If you have been following me on Facebook and Instagram: you know that this weekend was a whirlwind for me. It started out with me going to the Eric Church concert with Deb Friday evening. I was bummed to have missed the VIP Cleveland Marathon Dinner and hang with my fellow ambassadors but country music and some much needed out-on-the-town time was needed with Deb. After a late night of screaming and singing to every song (he is my all-time favorite country artist), I had to wake up at 5:00am Saturday to head 5 hours to Ohio, get my mom and head to Cleveland. Of course I was listening to Eric Church the entire car ride and my voice was a little crackly from singing and screaming the night before. Mom and I made it to the Brownstone Inn ahead of schedule! We settled into our room and then headed to the Expo to pick up my race bib, eat and shop at the Cleveland Clothing Co. and the West Side Market. After we relaxed a bit back at the Brownstone Inn, it was time to head to Bruno's Ristorante for my pre-race meal which turned out to be an unexpected experiment! Because I could still not eat eggs, I had to ask the waitress if they made their meatballs with eggs. She checked with the kitchen and not only did they use eggs to make meatballs but also all of their pastas! Bummed I couldn't get my usual spaghetti and meatballs but I made due with some fibrous vegetables (beet salad and some other steamed veggies) and the kitchen suggested I get the Chicken Marsala. I felt satisfied after dinner and hoped it would fuel me well the next day. FYI: the Chicken Marsala was AMAZING! After dinner it was time to head back to the Inn, lay out my clothes for the race and try to get as much sleep as possible. 5:00am mom and I woke up, got dressed and I fueled up and we were out the door by 5:30am. Very thankful for the VIP free parking and of course I had to say "good morning" to the big guy! Adam, a friend from work and fellow Ragnarian, was running the full marathon so we met up prior to the start but had to part ways in the corals. More on him later :) This was my 6th time running in Cleveland and I still get goosebumps from all of the excitement and energy at the start. That feeling never gets old and I don't think it ever will. Marathon Day is always an exciting time for the city but I think with all of the events this past year (Cavs Championship, the "Windians" and this being the 40th running of the Marathon) the city was more electric than ever before. THE PLAN For this race, the goal given to me by Coach Al was to take it easy and have fun since marathon training would be starting up the following-week. Although he didn't give me a goal time: I wanted to finish under 2-hours so I set out to maintain a 9-minute comfortable pace. The temperature was a nice 61-degrees with a breeze. But the humidity caught a lot of runners off guard from the start. THE RACE For the first 4 miles I felt good and had to tell myself to slow down since adrenaline and excitement were taking over. We ran through Playhouse Square and past First Energy Stadium (home of the Browns) which is always, for me, a fun site to see. Around mile 3.5/4 we hit a bridge and a lot of the runners came to a slow walk to get up and over it. It was comical to see runners go right and left to avoid running over the metal grates that were over the center of the bridge. Motivational signs along the road helped everyone keep pushing forward. I specifically remember this quote: "The climb is tough, but the view from the top is worth it." After the climb, around mile 5.5 the half marathoners and marathoners headed into Tremont where the spectators were pretty much having a huge block party! I gave a woman a hug who was all dressed up and dancing to the music. Next I know I hear a familiar voice saying "hi" to people along the course. I look behind me and it's Adam! He's just running along like he is the mayor of Cleveland giving hi-fives and shaking hands. It was hilarious but I was so glad to see him. He and I ran together from miles 6-11 where the half-marathoners and marathoners split up. I was happy to have the company and chat with him and he said he was glad to run with me to get his mind off of his stiff legs. He commented that he "thought I was going to take it easy this race" and I told him "I thought you said you were slow"! We both settled into a 9-minute pace and cruised along. We parted ways at mile 11 giving each other high-fives, I wished Adam luck, and I made my way back to the city. I was excited that running over the Shoreway was not in the route this year and instead we ran over a smaller bridge that gave us an amazing view of the skyline. I loved how it got bigger the closer we got to it and I ended up sprinting to the finish. Because of the new race course, the finisher's area was much less congested than year's past and I was able to find my mom immediately. She gave me a hug and we found a place where I could stretch and inhale some pretzels! We then went to a VIP brunch held at a nearby hotel where we both loaded up on coffee and I had bacon and fruit while my mom enjoyed eggs! After the brunch we walked to the top of the Convention Center where I was able to get a quick picture before the rain came down! Back at the Brownstone Inn I got cleaned up and said goodbye to Robin the Innkeeper. Most likely this would be the last time I see him since he has become very sick and can no longer maintain the Inn. The Brownstone Inn has been my "home" for the race for the last 4 years. Before I left I had to get one more glance of that blue door... TAKEAWAY
This has got to be the most relaxed I have ever been for a race that I have ran by myself. Running races with friends and running Ragnar are fun for me and I don't put pressure on myself. I just run. Not having a goal pace or finish time this year for the Cleveland Half Marathon took so much pressure off of me and I was able to enjoy the race. I enjoyed running through the city. I ran my race. The feeling I had before the race two weeks ago is the same feeling I want to carry with me at each race from here on out whether I have a set goal or not. I want to be focused but care free. I want to be confident but excited. Thanks again to Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon for giving me the opportunity to run in the city I love! Thanks to all of my fellow Ambassadors for providing inspiration and motivation. Even though we are miles apart we share in one common goal: to share our love of running with the masses! I already cannot wait for next year's race!
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