EGH3 - Congrats on a great race.  My sympathies and condolences on your friend.  You ran a great race in his honor.  Well done!

Pauly - Absolutely amazing!  That's one helluva a PR.

My pacing gig was good.  Decided to pace the 3:00 group, since many were asking about a 3:00 pacer at the expo, and had things well in hand through 20 miles.  Even had a nice group with me, which is very different for pacing that group (in the past I've finished all alone).  Just before mile 20 a few guys surged ahead and some fell back.  Had me thinking "shit I'm gonna finish all alone again".  Just after mile 22 I saw a kid who had surged ahead.  He's 19 years old and it was his first marathon and he was hurting, bad.  Decided at that point to ditch the 3:00 plans and help this kid get through the final miles of the race.  Ran ahead and got extra water / Gatorade when he needed it.  Yelled out Burgess Meredith style training slogans and basically gave him as much encouragement as I could to get him to finish with me.  We both finished in 3:10 and some change.  So, didn't hit my pacer goal, but probably the best decision I've ever made while pacing  a race.

The parents of the kid tracked me down after the race and gave me a big hug and thanked me for helping their son.  Made the whole drive up there and running in the slop all worthwhile.  THAT is what pacing and the running community is all about!

THAT is what pacing and the running community is all about!

 Yes it is. 

Incredible racing this week exemplified by George (guts), Pauly (confirmation), & Don (community). Good luck to ya, Sees-the-Ground.

This. 

For different reasons every week, I'm consistently proud to be a part of this cesspool we call the Swamp.

Don S for

Absolutely!

Aye! Congratulations, and what a great feeling that must be to not only help and know yourself that you did good, but to be called out by the parents. Hip Hip Hooray.

Way to tough it out despite recent training, mgerwn!  Good job!

Congratulations, Don S, well deserved, and hopefully what you did for that first time marathoner will get paid forward over and over.  

Wow, thanks everyone. I didn't think that pacing was worthy of the  but I'm honored to have it bestowed upon me.

Don - you know I prefer to race on my own accord,  but there have been races where the pacer was my saving grace to get to the finish. 

To this day I still remember the ones that stuck with me or knew what to say or tips during the race to make the time possible.

You are most worthy of the .