I was reading an old Runner's World magazine yesterday, which featured handsome marathon finisher medals. I was thinking I have five of those. I thought I share them.
My first was Tucson Marathon in December 1999. My goal was to just finish although I was hoping to beat four hours. I was happy to finish even if I did not beat four hours. I learned what hitting a wall at mile 20 is. I was determined to not walk any of the race. It took all I had to finish without walking. I really hated a small uphill finish. My finish time was 4:11:24. I was hooked. I also saw first and only time a lady taking care of number one standing up. Wow.
This is the first and only marathon my parents and grandmother saw me finish.
My second was Rock&Roll, San Diego in June, 2000 with Michelle and her friends. It was great running with friends even if you are not running the whole race with them. We all seem to have different paces. That means they are are faster. I really went for it, but I actually ran slower. I also walked about two miles of the race, and ended with 4:24:17. Oh, well. I had a great time.
Did I tell you Michelle's mom is a great cheer leader? She took my little brother, Josh, and cheered us on at minimum four different locations. She is a great sports mom.
My third was Philadelphia Marathon in 2000. I've been meaning to visit a good friend, Garrick, who was attending UPenn medical school. I thought it was a great excuse to run a marathon.
The course starts and ends at the Philadelphia Museum of Arts. You know, Rocky's steps. It was a little cold for this Arizonan. The course is beautiful. It has an old stone road, a river with people crewing, and other famous landmarks I cannot remember. It was great having a familiar face waiting at the finish line. My time was 4:23:12.
It was great to visit Garrick, who showed me around. I ate my first pad thai and steamed mussels. Did you know steamed mussels with fries is Belgium's national dish? Philly's Monk's serves great mussels with great beers!
My fourth was Granma's Marathon in Duluth, MN in 2001. I was probably at my peak shape for having trained for about prior two years. I was very determined to beat four hours. I did not expect what happened. It was a disaster.
I got sick the day before the race. I sat on a toilet most of the time. I am not sure how this happened, but I was not a happy camper to say the least. I got better just in time for the race after staying in bed and taking medicine. As you can imagine, I was pretty emaciated at the starting line. I ran the first half without a problem, but I had nothing more to give. I did not want to catch a ride back. I walked for little while thinking I could pick it back up. I was wrong. When I wanted to start running, my legs would not move beyond the walking range of motion. Darn it all to heck! I walked the last half and had the worst time ever. It was a lousy 5:34:50. I gave up on running marathons although many asked. I was tired.
My first was Tucson Marathon in December 1999. My goal was to just finish although I was hoping to beat four hours. I was happy to finish even if I did not beat four hours. I learned what hitting a wall at mile 20 is. I was determined to not walk any of the race. It took all I had to finish without walking. I really hated a small uphill finish. My finish time was 4:11:24. I was hooked. I also saw first and only time a lady taking care of number one standing up. Wow.This is the first and only marathon my parents and grandmother saw me finish.
My second was Rock&Roll, San Diego in June, 2000 with Michelle and her friends. It was great running with friends even if you are not running the whole race with them. We all seem to have different paces. That means they are are faster. I really went for it, but I actually ran slower. I also walked about two miles of the race, and ended with 4:24:17. Oh, well. I had a great time.Did I tell you Michelle's mom is a great cheer leader? She took my little brother, Josh, and cheered us on at minimum four different locations. She is a great sports mom.
My third was Philadelphia Marathon in 2000. I've been meaning to visit a good friend, Garrick, who was attending UPenn medical school. I thought it was a great excuse to run a marathon.The course starts and ends at the Philadelphia Museum of Arts. You know, Rocky's steps. It was a little cold for this Arizonan. The course is beautiful. It has an old stone road, a river with people crewing, and other famous landmarks I cannot remember. It was great having a familiar face waiting at the finish line. My time was 4:23:12.
It was great to visit Garrick, who showed me around. I ate my first pad thai and steamed mussels. Did you know steamed mussels with fries is Belgium's national dish? Philly's Monk's serves great mussels with great beers!
My fourth was Granma's Marathon in Duluth, MN in 2001. I was probably at my peak shape for having trained for about prior two years. I was very determined to beat four hours. I did not expect what happened. It was a disaster.I got sick the day before the race. I sat on a toilet most of the time. I am not sure how this happened, but I was not a happy camper to say the least. I got better just in time for the race after staying in bed and taking medicine. As you can imagine, I was pretty emaciated at the starting line. I ran the first half without a problem, but I had nothing more to give. I did not want to catch a ride back. I walked for little while thinking I could pick it back up. I was wrong. When I wanted to start running, my legs would not move beyond the walking range of motion. Darn it all to heck! I walked the last half and had the worst time ever. It was a lousy 5:34:50. I gave up on running marathons although many asked. I was tired.
I was getting out of shape and needed a motivation. I ran a relatively close Las Vegas Marathon in 2004. I was hoping just to run and finish no big hope. I was using Penguin's run a mile and walk a minute method.I talked Trace into going to Vegas as I did not want to drive back home after the race. Trace agreed to drive me back. We had a good time hanging out although I did not want to stay out too long the night before. There are too many distractions in Vegas for racers.
The race itself was pretty fast. I was running and feeling very well while running the first half. I guess I always feel this way during first halves. I was singing a different tune as the second half brought a strong wind coming right at runners. It became a struggle. I took more breaks during the last four miles. I still managed to finish my personal best 4:07:07. I really thought I had a chance to beat four hours until my twenty. Darn!
I may run more in the future, but the daunting training and my lack of motivations keep me from running for now.
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