Another marathon done..and a PB by 20 min. I didn’t make my goal but did have some personal victories:
@10km and @ 21.1km- 2nd fastest times in a race
@15km , @30km and @35km– fastest times in a race
The wheels came off hard after 35km. I had cramping and a lot of breathing issues. I really wanted to stop…bad. The last 7km seemed insurmountable. But I didn’t…and ended up with a PB by 20min over the Flying Pig in May.
Some awesome friends waited for us on the Red Hill at the 26km mark – a wonderful site on a lonely stretch of highway…
The hubs snapped a pic at 35km – delirious to see some friends..
Post run back at home, the hubs was kind enough to make me a much needed coffee while I took an ice bath. When I was done, I found this waiting for me from the hubs:
Kate Spade bag the hubs got on his recent trip. He is the best.
The Good:
-having the school open before the race was great! We met all our friends in the atrium and had a nice warm place to wait.
-the route wasn’t exciting but overall pretty good…except the last km. It was way off and running over the gravel part did nothing for my huge blisters.
-the volunteers were great. We were doing a lot of yelling and cheering and they joined in heartily.
-my 2 friends who didn’t leave me and the rest of our friends who waited around to see us finish…THANKS!!
-the 2 people who came to saw hi that recognized me from the blog...HI! Leave me a comment as I cannot remember your names..I was getting nervous at that point... :)
The Bad:
-nutrition – I ate 3 GUs …that is it. No wonder I bonked hard. For some reason I thought I had gone through more – duh. Lots of improvement is needed here!
-blisters…again! They were bad again –including a huge blood blister that I have never had before. They were so gross I could not even take a pic of them.
-the last km – see above.
So… in each race I learn something and grow as a runner and person.
And in the end, no matter how slow I am..I get better, I don’t give up and keep on running in this never ending race.
thanks for sticking by…..
Laura
24 comments:
Congratulations!!! It sounds like you learned a lot :) Way to kick some major booty!!
congrats on running a marathon and on getting a PR!! that is awesome!
too bad u had some setbacks, but u totally rocked that race.
and by the way....that is a NICE looking bag ur husband got u! very nice!
hope ur recovery is quick! :)
Congrat Laura, running a marathon is such an amazing accomplishment! You always inspire me! :)
LOVE the gift from you hubby!
Congratulations! 20 minutes is a huge improvement in your time. The last 3k were brutal for me as well, and the last k well, that was just endless. I have 3 blood blisters as well.... I think you did great though...way to push through!
congrats! hizzah congrats on the pb. that's awesome and HUGE :)
Congratulations!!!! That is so great that you had a PR...so good that you are able to see so many positives and learn as well! Big High Five's to you!
Hey Laura! I was one of the stalkers who approached you in the atrium. My husband (Phil) was the other one. We also accosted Marlene later. Slowly coming around to starting my own blog cuz it was very cool seeing you two in real life.
Congrats on rocking the marathon. I have to agree, the large gravel at the end was brutal and that last km had to have been about a mile and a half long. We only did the half, so can't imagine that at the end of the full.
Good luck with recovery and I hope to stalk you again sometime soon!
Barb
congrats on finishing at a pretty awesome PR!! Its always a learning lesson and the way I see it that's good. That means we are constantly growing and evolving as a runner and that is a good thing!!
I admire the hell out of you, woman. But you seriously need to figure out that blister issue!!!
I've read from a lot of people who did the half that the last bit was at least 400-500 metres too long and they had issues with the gravel, so you're not alone!
Your husband is seriously the sweetest man. What an awesome present!
Congrats on finishing another marathon!
Woot for the PR! you shaved off a ton of time! Hey marathons are hard! Way to gut it out!
Congrats GIRL! NEXT TIME FO' SHO! A 20 minute PB is wicked awesome. Almost as awesome as that bag.
Congratulations on finishing another marathon and a HUGE PB! What a nice gift too!
Happy Recovery!
Love.the.Kate.Spade.purse!! What a great gift. Congrats on the PB !!
Sorry that the day didn't go exactly as you'd hoped but big congrats on a huge PR! Any marathon where you learn some lessons is a successful marathon.
Hubs recorded one really short KM on the highway (he laps his watch manually at KM markers) so that last KM must have made up for some of that... he still thinks it was on the long side, although the course overall seems to have a typical margin of error on most people's Garmins due to tangents/signal/etc. (~0.5K over)
Anyway, which one is next?? :D
20 minutes is an awesome PR! Well done, and the bag off your hubby is so sweet :-)
"I really wanted to stop…bad. The last 7km seemed insurmountable. But I didn’t…and ended up with a PB by 20min over the Flying Pig in May."
Huzzah! Congrats Laura. I've been reading a while, and was excited to read this race recap. Great that you learnt so much for next time too. Congrats :-)
Congrats on your PR! Glad to hear that the goods outweighed the bads...
ps - Your husband is awesome for getting you that bag! Mega-bonus points! :)
Whoo hoo!! Shaving 20 minutes off is awesome!
And seriously, your husband is a smart, smart man. The bag rocks.
The word verification on this post is "yogrest" which I interpret as you need some gentle yoga and rest. You deserve it.
=)
CONGRATS!!! Even though you're not feeling 100% happy with it now, I bet in a day or so you're going to have a big smile on your face. You just ran 26.2!!! Always something to be proud of!
I also have that problem with consuming Gu. I always think I'm taking enough, but apparently not. Fueling is such a challenge!
congratulations!!! HUGE PR! wow!!
Nice PB! I would totally run for a Kate Spade bag.
Congrats! So glad to find your blog! So many great running blogs...I am excited to catch up on yours soon.
We don't always get what WE want from these marathons but I think we can always walk away with a few lessons in our Fuel Belts!! Sometimes though, I just want to walk away without a lesson and with my goal time met!! I could totally relate with your post today but you did SO well with your PR! Nice job moving forward and you WILL keep running this race. Oh, and you are ONE lucky girl, I love your new bag@@
Rest now...
Congrats on your marathon - you are so awesome!!! Sorry about the nutrition during the race, I've done that a few times - and blisters, ouchie! But a 20 minute PR is excellent. Congratulations, girl!!
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