White Rock Marathon 2009

I'd like to preface this blog with a warning about the ridiculous amount of pictures you are about to view. Since I don't scrapbook much anymore (and never for myself) I use this blog as my journal. So, although this post is mostly for my own memories it is also for my sweet dad who tried to move mountains to be there at the finish line, but had to take an emergency trip to Ireland. Bear with me, friends; this will probably be my one and only accomplishment of this magnitude, and I want to remember every mile.

BEFORE THE RACE:

The Necessities.

My running group met at my fancy coach's downtown loft which is just down the street from the start line. It was perfect. We were able to relax in the warmth and calm each other's nerves pre-race.

THE START:

The week leading up to race day, I was obsessed with weather.com and checking the local temperature for Sunday morning. And everyday, the temperature would rise by 2 degrees. Dang that Pete Delkus. However, God was good to us and held off the warm front until after the race. The colder the better and it was JUST RIGHT! The start was surreal. 20,000 athletes huddled together with antsy feet ready to run, run, run. We kept saying, "It's just another long run, just with fancier water stops and a few more people."

THE RACE:

My amazing husband made it IMPOSSIBLE for me to not finish this marathon. Not only did he ride his bike with me along the entire course, but he also organized supporters at every mile starting at mile 18 and even a few earlier in the race. In total, I had over 30 people along the race route cheering for me. Isn't that amazing??? I seriously have the BEST family and friends a gal could ask for. At one point, a guy who had been running my pace for a few miles shouted out, "Okay, who is Alison???" When I proudly claimed my name, he said, "You have the entire city out here cheering for you! You have the best fans!" Indeed I do. Chris did a fabulous job compiling "Al's Marathon Cheer Squad." This made the race for me, completely. See mile 17-19 below for more on that.

Veteran marathoners say that you should write your "marathon story" as soon as you finish so you remember every detail. Lucky you, I am using my blog as the forum for said marathon story.

I broke up the race in my mind into different sections. Downtown-Lake-Lakewood Hills- Kyle (my pace runner)-Home Stretch. I tried to just focus on getting to the end of each section instead of thinking about the entire 26.2 miles.

Downtown. Miles 1-8: My running partners and I tried REALLY hard not to let the excitement and adrenaline take over and make us run too fast. That is supposed to be most people's biggest mistake--starting out too fast only to tank later in the race. We maintained a 9:15 pace for the most part, but it was tough to run due to the amount of people. You probably can't even see me in this picture, but I promise I was in there somewhere! We were having to weave in and out of everyone; it was so annoying. I lost my running group at a water stop at mile 5, but was able to stay with my coach, so I wasn't alone.

As I turned the corner around mile 7, I could see a giant bunch of green/orange/white balloons ahead of me. Chris had suggested that my supporters carry balloons (the colors of the Irish flag, no less) so I could easily spot them. It worked! Of course, I think I would have spotted these funny friends regardless . Sylvia, John, Libby (the dog) and Jen were on the sidewalk decked out in their Irish "Go Ali B" hats and my favorite T-shirts. I almost cried when I saw them for the first time.

John and Jen killing time waiting for me to pass them again. Love it. These three followed me all over the race route and saw me SIX times. I am still not sure how this is even possible knowing the traffic and parking is a pain during the race, but it was AWESOME having them there. The fun part, I never knew where they would turn up next!

The Lake. Mile 9-18: One word for the lake part of the run = Burrrrrr!!!! As soon as we hit the lake, we hit the wind and the temperature felt like it dropped by 15 degrees! I was okay, but my fingers were swelling up and I didn't really have any feeling in my nose. I couldn't even open my Gu packs because my fingers were so numb! I hate being cold. Luckily, Chris was able to ride his bike right next to me most of the lake, so he kept me company. It was fun having him ride with me for a few miles.

Mile 11: I had a surprise supporter meet me at mile 11! Jaime and Thomas were there to give me a giant high-five. They were all dressed in their Sunday church clothes and still stopped to see if they could catch me, and they did.

Mile 12: I saw this handsome fellow at mile 12. Actually, I heard him screaming for me first and bee-lined it over to him as he took a somewhat hilariously embarrassing video of me running. I won't be posting that. Chris tried to take pictures of my fans (I love that I can call them fans for the day, like I am famous or something) if he was able to. I was not running with my camera, that would be ridiculous. Okay, truth is... yes, I really did think about it. Anyway, thanks Jay for coming out to see me!

Mile 15.5: Jen, Syliva, and John met me again on the lake. Jen ran with me a bit to keep me company and I was so happy to have her. She and Sylvia just did their first 5K a few months ago, so she was ready to go! Thanks Jen!

Mile 17... ugh. Mile 17, everything from my waist down started aching, and I was in P.A.I.N. I asked my coach if that was normal to hurt so early in the race. She said yes, but later emailed and told me she was totally lying to me and was worried that if I was already hurting I wouldn't finish. I'm glad she lied to me. I promise you with all my heart, at mile 17.5 I would probably have either started walking or stopped all together if I didn't know that starting at mile 18 I had supporters every mile. Literally 5 minutes after I had thoughts of quiting, I saw Katie (Luke's Mom) and knew that my entire family was just a mile down the road, and it was like the pain and negativity disappeared. That was when I kicked it into overdrive, fought through the pain, and picked up my pace by almost 15 sec/mile. So, I mean it when I say, my family and friends saved my marathon for me. If Chris hadn't have made all these people come out early on a cold, foggy, Sunday morning, I may have Q.U.I.T.

Lakewood Hills. Miles 18-21: All I really remember about this part of the run is seeing all my family and friends. This was probably my strongest part of the race. I was in a good 9:05 min/mile pace, the temperature was better since we were off the lake, and it was actually FUN seeing all the people out to support the runners. There were several live bands, lots of families in their front yards, and kids handing out tiny cups of water. Cute. Since I was a first timer, I had a different color bib on and my name was on the front, so A LOT of strangers were yelling my name and encouraging me. It was awesome.

Mile 18: My friend, Katie popped out of nowhere at mile 18. I was still in a lot of pain, but seeing her run along the sidewalk with me, cheered me right up.

Mile 18.5: The first person I saw as I crested up the Winsted hill was my father-in-law holding a funny sign for me. This was another one of the countless number of times I wanted to cry. Seeing my family at mile 18.5 was one of my favorite parts of the race. Of course, Josh was ecstatic to see me and I him. Who cares about my goal time? I was FOR SURE stopping at this point to give my son and my mom a big hug and a kiss. I spared Roland, Gayle, Betsy, and Pickles from my sweaty hugs. They had signs, balloons, and my mom was WEARING the Irish flag. Yes, WEARING it. I wish I had a picture.

Mile 19: Not only was mile 19, the Hooters mile, but it was also the John G. family mile! John gave me a big high-five and Rory Kate was much cuter than any of those Hooters girls. Love the sign. Thanks, April, Tate, John, and Rory Kate!

Mile 19.5: The Dolly Parton Hills. I declined the beer being handed out by the cross-dressing men in high heels and a strategically placed set of balloons. They weren't bad at all (the hills, not the guys). I didn't even have to walk at the top like I thought I would.

Mile 20: Pete, Kacey, Rebecka, and Joanna met me at mile 20, as did my time-traveling friends, Jen, Syliva, and John. Pete wins the prize for my loudest fan of the day. He was screaming, " AL IS AWESOME!!!" for about a mile. It was hilarious. Pete is in this picture to the right pushing the twins in the stroller and you can kind of see me waving.

Mile 21: Kris, Brandon, and Meagan met me at mile 21. Meagan (3yr) was ADORABLE! She had everyone running by me laughing. She was screaming, "Yeah Mrs. Alison" for about a mile after I past them and I could still hear her sweet little voice. Thanks Meagan!

"Introducing Kyle!"

Mile 22: My longest run before the race was 22 miles. Therefore, Miles 22-26.2 were uncharted territory for me. I was nervous about the last 4.2 miles. In the big picture, it didn't seem like a lot, but the last few miles are the hardest. Because of this, I had a friend, Kyle, who is an experienced distance runner, meet me at mile 22 to run me to the finish line. Once I saw him, I knew I could finish; I was ALMOST there. Then about .25 miles later, I was thinking... "Oh dear God, I can't do this!" Kyle was amazing! He had memorized where all the remaining water stops were located, knew that there were parts of the road that were muddy, and had tricks to make the last leg easier for me. I really don't think- no, I KNOW- I couldn't have finished as strong without him by my side. Thank you, thank you, Kyle!

Mile 22.5: John M., his baby sister, and parents were at Mile 22.5 to help cheer me to the finish. They had a cute sign and sweet Christine yelled loud for me despite having a respiratory infection that prevented her from running me in the last 4 miles. I hear John really wanted to run with me. I would have loved to have his fast, athletic legs running with me! Thanks Chad, Christine, John, and Anna!

Chris was of course hanging close to me the entire time, but at mile 22 he took off on his bike so he could make it to the finish line in time to see me. After he rode away, I have never felt so far away from him. He was like my security blanket throughout the race. But, before he took off, he said, "I'll see you at the finish line." And that just sounded delightful to me!

Mile 23: Justin, Faye and their sweet little girls were at mile 23 with big balloons and big smiles. Jen, Sylvia, and John found them as well and it was like a big NICU cheer squad. I loved it!

Mile 23.5- 25.5 : Ugh. Along with mile 17, these were my most difficult miles. At this point, it didn't become about my body aching, but my chest was about to explode from exhaustion. I was a bit delirious, everything was foggy to me, and I am sure I wasn't making any sense when I was talking. I think I said a dirty word or two, which isn't my norm. It was rough. At that point, I knew why not a lot of people finish a marathon. Kyle reminded me to breathe through my nose, take long strides, and stay focused. I wanted to cry, puke, and quit. But, I didn't. I was too close.

Mile 24: All I remember about mile 24 is Erin's face and wanting to lay down on the ground. Seemingly, there were a whole bunch of people I know at the church-sponsored water stop, but I was in my own world. I was extremely tempted to have Erin drive me to the fiinish line at this point. Brent, Katie, and Maggie were also there handing out water cups to everyone and making all kinds of noise with the cow bells. But, I didn't see or hear anything.

Mile 25: I was again greeted by my time-traveling Jen, Sylvia, and John cheer squad. Also, some friends from church were there cheering for me and PROMISING me I was almost done! This picture is of me saying to Jen and Sylvia, "How did you get here so fast???" I swear it was magic how they got around the course so darn fast.

Mile 25.5- 26.2: Once we got downtown again, the excitement of being almost at the finish line took over. Kyle had to tell me to slow down several times and made me stop looking at my watch. At one point I think I was running a 7 min/mile, not because I am speedy, but because I just wanted it OVER!!!

The Home Stretch: Here we are just yards away from the finish line. Kyle kept telling me to focus on the finish. I had to ask him a few times if he was SURE that was the finish line. He was awesome. As you can see in this picture, he was clapping to the beat of my stride, and I just focused on that.

3 hours 57 minutes and 21 seconds later.... THE FINISH!!!!!!

I haven't seen the offical pictures yet, but I gave the Horn's sign as I crossed the finish, I hope they got that one camera. I am awfully afraid of what my face looked like at that point. Ick.

I immediatley found my family thanks to Pickles' glittery sign of awesomeness and the Irish balloons. I thought for sure I would cry, but I didn't. I was so happy though. I beat all my goals I had set before the race, and it felt great. Like I could conquer the world.

Me and Team Hemmer. Thanks for pimping out your husband, Jen!

Don't you love the hats? Seriously, I have the BEST friends ever!!!!

My reaction to Chris saying, "Hey Al, you beat Caleb." Caleb, a very fit friend, decided three weeks ago to run the full marathon. At that time, he also decided he wanted to beat me. Once I got wind of that business, a new competitive side of me made a sudden and surprising appearance. Caleb, did meet his goal for under 4 hours, which is amazing, but I beat him by a minute, which made me happy.

A mommy's pride. My mom was so proud of me, and I was so proud of Josh when they told me what a good boy he was all morning while I was running.

One of my biggest fans! Pickles!

The Post-Marathon Party.

Everyone thought I was crazy to invite 50 people over for dinner after running a marathon, but it was so fun and totally worth it. Of course, I didn't have to lift a finger with Chris, Nicole, and my Mom in the house. They did everything, from blowing up 50 balloons, to cleaning, and putting up signs. It was a great party, and it was great to be able to thank everyone that came out that morning to cheer for me and to hug those who couldn't make it. Also, I got a yummy cake and pizza which is always awesome.

We shut all the kids in the playroom while the adults chatted and drank beer. It was the perfect set up. Fun was had by all.

Congratulations Caleb and Julie Wood! Julie was my inspiration for running the marathon. She talked me into and through it every step of the way. Weekly emails, encouraging hugs, tons of advice; she was amazing over the past 6 months. I will never forget this expereince, Julie! Thanks so much.

The Marathon Finishers! Amy, Anson, Lynette, Me, Julie, Caleb. Congratulations everyone!

And, finally... I got a legitimate trophy, I can die happy.

I always complain that I never earned a trophy for ANYTHING growing up. So, my sweet husband ordered a runner's trophy complete with engraving "First Time Marathon Finisher." However, Chris was the one who deserved the trophy. I can't say enough how he kept this dream and goal alive for me. He sacrificed himself to make my marathon finishing dream come true. He put so much time and effort into making this day special and successful for me. Thank you, Chris. You deserve this trophy and my marathon medal as much, if not more, than I do.

Okay... I'm done. I promise no more marathon blogging. Thanks for listening/reading/looking.