Monday, May 07, 2007

IT WAS THE BEST OF TIMES, IT WAS THE WORST OF TIMES





MARATHON : GARMIN TIME : 6:42:20 (MY SLOWEST)


It was the best marathon that I've ever ran. I am not talking about the time but the whole experience.

Saturday , my MIL and I left about 7am for Cincy. The trip was good with lunch at the Cracker Barrel. We checked into our room at the Millenium Hotel. Excellent room and location. We were hooked up to the building where the expo was so we went over to pick up my packet. They had the most pleasant and helpful group of volunteers. The shirt is nice and the backpack and poster are awesome. I had to buy a jacket and a pig hat of course. After that we went back to the hotel and I tried LaRosa's Pizza for the first time. Not Chicago Pizza but very good. We watched Happy Feet then went to bed.


Sunday, the morning came early. I had to get up at 4am Chicago time to be ready for the 630am start. I found the start easily and before I knew it -we were off. I wasn't shooting for any certain time. My goal was to enjoy and finish. My first mile was too fast at 12:45. I just went with my comfort and tried to slow down. At mile 4 the hills of Cincinnati began. Wow! I just kept my head down and kept digging. The city was beautiful. I thin it was around 8-9 you had an awesome view of the Ohio river. At about that point the half and full marathon split. The crowd thinned out alot. I was still feeling good. I hit the half at 3:07:15. I was actuall hoping for alittle slower to save for the end. I hate warm weather and I felt the temperature going up.


At about mile 14, I caught up with these 2 soldiers in full gear. I thanked them for serving for our country. It hit me how lucky we all were to be able to do things like this.

The next few miles were unremarkable. I stayed hydrated and did my GU. I began getting excited because Mary Sunshine was going to be at mile 21. She said she would have an orange sign. I love reading her blog and was anxious to meet her. She had done a half Ironman the day before. As I approached 21 ,I could see the sign. It was great to meet her and give her a hug. Unfortunately ,I had to keep moving.

At about 22.5 , I hit a major wall. The hills and heat caught up with me. I realized that I was walking as quick as my running pace. Finishing became a priority. I just kept walking fast. The city seemed so far away but there was no doubt that I would get there. The support out there was amazing. All the medics were still on the course. Ever water station was still manned. In my 2 Chicago experiences the sidewalks were being rolled up as I was finishing. At the Pig,I didn't feel like a back of the pack runner. I felt just as important as the people at the front. When I passed the mile 25 marker , I saw a little grey haired lady with a bag waving at me. It was my MIL. She had taken a cab from the hotel to the end of the race. She was holding a bag that contained a Diet Mountain Dew, Bagel, and banana. How sweet. I slowed my walk down so she could walk with me to the finish. I did not care about my time at all. It was the best of times.

Thanks to everyone for the support and love that I have felt. Thank you God for letting me do this.

My next endeavor will be on my blog this week. Always look forward not back.

Waddling proudly with a flying PIG medal...........


13 comments:

jkhenson said...

Congrats on a marathon finish!!! And for seeing all the positives in the race and life!!

Unknown said...

Sounds like you had a great time! WooooHoooo!!!

Where's a picture of you in your new pig hat with that medal proudly around your neck?!?! :)

Mary Sunshine said...

GREAT JOB!! The hills and heat combined make this a very tough marathon!

It was so great to meet you in person. Your smile lit up the course!!!

I will get a copy of the picture that Jeremy took and post it. You looked strong, happy, and upbeat at mile 21--sorry to hear about the wall but you should be proud that you kept moving through it. Great medal! Great post!

Looking forward to hearing about your next goal. Looks like you will keep us all in suspense...

IronSnoopy said...

Yay!

((())) big virtual hug!

And Happy Snoopy Dance!!!

You did it! Congratulations on completing winter training. Congratulations on training through a difficult life-changing event. Congratulations on finishing this with a smile on your face!!! ((())))

You are truly an inspiration. :)

Reluctant Penguin said...

You've been an inspiration for me since I first stumbled upon your blog a few months back, and continue to be so. (Not sure you've inspired me to ever try running the Pig, but that's another story.:) Congrats again, and I look forward to hearing about the new goal.

Joe said...

So Cool!!! Congratulations, marathoner!! You did it!

Great write up, you captured a lot. I suspect the time with your MIL was special. How cool for her to come out to find you, bring some goodies and walk through the finish with you...what a bond!!

Thanks, from an Army Dad, for greeting the soldiers. that is special. I appreciate it.

I'm proud of you..you persevered through a lot to get ready for this. Hang that meadal proudly!

sharon said...

I bet that Diet Mt. Dew was a welcome treat! How sweet of her.

Irene said...

Hurray! I'm so happy for you! It sounds like it was a wonderful day! That's awesome that your MIL was waiting for you with goodies for your last mile. Cool medal, too!

Dori said...

Way to go, Waddler! You beat my Grandma's Marathon time by two minutes. :-) Glad you had support up to the end.

I enjoyed your race report and what a great medal. Wear it with pride! You worked hard for it.

21stCenturyMom said...

The Flying Pig has the coolest Marathon medal ever. If I do another marathon I think it will have to be that one.

Congratulations, again!

Unknown said...

Big congrats on your marathon. You did great!!!

Denise said...

How funny! I stayed with those two soldiers up until the Half split from the rest of the pack!

I wish we could have met to say hello, sounds like we were pretty close up to the split when I turned left to go to the Half and you went right with the Full.

Fantastic Job!

Fe-lady said...

Yeah for you! It's not important that you didn't PR but that you had a great time! Hills and heat sure don't help in an event...but you DID IT! Whoo-hoo!
Congratulations!
And best of luck in your DU endeavors!

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