Soles of a Mom

5am breakfast

So yesterday was a fantastic day despite the rain. Running a marathon is crazy emotional. I don’t think any plan can prepare you for that. I woke up at 4:30 am PST and started my morning with breakfast. My hubby drove me to the start line, because it was raining and he was running the 5K which was at the finish 26.2 miles down valley we kissed in the car and off I went. I made it to the start with only 8 min to go. So there was really no time to freak out. I met some really nice girls at the start. One that had her headphones visible~ so we chatted about that. At mile 6 in the pouring rain I met up with this guy named MJ. He started talking to me because my garmin watch was beeping relentlessly with all the rain. We ran together for about 6-7 miles, I got a lot of info on him in that time. He was from Minnesota, and this was his first marathon. His girlfriend was also running the race, her first marathon but she was farther back. He said “Thankfully she’s ok with us not running together because I need to be ahead of her – I’m proposing at the finish line!”  So I got all the scoop on that, when he bought the ring etc etc. It kept me entertained. I wanted to desperately keep up so I could see this momentous event.  I mean how cool!

Finish strong!

At mile 13 I had to let him forge ahead my knee and IT Band were starting to hurt, so I stopped to stretch.  My 13 mile time was about a 2:06 according to my garmin. Which is much slower than my usual pace or races, about 10 to 14 min slower than any of my 1/2 marathons I’ve run.  As the mileage continued my knee continued to ache.  At mile 16 I stopped to try to stretch it to no avail.  I played around with my stride trying to lengthen it, shorten it, find where it was the most comfortable for my knee.  By mile 20 I knew this was not going to be my PR race and the goal was to finish as strong as I could.  People started dropping like flies, medics helping people, I was determined to not be one of them. I met an older man around mile 23 we definitely got a pic together by one of the photographers because we were running side by side.  He said oh gosh that picture won’t be good- I’m not having a good race.  Mind you he was like 75 years old and running with partial paralysis on his right side. Crazy how we all set the bar so high for ourselves.  I said “It’s going to be a great picture because were here… doing it and that’s all that counts”. 

At mile 25 I had stopped to walk a few paces, feeling quite defeated.  A group of men in their 60′s definitely seasoned runners ran past and said “Come on, you got this,  it’s only a 1/2 mile you can do this”.  I started up and joined their group.  I whispered “thanks I needed that”.  He then said “Hey if this was easy everyone would do it”.  He asked if it was my first marathon I said yes and explained how I got here.  They all wished me a happy birthday – and he said the first race you don’t know what to expect. You’ll be faster next time trust me. 

Finish Line!

So as we neared the last .2 miles I sprinted and crossed the finish line, knee screaming, tears coming down my face.  Was it my PR???  Yes for just finishing my first 26.2 miles and no for my own personal goals.  But as I said earlier I set my own bar a little too high. 4:33:20 not too shabby, 1128th overall out of 2400. 76th out of 195 for woman in my age group 40-44.

The After Party Begins!

After crossing the finish line I went back to the cottage- soaked my weary bones, hydrated, stretched, and got ready for dinner.  We celebrated at Jessup Cellars in Yountville with our own private wine tasting with cheese pairings. I got the royal treatment.  I met the owner and he signed two of our bottles of our wine.  I even got my picture taken with him, very cool.  Our celebration dinner at AD Hoc was equally amazing!  On the menu braised short ribs over sun-dried tomato polenta! One of my favorite meals.  So I was super psyched- since they only make one  meal per day and its the luck of the draw.  I was met by a glass of Schramsburg champagne that was sent as a gift by one of my friends from back east to commemorate the day! (thanks B.T.)  Overall it was an amazing day!  It was a life changing experience for me.  I know now anything is possible if you just believe in yourself and stick to your plan.  Thanks to everyone for all the well wishes, words of encouragement and cheering me on from blog land.  I’m already looking forward to taking this 26.2 mile journey again!