Notes
That was the most horrific my legs have ever felt during any run. But--I finished, plus qualified for Boston again, so whatever. I knew this race would not be my best, and I was right. My legs hurt from top to bottom from Mile 1 to Mile 26. I wanted to quit after the third mile. Considering, this was probably the best time I had in me.
I saw a lot of things I didn't even notice in 2008, and I got to see what it's like to run with a little slower crowd. Speaking of which, during Mile 16, there was a girl to my left who crossed over in front of me to stop and walk. I tripped over her and slid a good 10 feet. My left elbow is all scraped up, and my left shoulder is sore, but I got up and started running again. A guy in the crowd saw me and said, "Finish strong!" Another guy who saw it happen was running beside me and said, "You can show the people at work your battle wounds." Ha! I guess so.
All in all, at least I had an okay time, considering how bad I just wanted to quit, and how bad I felt. I probably shouldn't have run it, but I made the trip up to Boston, and if I hadn't run the marathon, I would've been so depressed not being able to talk about it with everyone. I think that's the one thing that kept me going during the race. I kept thinking how it would feel to go to the Swan and only have a few miles to talk about. Not fun. Plus, since this happened last year, there was no way I could continue the trend. I had to do it.
One thing I do know: my heart and lungs are more than capable of doing a marathon plus some. I finished the race and felt completely fine from the waist up. Not even breathing hard. And I never had problems breathing during the race, particularly on the hills. If I can get my legs back to healthy, I'm golden. Cardio has done me well.
This has been an awesome trip. I can't thank Mc and Gladys enough for allowing us to stay. And the rest of the crew for the fun times. Sooo much beer, and wonderful food and fun. My paces aren't really worth posting--I ran no faster than a 7:34 pace the entire race. Great job to everyone, and glad I got to meet some of the HFC crew! They are very nice, and made me want to move to Boston even more. I can't wait to come back.