I FINISHED!

This has to be one of the first New Year's Resolution's that I have actually followed through with, which is very exciting. Okay, so a play-by-play (mile-by-mile?)... (warning: this is looooonng!)

We (me, my mom, little sis Chic, and her friend Ashli) drove up Friday, got to St George by 4-ish. Then we freshened up and headed to the marathon expo, which is basically a bunch of vendors who set up booths, and also I picked up by bag that had my number in it and my sweet shirt. I also bought another cute shirt there that says "St George Marathon" on it. Just know it's cute. Then we ate at their pasta dinner, which was all-you-can-eat and was also cheap and surprisingly good! Then we went back to our little hole-in-the-wall hotel and went to bed early. Except of course I didn't sleep well. I fell asleep almost right away because I hadn't slept in the car at all, but then my dad called at 11 which kind of ruined things for me. After that I tossed and turned a lot, having at least 3 separate nightmares. They involved the marathon, such as I slept through it, I couldn't finish, etc. They were those kind of dreams where you wake up and still think they are real. Horrible!!!

Finally, my alarm went off at 4 a.m. I got up, forced some breakfast down (who eats at that hour?) milled around for a bit, got dressed, and nearly died of nervousness. Finally, I woke up my mom at 4:45 and she took me to the bus loading area, where all the runners get on buses and they take us to the start, 26 miles up the canyon. On the ride up there, I chatted with the lady sitting next to me for a bit, but eventually fell into silence. She could tell I was nervous. I told her it was my first marathon ever. She just laughed. At one point we went down this super steep hill, and she told me that was the dreaded "Veyo Hill". Of course, we had to go UP this hill on the way back, on nothing but our own two feet and willpower.

We finally arrived at the start. I felt like I was walking around in a fog. It was still completely dark, and absolutely freezing! The wind was blowing pretty hard (but it was blowing at our backs, which was good) and I immediately headed over to the bonfires. There were many fires lit by the start, but people were crowded around all of them, and I pushed through the crowd until I got close enough to one to get warm. Then, I noticed the long lines at the porter potties. I figured I should jump in line and go before the start, seeing how there was half an hour left till the starting time. So, I braved the cold and stood in line forever, but I chatted with the people around me. I love the running community! Everyone I talked to was so nice, they gave me encouragement when they found out it was my first. Everyone is also so different, but we were all the same in that we were going to finish this thing we set out to do.

Anyway, the wheelchair people started the race at 6:40, and five minutes later it was our turn. I was farther back in the crowd because I am slooooooww, so it took me about 7 minutes to even reach the starting line. I gave a cheer as I crossed that line- the journey was on!! It had taken me 10 months to reach this point, so even crossing that starting line was a huge achievement. As I shuffled along with everybody else, with "Ready To Run" blasting in my ears, I felt incandescently happy. Here I was, among these wonderful people, doing something that only 1% of the country has done. I felt mighty special!

Those first few miles were great. It was so cold that my legs were numb, which for some reason made me run faster, I guess. First mistake of every new marathon runner- starting out too fast. And I made that mistake. Bad. I was meeting my time goal at every mile (number two mistake- even having a time goal in the first place!) and I was hitting these small hills without skipping a beat. These first 5 or 6 miles looked like a hurricane had swept through there, because as people were warming up, off came their jackets and pants and beanies and gloves, and there was no where to put them except to throw them off onto the side of the road. Volunteers come by after us and pick up all clothes, and you can try to find them at the finish line. I got rid of my warm-up clothes before the start in my bag, so all I had to do was find my bag at the finish. But I digress...

I have never in my life seen so many people peeing on the side of the road. Haha! It may sound funny now, but when you're running along and all of a sudden the person in front of you darts off the road and into the trees....and you know exactly what they are up to, it's kind of weird. And some of the men don't really bother to go into the trees, but they would simply stand on the shoulder (still on the asphalt!) and just go. I didn't see anything, but there were some close calls! I figured I could wait until the next mile marker, as there were porter potties (and toilet paper!) at every mile and every aid station.

I was feeling so good those first 6 miles, until we rounded a bend and I saw it- Veyo Hill. It looked like it went straight up into the sky- forever. I was ready for it, though. I was feeling good! However, as I went through the aid station at mile 7 that was supposed to have carb reloading gels for us, I found that they were out! I really could have used a gel for Veyo Hill and beyond, but I had to settle for a banana. Actually, half a banana. So you see, this is where my troubles began. Not too disheartened, I set out for the hill with determination. I was going to run this whole hill without stopping! That lasted....for about half a mile. I ended up walking up most of this hill...and then the 5-hour pacing team passed me. That's when I knew I was in trouble. If I wanted to get a 5-hour marathon, I would have to stick with them. However, that hill took more out of me than I thought, and I couldn't continue running for a mile after the hill was over! I was so spent. That's when I knew A. I had started out too fast and B. this was going to be painful. But I didn't give up. As soon as I felt better I picked up running again, although considerably slower than when I began.

I kept running until about mile 10. I should not have been exhausted by then, but I was. After mile 10 I don't really remember any specifics. I remember that I could still run pretty fast downhill, but as soon as it had even a slight uphill grade I slowed to a walk. It just took the heart out of me. I kept truckin along as best I could, but after mile 15 or so my feet were really mad at me. I talked to myself a lot on that course, such as "You can do this" or "This doesn't hurt!" or "I can pass this person" or "I cannot believe that person just passed me!" Mile 17 was the first place where there was any real spectators besides the volunteers at all the aid stations and the town of Veyo (that we passed through between miles 6 and 7). It was called Snow Canyon, and as I thought my mom and the girls were going to be there, I picked up the pace. However, they decided to wait at mile 23. So after not seeing them there, I was a little disappointed, but I kept going. The famous mile 20, what marathoners call the "real halfway point", was also a blur. There was one volunteer there who kept yelling "You've made it to mile 20!" but all I could think was "6 miles to go!" I tried to get in the whole mindset of "okay, now I am just running a 10K, I can do this!" but it was one thing to imagine myself doing that as I was training, it was another to actually do it. I think I only ran a total of 2 or 3 out of that last 6 miles, in fact after mile 24 I only ran the last 200 yards to the finish. Anyway... my mom and the girls were at mile 23, and they cheered me on and took some pictures, and then they got in the car and drove to the finish. By this time I was completely exhausted, no running left in me whatsoever. I speed-walked as fast as I possibly could, but I still felt I was letting myself down. Which was ridiculous! I was still going to finish, I knew that.

Walking through the streets of St George in the last 3 miles, I was cheered on by countless families sitting in their front lawns, and the volunteers were still going at it, too. I was kind of alone by then, there were still 200 people behind me, but over 5,000 had already crossed the finish line! Haha at least I wasn't dead last. Anyway, as I finally rounded a corner and saw the finish line about a quarter mile away, I was so happy! No matter how much my feet hurt, no matter how nasty sweaty I was, I was going to finish this thing.

I picked up the pace, and then in the last 200 yards I started running again. Then I sped up into a sprint. Or at least, it felt like a sprint to me! There was a guy that had been running near me for most of the race, and he was also running toward the finish. I was like, there's no way this guy is beating me. So I sped up even more and passed him. Sucker. Even when I am totally exhausted, I've still got this competitive streak in me :). So, I passed the guy, hammed it up for the cameras at the finish (which I also did for every camera along the course, pictures coming soon!) and CROSSED THE FINISH LINE. It was the best feeling I have ever experienced. Not kidding. Then I ran through the water misters (yay!) and then got my finishers medal put around my neck. Then I got some more pictures taken in front of the finishers banner. It was awesome, made me feel like a real runner- even though I didn't run the whole thing.

Turns out my time was 6:08, and I know I could have done much better, but at least I finished. That's the important part. And you know what? Next year, I want to do it all over again! You could call me crazy, but I have to redeem myself. I have to get at least below 5 hours. Then when that happens, I might have to try to get below 4:30. And I will probably keep going until my body breaks down and I can't run anymore. I love this lifestyle. I love being able to tell people that I am running this race or that, and I especially love how running makes me feel. I love the running community, the people I meet and see at races. Everyone is always so happy! It makes me happy, too.

Welp, that's my marathon story. Sorry for so much detail, I couldn't resist! On the way home from St G., we stopped at the Grand Canyon among other things, and took some great pictures. I hadn't been there for almost 10 years! So it totally took my breath away. I love that place. We also climbed up and down some stairs on our many stops, and I was so sore I could barely step off a curb, let alone whole flights of stairs! Coming down was much worse, because my quads were shot from those steep downhills (8% grade in some spots!) on the course. Anyway, we eventually made it home Sunday night at like 9:30, it was such a fun drive home!

I was really, really sore for only three days, then it like magically went away. Now I feel great, except for some slight shins splints. I went on a bike ride last night, and it was amazing! I'll try running again next week, because I have a 10K to do on Thanksgiving Day! Then I am planning on doing a half-marathon in late January, and we'll see where I go after that! I am going to keep running for the rest of my life, if I can, because there is no way to go except up. I don't think I can get much worse, I can only improve!

So, sorry again for this ridiculously long story, but it needed to be written!

I still love running!! Haha

pictures coming soon....for JoLynn :)