I woke up this morning and my right knee just felt all achy and stiff; therefore, I spent some time trying to stretch it out. I just kept telling myself that it was more mental than anything and I needed to get over with being injured. Then I looked at my watch and realized I was way behind schedule. Consequently, I threw on my gear and grabbed my trusted water bottle and a few GUs before heading out to the starting line a little after 6:20 pm. So instead of worrying about my leg, I was just worried about getting to the starting line in time (i.e., I’m always cutting it close and I did not want to repeat my late showing at the Marines Corps Marathon).
Thankfully, the race started five minutes late and one-twentieth of a mile shorter than last year by starting in front of the bridge (i.e., I’m not going for a world record, so I’m not bothered if the mileage is a little off in a marathon, but my Garmin read 26.17 at the end when on a normal course it should read 26.3ish; not having us go all the way to 2100 south on Foothill and now moving the starting line up a little bit has shorten the course over the past few years--the turnaround at The Gateway has not netted out the decrease in distance). This morning, I was really open to any help I could get!
At 7:05 am, the race started and I tried to play it a little bit conservative on the downhill. However, I saw Chris--my SLRC training buddy--and since he is leaving Utah to go to ranger/jump school with the army in a few weeks, I increased the pace a little in order to touch base with him. After talking with Chris for a minute, I let him go ahead even though he told me he was just on an easy half (i.e., I’m just intimidated by his speed).
Shortly after passing mile marker three, it was pretty cool when a woman cheering on runners from the sidewalk hurriedly flipped on the big megaphone she was holding (side note: when I retire and live along a marathon course, I’m totally investing in an enormous megaphone) and excitedly announced something like “Go lady in purple! You are the first girl!” And I immediately thought, so this is what it’s like to roll with the future president. Allie Scott was cruising along in our group of runners to a first place finish in the half marathon!
Around mile ten, while running through Holladay--my part of town--I noticed a familiar face cheering on the runners. I have never met Jun, but about 20 meters after passing him and his family, I then realized it was our legendary ultra marathoner cheering us on. Thanks Jun for your support!
On the Van Winkle Expressway, my right leg was acting up a little bit; that is, really not hindering my pace, but I stubbed my right foot pretty hard twice on the flat road from simply not picking up my leg (my toenails look nasty because of it). I must have looked pretty pathetic. Also, while running up 500 East, I was just slapping my right foot on the ground which was a strange contrast to the light footwork its counterpart was doing. More than anything, the loud slap of my right foot against the ground was just annoying.
Around 2500 South and 500 East, I ran by the infamous “Temptation Station.” It’s so mean and wrong (i.e., a full on barbecue with plenty of beverages), but so funny and what is great about this race. Every year they just seem to take their game to the next level; for example, this year they had a professionally looking “Temptation Station” sign hanging from the telephone pole and a Nike sign that read, “Just Screw It.” Needless to say, they always make me crackup and one year I might just have to take a 45 minute split on mile 21 for brat or two.
I was very happy to cross the finish line in front of an awesome crowd at The Gateway. Overall it was a fun experience and I was happy to finally get in my first marathon for 2011. Des-News and NYC are next up! Oh yeah, I ended running a 2:50:39. Regardless of my troublesome right leg, it really did not impact my pace (i.e., the adrenaline and the distance really balanced out the aches and stiffness), so this race accurately reflects where I’m at. My splits for the race were as follows: 5:55, 6:12, 5:58, 5:55, 6:12, 6:32, 6:38, 6:37, 6:39, 6:20, 6:17, 6:36, 6:37, 6:14, 6:22, 6:36, 6:36, 6:33, 6:41, 6:51, 6:50, 6:48, 6:58, 6:51, 6:59 (the incline up to the Eagle Gate was still brutal), 6:48, and 1:04.
Finally, my daily non-running workout consisted of a 4.2-mile afternoon bike ride and 300 sit-ups.
Five-Minute Plank Challenge: 2:00
Trying-To-Go-Out-Of-My-Way-To-Eat-Healthy Challenge: protein shake
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