Wow, ok. This is version 1.2 of this post. Originally I had started this really long post detailing every minute of my San Antonio/Marathon trip. I was only half way done and I see no time in sight for finishing. So I'm gonna make a long story short.
I flew to San Antonio, my hometown. Gavin did great on both the flights. I had some motion sickness. My parents and sister picked us up. We grabbed a bite to eat and then headed home to drop off my parents and baby booger, all of whom needed a nap.
While Papa, Nana and G-Mann were napping, my sister and I headed down to the Alamadome to pick up my race packet and check out the expo. The first picture is me signing my liability waiver, just in case I were to drop dead or critically injure myself.
Later that evening we visited my grandmother, Mimi. It was impossible to get a photo of all three great grandkids with their great grandmother, but we managed. This was a great visit. I hadn't seen my grandmother in almost a year.
On the morning of the race, my sister dropped me off at the hotel of some friends of mine, Stacey and Brad. Stacey was aiming for a personal best so she was going to be running a much faster pace. Brad was just running a leisurely half, so he and I were running buddies for the first 11 miles. My awesome family, thanks to the leadership of my super organized sister, was waiting for me at miles 14 and 21. My sister made everyone t-shirts and buttons. The kids were great sports while waiting. Thank you to my parents, sister and brother-in-law for keeping them entertained and behaved. I think we were all exhausted afterwards!
Waiting
Mile 14 - more than half way done! Still feeling good and strong here. Check out my super cool $3 sunglasses.
Mile 21 - I was determined for my family to see me running again. Knowing they were up ahead was great motivation to keep running. Based on all the races I've ran over the course of the past ten years, I can say that without a doubt having family and friends as spectators makes an enormous difference. What you can't see in the photo is me hitting my wall. Around mile 21 I began fighting some serious nausea and stomach cramps.
I owe my nausea and stomach cramps to my lack of training with the stuff I would be refueling with on race day, and perhaps also because I never trained past the half-marathon distance. I may have drank too much or not enough. I was covered in salt by the end of the race, but never did anything to replenish all the salt I was losing during the race. There are several factors I need to look into and better prepare for. I know, I know - what was I thinking? I had all the best intentions of getting some longer runs in when I started training eight months prior, but life gets in the way and I did the best I could. I knew I might have these issues when I showed up on race day, but when you've come this far you just suck it up and go for it. The whole point is to endure...it's an endurance race. After mile 21, once my family was out of sight I began walking off and on, probably walking a total of 1.5 miles. Eventually, at mile 24, I stopped fighting my gastrointestinal issues and took care of business. Yes, that means I puked and had to make a couple of stops at various port-a-potties. Not fun, but after that I felt much better and was able to run the last 2.2 miles to the finish line. Again, knowing my family would be watching me cross that final milestone made a huge impact on my ability to run those last two miles.
The home stretch! Coming across the finish line.
Now about 10 ft. before crossing the finish line the nausea returned with a vengeance. I knew there was nothing left in my system to throw up, but it didn't keep me from gagging my way across the finish line. Nothing graceful about that. I was disappointed. I really wanted to be smiling when I crossed, but instead I did this...
and then this...
That's me on my knees, in the nearest grassy area I could find off the road, just past the finish. I had just gotten done dry heaving and was looking up at my family to let them I know I was OK. No guts, no glory.
With my family, post-race.
Overall I finished in 5 hours and 54 minutes. During the first half I maintained a 10-11 minute/mile pace. Around mile 19 I slowed down probably to a 11.5 or 12. By the time I crossed the finish line I was running just over 13 minutes/mile. After assessing my lack of training I had given myself a goal to finish between 5 and 6 hours. So I guess technically I can say it was a success. I finished within the time frame I gave myself, despite having to walk a bit. When I say I am disappointed in my time and the fact that I had to walk almost 2 miles, keep in mind that my two girlfriends both finished under 5 hours and set personal best records. Granted they had both trained better and are overall more athletic. Now I can set some goals for improvement. I know what to expect and how to better train. Thank you to my wonderful family for all your support.
Even my inlaws and husband kept in touch during the race with encouraging text messages.I'm looking forward to my next marathon and finishing under 5 hours...and not puking. Everything is always better when there is no puking involved.
