THANK YOU to all my family and friends who have supported me during
this training cycle and race. I can't tell you enough how amazing it is
to have someone rooting for YOU! Thank YOU! Thank YOU! This
past week I've been tapering and I about went crazy. My body felt like
it was going through detox and my mind was spinning out of control. By
Thursday, I couldn't handle it any more. I decided to sew myself a
dress as a distraction. Tim came into my sewing room and asked what I
was doing and I told him. He lovingly responded, "You ARE crazy!"
I honestly wasn't sure what to expect out of the Ogden
Marathon. My training has been good, but I still have a loooooong ways
to go. I hit the wall so hard during my first marathon that I didn't
know how I was going to handle the ending miles. So my *main* goal was
to have FUN. You can't go wrong with FUN, right? I
headed up to Ogden around 3:00pm on Friday. Tim stayed home with the
kids as they had various activities going on Saturday. I went straight
to the expo. After I picked up my packet, I noticed that the authors
from the book "Running the Edge" had a booth. One of the authors is
Adam Goucher (husband to the elite marathoner Kara Goucher). Kara is
one of my favorite athletes to watch. I immediately headed over to the
booth and asked if he was "Mr Kara Goucher". "Yep. But my name is
Adam." We chatted for a few minutes and they signed my book. Of
course, I had to have my picture taken with them. Awesomeness!
I met Rachel and we headed out for yummy pizza. It was
wonderful to laugh and fill our bellies. Then, she so kindly drove the
last half of the course with me. It was so helpful to actually see the
hills and various landmarks. We ended the evening and I headed to my
uncle and aunt's house in Layton.  | Waiting outside the expo ready to get the marathon-madness OVER!
|
 | Rachel and I eating dinner
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After a restless night's sleep, I jumped out of bed at
3:30am. I quickly got ready and headed up to the Ogden Marriott's
lobby to meet Smooth, Karen, Rachel and others. We headed to the bus
and laughed on the way to the start.
 | Hanging out at the Marriott Lobby
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 | | Still smiling....haven't started running yet |
|
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When we arrived at the start and
got off the bus, I realized I didn't have enough warm clothes. So I
scooted right up by the fire and stayed warm. The start staging area is
located is a large field full of wet cow pies. I'm grateful someone
told me to bring grocery sacks to put over my shoes. 
I saw lots of familiar faces in the start staging area.
 | Ragnar Teammates
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 | Cousin Callie
|
Soon enough it was time to shed all the
warm clothing and head to the start line. My hip has been hurting for
the past few days just like during the St George Marathon.
Weird....because this same ache hasn't happened during any training runs
(just during the taper). I need to figure this issue out. I wasn't
sure how it was going to respond during the race. I brought my Sharpie marker to make sure I had something on my arm to look at when times got tough. Thanks Saucony for a great slogan.
Here is a mile by mile recap: Mile 1, 2, 3 (9:20, 9:09, 9:05): Weaving through a lot of people
and lots of excitement. I ran with Karen. Tried to warm
up....brrrrrr. Walked thru the water stop at mile 3.
Mile 4, 5, 6 (8:38, 8:49, 8:55): I felt so stiff and creaky. My
hip was really hurting and I had a hard time finding my rhythm. The
scenery was absolutely majestic. There was a small valley and a large
herd of horses came galloping through. Everyone around me slowed down
to watch. Walked thru the water stop at mile 5. GU at mile 6. Mile 7, 8, 9 (8:51, 8:55, 9:07): I didn't look at my watch at
all during the first half of the race. I really wanted to run by feel.
Looking back, these splits were too fast. No wonder I was feeling
bad. Water stops at mile 7 and 9. I was really thinking I was going to
have a SGM repeat. It was going to be a long, slow, painful finish and
no Tim to help me through. Mile 10, 11, 12 (9:05, 9:17, 9:13): I kept thinking in my mind
that I was almost halfway...I at least had to make it halfway then bail
if my hip got worse. Walked thru the water stop at 11 and GU at 12
(this GU had 2xcaffiene.). Hang on.
Mile 13, 14, 15 (9:18, 9:09, 9:35): Potty stop at mile 13 and I
thought I lost Karen (she had been running SO strong). But I was able
to catch up to her. Water stops at 13, 14 and 15. Mile 14 was a large
hill. We had driven it yesterday, so I knew what to expect. There was
some guy right beside me saying it wasn't smart to run hills hard. I
ran right past him and didn't want to listen to his stupid comments any
more. I lost Karen somewhere on the hill. There was a water stop at
the top of the hill and a lady was handing out Advil (she was an answer
to my mid-race prayers). I grabbed one and hoped it wouldn't upset my
stomach and help my hip. I felt SO strong at the top of that hill and
it was the turn-around point in my race. Maybe it was the caffienated
GU and Advil kicking in, but I was ready to turn it up a notch. Mile 16, 17, 18 (9:15, 9:03, 8:42): I walked through all the
water stops at 16,17,18 and took a 2xcaffiene GU at 17. It was at mile
16 that I realized I only had 10 miles to go. "Just like my mid-week
long run" I told myself. My favorite song came on my iPod and I
realized I could do this. I could run this marathon. Maybe it just
took me 16 miles to get warmed up? I could pick up the speed and finish
(maybe with my SGM time - 4:11). I have never had a feeling of
empowerment like that before. I got tears on my eyes and that feeling
of euphoria sunk in. I found my STRONG! Mile 19, 20, 21 (9:04, 8:55, 8:27): I didn't care if I blew up, I
wanted to go for it. I felt fantastic. Walked thru water stations at
20 and 21. I looked at my watch at mile 20. Then I realized that if I could just hang on, I thought I could break 4 hours. WHAT? I thought I might drop out 6 miles ago. My hip was starting to redeem itself (compliments of some Advil).
Mile 22, 23, 24 (8:39, 8:27, 8:47): I took another GU at mile 22
and was hoping I wouldn't vomit. My stomach was starting to get
funny. There were more spectators and it was welcoming to see them. My
legs were starting to get heavy at mile 24. I knew I just had to hang
on for 2 more miles (versus the 7 mile "hang on" at SGM). Mile 25, 26 (8:58, 9:16, 3:15). I was so close and knew I could
do it. I could conquer this BEAST! My stomach was still funny from
that last GU (probably too much caffeine) and my legs were getting
tired. The course was .2 long....WHO MAKES A MARATHON .2 LONG? Smooth
was cheering me on as I was approaching the finish chute. It was SO
wonderful to hear someone cheering MY name. 3:58:35 was my final time.
A 12 minute PR and negative splits. I NEVER thought this morning when I
toed the line that I would EVER break 4:00 hours. It NEVER crossed my
mind. I didn't know I had it in me.
I crossed the finish line and got really dizzy. Those
finish line volunteers are angels. I couldn't figure out how the lady
knew my name (duh....it was on my number). She walked with me for
awhile, got me some water, and asked if I wanted to go to the medical
tent. I quickly declined and convinced her I felt fine. Then I saw a big cooler full of Cokes. Ohhhhh....it was the most
divine Coke I've ever had. I leaned up against one of the barriers for
a few minutes to make sure I didn't puke or fall over. As I went to
grab a chocolate milk, I heard a loud "TOBY!!!!!" Rachel had sought me
out and fussed over my 12 minute PR. I was SO proud of her amazing race
and BQ!  | | SUCCESS!!!! |
I
couldn't stay long after the race as I had to get home for the girls'
dance recital. I gave Rachel one last congratulations hug and as I
walked away, she yelled "TOBY, YOU FOUND YOUR STRONG TODAY". I did. It
was hiding in Ogden.
As I drove home and reflected on the race, I couldn't
believe I did it. I broke 4 hours on my second marathon and I PR'd by
12 minutes. The St George Marathon was a complete opposite experience
than this morning. My fastest today miles were 20-25. I couldn't
believe I felt so wonderful after having such a rough start. I need to figure out my hip issues. Maybe not taper as much so my hips don't go into "shock"?
My miles and miles and miles paid off. My 4:30 morning
runs, track and hill workouts, iTunes downloads, emotional breakdowns
and etc were worth it! The weather was perfect and the course was ideal
(WAAAAAAAY better than SGM). Most of my runs/races are 75% "fair to partly cloudy". The far and few "great" runs go a long way in the mind of a runner. It was nice to have a good one today.
I will never forget May 19, 2012. It was EPIC.
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