On Sunday I was in San Diego for the Rock 'n' Roll marathon!
I had signed up for it in January and was doing well with my training...until a month or so ago. Then my priorities changed - I was suddenly doing a lot more driving than running!
But I decided to do what I could anyway...
Rick & I drove the Fiesta to his dad's house in the San Diego area on Saturday. I relaxed and grazed for most of the day.
We got up at 3am on Sunday to get ready and drive to the race!
By 4:30 we were in the parking area, near the finish line. I looked like this:
Rick stayed behind and I took a shuttle to the start.
It was misty and a little rainy at the time, but it stopped before the race began.
Prior to the race, my back was a little achey, but I was feeling pretty good otherwise. I was hydrated and fed - ate a banana and a bagel and had a little bit of a sports drink.
I wandered around a little, stretched, and took a few photos with my iPhone.
A lot of Elvises run at the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon!
I made sure my shoes were double-knotted, but not too tight! My friend Patrick warned me about injuries that can occur if your shoes are tied too tight.
I checked my bag into UPS Truck #12. We were assigned trucks according to our last names. I must say that having UPS as the bag check sponsor was clever! And it made me much less worried about checking my phone with my other things.
I headed my "corral" to wait for the start of the race.
The race began at 6:30am and I was feeling good, like I could do this thing.
Tried to go slowly. By mile 3 I realized I was going to have to make a pit stop, even though I'd peed before the race. At 5 miles, I did. Waited in line for a few minutes, used the port-o-potty, and continued on my way.
My knees were starting to hurt - they hurt in the last race I'd run as well - a 10k a few weeks back. But it's a relatively new problem for me.
I hit the 10k mark at 1:10:42.
It's always neat to run or bike in areas where people aren't usually allowed to go unless they're in a car. In this marathon, we went on a bit of the freeway. Unfortunately, the road was not even - it was on a slope, making it rough on runners. It went on like that for a few miles.
By mile 8 my knees were giving me more trouble. I walked for a couple minutes and then started running again.
Get to the half-way point, I kept thinking to myself. I was running with the people who expected to finish in 5 hours. I probably should have run more slowly.
I hit 13.1 miles at 2:31:15. I passed it, but was soon sorry I hadn't stopped at the medical booth. I started walking, thinking I'd get to the next one and see if there was anything they could do for me.
It took me nearly 45 minutes to walk the next two miles - with my normal every day walking pace, it would have taken me 30 minutes. My knees were killing me. And adjustments I was making due to the pain were taking a toll on my ankles.
At mile 15, I stopped at first aid. They put ice on my knees. When I told them I thought I was done, they said that the next first aid spot - at 15.7 miles - would have a shuttle that could take me to the finish area.
I walked to the next spot, put ice on my knees again, took two Tylenol, and waited for the shuttle.
There were two other people on the shuttle. One was a young woman who was running her 14th marathon. It sounded like she was pretty disappointed that this one didn't work out for her - she usually does two per year and has no problems. There was also a diabetic man whose blood sugar level had gone way down.
It's possible that I could have finished the marathon walking, but my knees were really slowing me down. And I want to
run a marathon! I
will run a marathon. This just wasn't the one. As it turns out, training is pretty important! ;)
When I got to the finish area, I picked up the random goodies they were handing out to the runners. Bananas, water, peanut butter puffs, Cytomax, sports bars... Also got my medal, even though I didn't finish.
This is what I looked like:
Rick met up with me. We went to the parking lot. I must say, it is EASY to spot a squeeze green Fiesta in a sea of cars! We got in and he drove me home - he is the best - totally helped me all weekend with everything I needed. :D While he drove, I slept in the Fiesta.
I was happy with my decision to stop. I'm hobbling around a bit - my right knee is worse than my left. But aside from that, I'm feeling great. Well hydrated. I am especially aware of my hydration level because we have no upstairs bathroom in the house and every time I have to pee, I need to get down the stairs and then back up - the worst thing on my knee. One blister on my little toe, which is all wrapped up and not hurting. No muscle soreness.
I spent the afternoon eating (a veggie burger from Orean - yum - and just about anything else I could get my hands on) and watching movies. I re-watched Bridget Jones's Diary, which I hadn't seen since it came out in 2001. I thought I might think it was dumb this time around, but I laughed. A lot. Then Rick and I watched Brick, which I'd never seen. What a weird & great movie!
After that I took some Tylenol PM and went to sleep - around 9pm, I think? Slept right through the night.
Now. Which marathon should I sign up for next?
