It has been a long road, but also so short. When I think back on the repeated early morning alarms, the endless supply of sweaty, stinky clothes, and the counting of sometimes endless miles I have to smile. Would I do this again if I were posed with the same question I answered yes back in the midst of the summer? The answer to that is an overwhelming - no question about it! The journey is just as much the goal as is the 26.2 miles I will cover on race day.The training has been hard at times, fun at times, and sometimes just a plain drag. When all is said and done I only got two 20 milers (1,2) in because of my calf injury about a month ago, but did have a total of 5 long runs that topped the 16 mile mark.
With less than 2 weeks until race day I have ran every double digit run that I am going to run. I ran my final 20 miler last Sunday and was pleased with the result. Yesterday was my final 12 miler and it also was a good run. I got to my desired pace pretty quickly and stayed pretty close to that pace for most of the run. The last three miles I did speed it up to finish the last mile just above an 8 min pace.
As I was finishing up the last mile of my run I came up on a car flag lying in the sidewalk. I didn't think anything about it and ran by, but then I realized it was a Florida Gators flag. This being Bulldog territory, and considering the tough loss Georgia had to Florida the night before I just found it all too poetic and I had to pick it up. Yes, I did put it on my car, and yes, I did get some dirty looks. If we are anything we are Georgia fans, but I did it just to mess with all the Georgia fans. :) I will take it off my car today to keep from experiencing any long term damage to my car.The plans are starting to come together. The Soldier Marathon is awaiting the arrival of the many runners looking to either run their 1st to 50th marathon. It may be just another 26.2 for some while for others it is a chance at setting that long anticipated PR. I have started to look into the course with a little more interest lately and have for the first time realized it is mainly an out and back race down the banks of the Chattahoochee. The hotel has been booked, and the Shot Bloks have been purchased. There is not much I can do to make me any faster on race day other than to take this taper seriously.
On a side note.... why does Halloween come 2 weeks prior to race day? Given the taper I won't be doing the miles needed to burn the extra calories to offset the extra taken in. I really can't handle the extra few pounds I am sure to take on due to the extra Snickers.
Do you ask yourself all those questions as race day approaches? What questions or doubts do you have as you get ready to line up to run 26.2 miles?
I'm going through some of that now. Offically I'm in taper mode, but am injured so I have a lot of doubts creeping in. At this point we've put in the hard work, now is time to celebrate with the race :)
ReplyDeleteI ask the same questions, and always look around me at races wondering if the woman or man standing next time me is asking themselves the same thing. There are few people I know who have this Amazing confidence that Everything will go just as planned -- just as they trained. I'm not one of those. I always have to prove it to myself. You will do great, Tim. Good luck during your taper and ask your kids to finish off the candy!
ReplyDeletei think the questions you have are so so so common, i ask them every race. even though i know we're supposed to "trust our training". Have a great taper and an even better race! When you finish in a couple of weeks it will only be so much sweeter since you overcame an injury. Good luck!!
ReplyDeleteI'm with Barbie. Trust your training, and (from my experience) don't go out too fast, no matter what your adrenaline is telling you.
ReplyDeleteGood luck! I find one of the most strengthening thoughts in a marathon to be to remind yourself how hard you trained for it. There were days you didn't feel like going hard or long, and you did it anyway. Now's the time to take advantage of it and make sure all that training wasn't for nothing. Speaking of nothing, one of my marathon mantras is "leave nothing." If I'm going for a BQ, the last thing I want is to finish the race feeling as if I've left something on the table!
ReplyDeletebtw - Like your daughter, I've been tickled this season that my son chose to do cross country his first year of high school this year. He made varsity as a freshman and they're running in the championships tomorrow. It's been SO COOL to share running with him. The best part is that it was his decision to join the team -I had suggested soccer. :)
I bet you're going to do great. The thing about marathons with me, more than any other distance, you never really know what's going to happen -- anything can happen. I'm going into a marathon next Saturday, totally untrained (life!), but I'm going to do it for the experience. For me, the most important thing is to relax, smile and try to have fun : ) Good luck!
ReplyDeleteJust a minor point of order - Halloween was probably scheduled before you selected the marathon. Anyway, you'll burn those Snickers off in the first few miles of the race, if you haven't before hand. Good luck with the taper.
ReplyDeleteI ask myself similar questions when I get close to a marathon. Trust your training and you will be fine on race day.
ReplyDeleteThanks everyone! The taper is going good and is nearing the end. I have just two more runs left before the big day! :)
ReplyDelete@funnyrunner - that is really cool about your son - hope he did great in the championships!
I bet you're going to do great. The thing about marathons with me, more than any other distance, you never really know what's going to happen -- anything can happen. I'm going into a marathon next Saturday, totally untrained (life!), but I'm going to do it for the experience. For me, the most important thing is to relax, smile and try to have fun : ) Good luck!
ReplyDeleteGood luck! I find one of the most strengthening thoughts in a marathon to be to remind yourself how hard you trained for it. There were days you didn't feel like going hard or long, and you did it anyway. Now's the time to take advantage of it and make sure all that training wasn't for nothing. Speaking of nothing, one of my marathon mantras is "leave nothing." If I'm going for a BQ, the last thing I want is to finish the race feeling as if I've left something on the table!
ReplyDeletebtw - Like your daughter, I've been tickled this season that my son chose to do cross country his first year of high school this year. He made varsity as a freshman and they're running in the championships tomorrow. It's been SO COOL to share running with him. The best part is that it was his decision to join the team -I had suggested soccer. :)