Leading up to the race, I wasn't sure how my body would perform. For several weeks, I had been doing one long run per week (15-22 miles long), maybe a couple of short runs, and a lot of elliptical workouts. I felt pretty confident I could handle the distance since it had only been 2 months since my 50-mile ultra, but I was nervous about the speed. I hadn't been doing speed workouts like I had before my previous marathon. On top of that, the weather forecast the day of the race was expected to be hot, which isn't great news for me. I do better in cooler temperatures. I decided to just do my best and if the heat got to me, I would slow down.
The morning of the race, I woke up at 3:45, got ready, and headed to downtown Ogden with my neighbor to catch the bus to the starting line. The next few hours were pretty uneventful. We arrived at the start, got in line for the porta potties, and stood by the fires to keep warm while we ate breakfast. After the national anthem, I shed my sweat pants and jacket and said wished my neighbor good luck. Then I lined up with the runners expecting to finish in approximately 4 hours.
The first few miles passed quickly. I shed my arm warmers at mile 2, and by mile 4 I was already starting to sweat. It was just about then, that I heard the guy next to me say my name. I looked over and saw a friend of mine that lives in my neighborhood. He is an avid runner and has done several 100 mile races. I expected him to be way ahead of me, so I was thrilled to see that I was keeping up with him. We chatted for a few minutes, then I pulled ahead...fully expecting to see him around mile 20 or so when I was getting tired and he would be just warming up. :)
With each aid station that passed, I found myself in a new group of runners. While others around me stopped for drinks, I was able to keep running thanks to the bottles I had filled on my running belt. When I hit the halfway mark at 1:50:35, I knew I had a good shot at coming in under 4 hours. In the previous marathon I ran, I hit the halfway mark at 1:51, and the rest of the race was somewhat flat. Since I still had the canyon to run through, which was downhill, I knew it would help me keep my speed up. The only problem was that I was starting to feel some chaffing between my legs. At mile 15, I finally pulled over long enough to smear Vaseline between my legs to keep them from chaffing more. A few miles later, I heard an airplane and looked up. It was Cory and kids going for a ride. They were flying over the course watching the race.
As the second half of the marathon progressed, it started getting HOT outside. I started grabbing drinks at some of the aid stations to keep me hydrated, since the fluids in my bottles were getting low. With only a few miles to go. I knew for certain I would beat my previous time. I crossed the finish line at 3:54:42. After receiving my medal and having my picture taken, I found some shade where I could call Cory and eat a Creamie while watching others cross the finish line. The friend that I passed around mile 4 came in 30 minutes behind me, while my neighbor came in 45 minutes behind me.
So, in case you're wondering, here are my stats from the race:
I finished 648 out of 2540 overall runners. I know it doesn't sound all that impressive, but it's the top 25%.
I finished 217 out 1245 female runners. The sounds slightly more impressive. It's the top 17%.
Lastly, I finished 68 out of 327 in my division. The is the top 21%.
So here I am 3 days post marathon. My legs are recovering and I can finally go up and down stairs again without difficulty. I was feeling pretty good about myself until I heard that my ultra friend that finished 30 minutes behind me has already logged 34 miles the past three days. I haven't even attempted running yet. I guess I have some work to do before I will be ready to run 100 milers like him. The Bear 100 is only 4 months away, so I better training.
Proud of you!
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