Race Pics

Approaching the finish line on my bum left knee


Anne the amazing pt stretching my knee

Kate and I in sporting"F" cancer t-shirts; she and her husband are big fans of Detroit sports teams - notice my Red Wings hat

National Marathon Race Report

After 8 months of blogging and trying to come up with interesting little bits, I’m struggling with how to summarize yesterday’s race. So let me start with a straight forward play by play, and then some thoughts.

I arrived at RFK about 30 minutes before race time and stayed in my car to keep warm --- it was freezing outside, about 30, and I was wearing only shorts with a long sleeved t-shirt and running jacket. Thankfully I had in the mess that is the trunk of my car, running gloves and an old Syracuse hat. After briefly meeting Anne and her boyfriend Bert, I lined up and boom, the race was on. The first 6-7 miles went by so quickly --- at mile 5, I picked up some Gatorade from Anne and felt really strong. A few hundred yards later, at the corner of 18^th and M, my parents were cheering me on. I felt great --- my pace was consistent (about 8:50 per mile as planned), ankle felt solid (no pain at all), and my left knee which had been acting up the past few weeks, was not giving me any trouble. At that point I’m thinking perhaps I could make a run at a pr. After seeing my parent’s, it was on to Connecticut Avenue, where my friend Emily was stationed around DuPont Circle. Still felt great, no problems at all

But then the hills started. We had quite a big one going up Columbia Road into Adams Morgan. Though the map indicated there were some hills along the course, I had not anticipated them being quite so steep and long. Ok, no big deal. I had done hill training, and knew to take them slow and steady. But the hills didn’t let up. We faced at least 3 or 4 more big ones as we made our way through Northeast during the first half of the race. Still, I felt great, was perhaps a little dehydrated, but nothing a little Gatorade wouldn’t fix. I reached the halfway point in 1 hour, 55 minutes, just as planned.

The beginning of the second half of the race retraced part of the first half, going down East Capital and then heading down Constitution. I took some more Gatorade from Anne at about mile 16, and at this point I was feeling a bit fatigued, but overall still felt pretty good. As I neared the corner of 9^th and Constitution, a big cheering section of my parents and friends Janet and Helen awaited me; it was so great to see them and I felt a surge of energy. That was about mile 17. About a half mile later, my left knee started aching, and aching, and I started to slow down. By mile 20 I was moving at barely a shuffle. Thank goodness for Anne, who was waiting for me right before I crossed the bridge into Anacostia. I stopped running for a good 5 minutes while Anne worked my knee, stretched and contorted it, and made me feel a whole lot better. At that point I thought I had dodged a bullet. But by mile 21, the pain was back, and to make a very long story short, I struggled over the remaining 5.2 miles. I alternated between walking and running, and the further I went, the more I walked. At mile 26, with only 385 yards to go, I was determined to run to the finish, and did --- final time of 4 hours, 19 minutes 46 seconds.

If this had happened to me before I injured my ankle, I would have been pissed off. After all, my slowest time prior to yesterday was 3 hours 56 minutes. I had never ever finished a marathon in over 4 hours. Yet, even though yesterday’s race was my slowest, it was also my most satisfying. Two years ago I never imagined I would be able to run at all, let alone finish a marathon. In the past year, I’ve gone from barely being able to run for more than 5 minutes at a time, to finishing a 26.2 mile race. That’s called progress. More importantly though, was the fact that we raised over $4,000 to support pancreatic cancer research and to raise awareness about the need to generate more support and funding for this awful disease. As I struggled to climb the final hill around mile 24, I had not a frown, but a big smile knowing how much I accomplished personally with my comeback from ankle surgery, and how much WE accomplished with the fundraising for cancer research. How could I feel nothing but satisfaction on such a day?

As I approached the finish line I saw Kate and her husband Tim cheering me on, and afterwards I was able to meet-up with them as well as my parents and the rest of my cheering section to share lots of stories and laughs. Even though yesterday’s race was the slowest I’ve ever run, it was by far the best and most memorable.

One Day to Go

In almost exactly 24 hours, a few thousand of my closest friends and I will start our 26.2 mile journey through the streets of DC. The race begins near good ole RFK Stadium, heads toward the Capitol and down Constitution, followed by a loop in Northwest and Northeast, and ending with a loop around Southwest. The reality of what I’m about to do is hitting me like a ton of bricks and I’m starting to get nervous. Last night my mind was racing --- what if my ankle doesn’t hold up? What if I catch a terrible cold in the next 24 hours? What if the electricity goes out in my apartment and I oversleep? Needless to say I don’t exactly feel rested this morning and the nervousness and worrying continues.

What to do?

Well, besides taking lots of naps, I need to stay busy today, especially since I decided to take the day off work. Tradition holds that I watch a movie to psyche myself up, and normally that movie is Rocky I, and why not. You have the great music, the scene of Rocky running up the steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum, and of course the story of a long shot going the distance with the champ. But I’m thinking about breaking with tradition this year and going a different route. We’re in the thick of March Madness and this afternoon I’m going to be glued to the tv watching wall to wall games, including Syracuse making a run at their second title (Go Orange!). I can think of no better movie that melds March Madness with athletic determination than Hoosiers, the 1986 classic based on the true story of a small town Indiana high school overcoming the odds to win the Indiana High School Basketball Tournament. No one gave them a chance --- a washed up coach leading a small team from a small school --- yet through hard work, determination, grit, and teamwork, they won the state championship.

Tomorrow when I’m struggling a bit, and I will struggle at some point during the race, every marathoner does, I’m going to think about all the people who have believed in and supported me, who displayed amazing kindness and generosity as I raised money for pancreatic cancer, and who told me to keep my chin up during the really tough times when I was recovering from surgery. Will I win tomorrow’s race? Of course not, but in my own way, finishing the race will feel like making the game winning shot.

One Week to Go

It’s hard to believe that the last eight months have gone by so quickly. Back in July 2008, I could barely run more than 5 or 6 miles; the thought of completing a 26.2 mile race was a bit overwhelming, though the fact that I had so much time to train and prepare made it seem that this day would almost never come. Well, it’s almost time and I’m ready. I’ve logged the miles, done the training, lost the weight, and have stayed healthy. There have been a few aches and pains along the way, but overall I’m in a much better place than I was even a year ago.

Today I did a light workout with Anne at Gravely Point, and other than a handful of 20 minute jogs over the next few days, the training is essentially over. Now I just need to rest and relax, and look forward to next week.