying about it, though, I started picking up the effort at each mile checkpoint, much like I did in my training sessions. Clinton kept me encouraged, as did the water stop teams and the supporters that dotted the course. Marta Kelly and Dean Strowbridge drove by me a half dozen times, honking their horn and cheering me on every time they drove past. I have some great friends, don't I?

I don't know if I ran around it or through it, but the wall was never an issue. Sure, it took a little more effort to climb hills, and I was a little crankier than usual for the last couple of miles, but this was a breeze in comparison to my other marathons. I wasn't going to qualify for Boston, but I couldn't have asked for a better marathon. I was having a wonderful day.

I ran into Alex Coffin with less than a mile to go, and he informed me that my fiancee was at the finish line and waiting for me. I picked up the pace with the hopes of looking strong for my finish line photo, and was greeted by Sarah (my fiancee), her mother, her brother, and five other friends. I crossed the finished line to a healthy round of applause, and then spent the next few minutes grinning like a fool and giving my friends and family sweaty hugs.

The rest of the marathon experience was a bit of a blur. I had a ton of food (they had a full roast pig at the post-race meal), a wonderful leg massage, and several great running chats with friends. Who could ask for anything more?

So, that's my marathon in three posts or less. I have one more post about the KV Challenge yet to come, so visit again soon!