31st Marine Corps Marathon

October 29, 2006 and the 31st Marine Corps Marathon have come and gone. But not a day has gone by these past 2 weeks that I haven't thought about that day and my first race.

The weather couldn't have been better and the excitment was overwhelming. Despite a delayed start we were final off and running our first marathon. We couldn't connect with Tara at the beginning of the race so Robi and I were pretty determined to stick together to be sure to push eachother towards the finish.

It was so exciting and such a rush to hear all of the cheering as we pushed off the starting line. After months of training it was almost unbelievable that we were out there running. We stuck to the advice many had given us--do the first 8-10 miles slow. The adreneline gets you pumped up, you are feeling great, and you want to run FAST! But despite all that it is so important to run slow in the beginning so you can run hard and well in the end.

Our families had scattered about to position themselves at different miles and await our arrival. We never anticipated that we would have to go to the bathroom so frequently or that the lines would be long! Our next marathon we will be much more strategic about when and where to stop. But we felt that if we didn't stop now...when would we have another opportunity.

It was great to see our families on the sidelines cheering us on, handing us kleenex for a runny nose, or some malted milk balls and pretzles to nibble on. We knew we could make it just a little further until we would see them again.

Robi and I pushed hard through Miles 17-20. We saw one of the AIDS coaches out there on the point when we were behind the pace car and he assured us that "We earned these miles" and we needed to be ahead of the pace car to be sure we would cross the bridge in time. That was enough to light a fire under us and get us moving. We were not doing as well as we had hoped to but we were able to make it to mile 20 together. That felt like enough of an accomplishment right there if you ask me! It was a bit overwhelming to be on the bridge knowing we almost didn't make it. Robi and I ran a little bit further together but her knee was not going to allow her to continue on at my pace. So for the last 6 miles we had to run solo. Not an easy feat when you are used to running in a pack or when you are in pain and just want some compainonship or maybe even sympathy. But I had to run for me. It was my marathon.

I pushed on as best I could, dancing alone to the sounds of some high school bands, music on stage at the street fair, and humor...at mile 23 I asked the Marines handing out water if I was on the right track to the starting line!

At mile 25 I was ready to walk but kept pushing forward and then at mile 26 I saw two friends and co-workers with a huge sign and "two-braids" on their heads. Across the finish line I ran but never saw my official time due to an on coming ambulance! I received my finishers medal and a bottle of water. The end of my first marathon and just feeling a little dazed.
My official time was 06:08:05. The first question I think I was asked by Phillip or my mom was "Are you going to run it again?" I honestly didn't know that I would run another marathon after that and it took several days for me to make a decision. I am getting ready to train for a 1/2 marathon in March and Phillip said he would train for that with me...but also would run the Marine Corps Marathon with me next year. So I guess my answer is yes!

Robi finished 15 minutes behind me with a time of 06:24:00. I am proud of her.

It takes a first time to do something to learn the ropes, plan a stategy, and know what to expect. I'm sure our next races will be better. But nothing can replace the feeling of running and competing in your first marathon. And ours was unique because not only were we running for ourselves but we also ran for a good cause and that feels great!