Another race done and I can honestly say that I am so glad it's over!! It's been a couple months since Boston, and I've already done 4 other races since then, this one being my 5th. Last weekend I rode 100 miles at the Little Red Riding Hood bike ride, and as much as I loved it, I couldn't wait to get back to running. I completed my first tri a few weeks ago and didn't care for it much. Everyone said I would be hooked after my first one, but I know myself and I knew that it would be my first and my last. I love running. Period. I love the simplicity of it. Lace up your shoes and go. No fancy gear needed. Garmin, optional. iPod, optional. Fancy running clothes, optional. All you really need is guts (but I do have all of the above!) So I felt ready to go this weekend. We left for Provo Friday night. We don't live far, but with a 3:30 am call for the buses, I was more than happy to pay $80 for 90 extra minutes of sleep. This weekend we took our kids who were just happy to have a pool to swim in and sugar cereal for breakfast (it's only allowed on vacations and Christmas). I had to teach a weight training class at 5:30 am Friday morning, so I was determined to get to bed early. And I did. Unfortunately I got a little more than caught up in the book I was reading and stayed up a little too late finishing it. But I was laying down, so I still get some bonus points there. After a fitful night of sleep, I arose at 2:50 am, threw on my running clothes, grabbed some dry cereal to eat on the bus, and my family drove me to the bus loading zone. My poor husband would have to deal with the task of getting the kids back to sleep once he got back to the hotel, but apparently that was no problem after all. I am usually pretty quiet before I run. I like to listen to other people talk, but don't participate in the conversation much. I am a bundle of nerves. This time, however, I sat by an even MORE nervous girl running her first marathon. Not wanting to seem like a know-it-all, after all I am still a novice at this myself, I gave her a few tips and a little bit of encouragement. It seemed to help both of us to have someone to chat with. Especially since the bus driver got a little lost! Can you imagine being late because you can't find the start line! We eventually found it and were dropped off at what seemed like the middle of nowhere. It was dark, chilly, and a little drizzly. It's typically at this point before each race when I start to question my sanity. I mean, my family is in a nice, warm hotel, under a bevy of warm blankets. They will soon arise to a leisurely breakfast to start an enjoyable day. I must be a little crazy to keep doing this, right? But like I said before, I love it. If I were back at the hotel, I would be warm, yes, but I would feel left out of what is always an amazing experience, no matter what time of morning it is and despite the weather.
This race had something that I hadn't had in past races: pacers. There were only two: a 3:10 pacer and a 3:40 pacer. The race organizers are hell bent on making this the new "Boston Qualifying" race, offering discounts to marathoners who'd already qualified for Boston, free t-shirts to those who qualified at this marathon, and the pacers. My goal in Boston was to run 3:10 and I failed by 9 whole minutes. I saw this race as an opportunity to redeem myself. It's a fast, dowhill course, so I decided to run with the pacer for as long as I could. We started late, but at 5:45 am, we finally were off. At that very moment, the rain picked up. I don't mind running in the rain, as long as there's no wind. At the moment, things looked great. I was on the heels of our pacer and found the experience to be better than I expected. We were a group of about 10 and we started off slow. Slower than I would have gone out if I were alone. In fact, for awhile, I was tempted to leap ahead to bank some minutes in case I had to stop at a port-a-potty later, but I resisted the urge. It was nice to be with a group running a seemingly easy pace. We chatted, talking about other races we had done and the Ragnar relay race most of us were planning to do next week. The pacer would give fueling advice that I leached onto and found really helpful. At mile 4, I was feeling fantastic. This would be a great day. Then came the hills around mile 8. I knew they were coming, but I'd done Boston. I wasn't scared of a little hill. Well, they weren't bad, but they weren't little either. At this point, each time we'd stop at an aid station, I'd fall a little more behind the pacer. But he was always in my sight. I didn't really expect to keep up with him, especially since his pace seemed a little uneven at times. Around mile 11 I met a girl who had also previously been right up with our pacer, but had fallen back a little like myself. This was her second marathon and she was struggling, so we talked a bit. Again, it was nice to have someone to talk to who also ran my pace. What a HUGE difference running with someone can make. Other runners would pass us or we'd pass them and shout encouraging comments and it really felt like we were all in this together. I was loving it. Then came the halfway mark. My stomach issues had been pretty okay up to this point, but there was no denying the fact that I was in need of a potty stop here. There weren't many port-a-potties along the route, a complaint I want to vocalize loudly, but since we were passing the half-marathoners' start line, there were quite a few with no waiting, so I said goodbye to my new friend and took advantage of the potty bounty! I came back to the road feeling great! My legs felt good, my stomach felt good, and my pace looked good even though my pacer was no longer in view. This bothered me a little bit, but I knew I was doing my best and it was MY race, after all. Not his. So I pushed my disappointment of my inability to keep up out of my mind and pressed on. With the big hills behind us, we continued downhill out of the canyon. Around mile 16 the heavens opened up again and we were soaked. Again, I don't mind the rain, but this time the wind kicked in, too. Sometimes it was at our backs, other times it was right in our faces. I was getting a little chilled, even with my arm warmers, but I was okay. Finally we came out of the canyon and into Provo City itself. I swear, those last 8 miles always feel supremely long and I was ready to be done. I was wet and cold and tired. I started dreaming of a long, hot shower and warm blankets. I started picking up my pace simply because I wanted to be done. Running through canyons, you run a straight shot down. The miles seem to tick by fairly quickly. Running through cities, there are twists and turns and the miles stretch forever!!!!! To top it off, my stomach started cramping again at mile 23. I ignored it. I can do three miles in pain. I mean, I ran the Ogden Half in pain from mile 8. I would NOT sacrifice time with a potty stop here, so I ran on. There was very little crowd support, which was fine for most of the race, but I really could have used it here. Boston has spoiled me. Those crowds were so great. Everything just runs so smoothly. It's unfair to judge a second-year marathon against one with 114 years of tradition behind it, but I did miss those crowds. Mile 25 and all I see is this huge hill I have to climb before I round the corner to the finish line at the Provo Towne Center Mall. I passed the hill, pulled up every ounce of energy I had and sprinted for the finish. A few yards from the finish line, I set my sights on some guy in a white shirt and decided I would beat him. I kicked my legs into high gear and a few feet before the finish line, I did just that. Man, did that feel good! A couple girls watching at the finish line saw me and gave me a thumbs up. I finished my 6th marathon in 3:12:02. A PR by 2 1/2 minutes!! I was so happy. Not the 3:10 I hoped for, but I'm satisfied with it. The only bad thing about it is that for three more weeks, I'm still in the 30-34 year age group and this year that age group was fierce. I came in 10th!! I didn't stand a chance of placing. Had this race taken place after July 4th, my birthday, I would have placed 2nd in my age group. It's crazy, but as a runner, I celebrate birthdays, especially the ones that put me in a new age group! This year I will celebrate turning 35 with gusto and jubilation. Out of all the females, I came in 19th. But I did my best. I had nothing left and I can say that in all honesty. My only complaints for this race were the lack of port-a-potties along the route, and the fact that they said they had already run out of small and medium finishers shirts. They will email me in two weeks to let me know when I can drive down and pick it up. I was the 19th female!!! How could they run out? Disappointing, but I'll live. I ran my best race today. I made my husband proud and that's good enough. Onto the next marathon in August!! See you in Park City.
| 
