In 2009, I had this crazy idea to run in Dam to Dam, which, for those who don't know, is the largest 20k run in America. I could barely run one mile back then. I ran last year with Tony, he stayed with me the whole time and kept me motivated to keep going and finish, I did have to stop and walk several times though. I surprised myself by being able to complete the race, all 12.4 miles!
This year, however, I wanted to be able to run the race without Tony, and somehow find my own motivation to keep going and to run the whole time without stopping to walk. I was really scared and didn't think that I could do this on my own. Luckily, I found a great running partner, Dana. She runs at about the same pace I do. We were able to train together, and my goal was to try to keep up with her for most of the race.
June 5th, 3:30 AM -- Alarm goes off but I am already wide awake. I went to bed at 10 PM but I couldn't get to sleep because I was so nervous. By 5:30 AM, we are on the bus headed towards Saylorville Dam. On the way there, the rain starts to come down hard. I sat on the bus, very quiet, trying to not get nervous and backout. I sat there thinking about wet clothes, wet socks and wet shoes. I sat there thinking about the cold and the wind. I sat there thinking that I could be in my warm bed right now, sleeping! We arrived at the Dam, and the rain did not let up. We had a mile walk to the finish line. That was one of the longest walks, I was soaking wet, the wind was picking up and I was freezing. I couldn't even really enjoy the view, normally you can see downtown, where we end the race, however, it was too foggy to see that far. Needless to say, I was not in the best of moods.
7:00 AM - The race starts, and the rain has not let up and the wind has not died down...Once we began, I told myself to zone out and focus and hurry up and finish so that I can get out of these wet clothes! The first mile came fast, and I had a mini - celebration in my head! I am actually doing this on my own without my former marine husband! Around the third mile, I remembered that this was the point that I started walking last year, so I kept telling myself to at least get to the 4th mile without stopping to walk....so I just started counting and visualizing the numbers to avoid thinking about how much pain I was in and before I knew it, I had made it past the 4th mile without stopping! I used the same trick on the all the HILLS! There were 3 hills throughout the race, I just put my head down, leaned forward and just kept on moving. I totally surprised myself when the 5th mile came up --- can I really do this? That's when my mood started to pick up. I stopped thinking about my wet clothes and soggy shoes, and started thinking about how much fun this actually is. The sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth miles were kind of a blur. I lost my running partner, Dana at mile 11, there were tons of congestion at the water station and I lost her and I couldn't get caught up to her. So I was totally on my own. I did slow down my pace a little bit because I didn't want to lose all my energy -- those last couple of miles were the longest ever...I could not even describe the emotions that were running through me as I turned the last corner and I saw the finish line ahead of me. I was dead tired and I didn't have anything else in me but somewhere deep inside, I was able to summon up the courage to sprint towards the finish line. I picked up my pace and I focused in on the words on the banner: FINISH.
When I crossed the finish line, I threw my hands up and cheered !!! It was the greatest feeling ever. I was able to share this experience with Tony, Dana, Jesse, Tom, Andy and my brother Michael. GREAT job everyone, so glad I was able to share this experience with you! Ratna and La, great job on the 5K!
June 6th - the morning after: My whole lower body hurts. My lower back hurts, my thighs hurt, my knees hurt and my feet have blisters on them. Can I do a FULL marathon????? To be continued.
