26.36 miles - 7:28 avg.
Pre-race: I went to bed @ 9pm and fell asleep immediately without any problems. I seem to lose sleep over the shorter distances for some reason. Maybe I slept so well because I had no idea of the pain I would encounter after mile 20 or the eye wincing cramps that would begin after the race had finished. Anyways, 4am arrived quickly and during the course of the next two hours, I showered, put all my gear in order, and double checked everything multiple times. I ate two packages of Maple & Brown Sugar oatmeal and had a cup of freshly ground joe. Looking back now, I'm more than glad I wasn't driving alone to Lowell MA, I would have my wife Amy, our two daughter's Maggie & Paige and my Mother "G" in tow.
At 6:30am we arrived at the Parking garage near the Tsongas Arena...... runners everywhere with an energy & buzz in the air that was palpable! Very exciting.
Blurry.... but you get the idea.
7:50am and it was time to get lined up..... happy now, but I had no idea what was in store.
BOOM.... and we were off!
mile 1 - 7:13 - Keep it under 7:15 just in case I start slipping later in the race.
mile 2 - 7:09 - I like seeing those seconds come off!
mile 3 - 7:04 - Dodging cones and moving with the masses.
mile 4 - 7:03 - I can't believe I'm running a freaking marathon!
mile 5 - 7:03 - What a perfect day for a marathon.... does it get any better?
mile 6 - 7:13 - Hooked up with some young guys and put it in cruise.
mile 7 - 7:05 - Volunteer missed the GU handoff and threw it as I passed? I stopped to pick it up.
mile 8 - 7:11
mile 9 - 7:02 - Marathons don't seem that hard.
mile 10 - 7:06
mile 11 - 7:00 - I'm a machine.
mile 12 - 7:04
mile 13 - 7:08 - I'm going to see my family here, peel off the sleeves throw them in my wife's direction and yell I love you guys! My children yell SCHNITZEL!!!! at me. (Hoodwinked)
mile 14 - 7:08
mile 15 - 7:09
mile 16 - 7:18 - Not psyched to see those seconds slipping, but I still feel okay.
mile 17 - 7:24 - Uh oh.
mile 18 - 7:19
mile 19 - 7:18
mile 20 - 7:24 - Uh oh. Am I not a machine?
mile 21 - 7:52 - Wow these races do get hard after mile 20.
mile 22 - 7:54 - Damn!
mile 23 - 8:21 - How come I can't speed up?
mile 24 - 8:46 - When is this race going to friggin end?
mile 25 - 8:31 - I feel like crap.
mile 26 - 8:57 - Where is the finish line and how come it is so far away?
.2 - 9:02 - Thank God!
All the highs and lows, were totally worth the satisfaction of completing my first marathon! I was undertrained for sure, but plan on fixing that once I can walk normal again :) Blown away by how hard it is to walk up and down stairs. I can't wait to run again and make my goal time of 3:10 flat (BQ for 30-39).
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