I'll start this recap by sharing the lesson I learned from this race: don't fear fast. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would ever try to attempt a BQ. I always joked maybe I would make it to Boston when I was 70. But running a 3:43 in Myrtle Beach in 2016 boosted my confidence and recovering so well and feeling stronger than ever after hip surgery made me think that a BQ wasn't a dream anymore. It was time to make it a reality. I was nervous to tell family members and friends about my goal because I wasn't 100% sure I could accomplish it. But I had to try and in order to give it my all: I needed my support crew. Training Leading up to the Ocean Drive Marathon (BQ attempt #1) many of you followed me on Facebook and Instagram and got to see how I was dealing with the training load, injuries and nutrition. I had an amazing coach, Al, who instilled a confidence in me I never had before when it came to running. He knew I could achieve a 3:30/3:35 without a doubt. Training six days a week definitely took its toll on me. I dealt with runner's knee through the majority of the training cycle but it never hindered my running. I took a few weeks off from the sprint workouts and that seemed to help it a bit. I got the flu a month before the race: right before we vacationed in Disney World. So training was put on hold for a few days. When I wasn't running I would be foam rolling. When I wasn't running or foam rolling I was sleeping or re-fueling. What time (and energy)I had left was for work. Run, eat, sleep, repeat. Oh yeah...and be a good wife and mom. I was tired a lot of the time. Waking up in the morning when it was still dark outside and asking myself, "Why am I doing this?" when the answer was obvious and once I was out the door I immediately felt energized. I dealt with "mom guilt" and walking out the door leaving Addy with Chris and hearing her say, "I want to go with mommy!" By the end of the training cycle I was so happy to be done with sprints and was so tired of lugging extra cold weather clothes to work to run outside that I would just hop on the treadmill. I was ready go get that 3:35 BQ! Saturday Chris, Addy and I left for Jersey Friday night before the race so we could make it to packet pick-up Saturday morning and relax the remainder of the day. Saturday morning we got to the Wildwoods Convention Center where there was a lot of activity going on so Chris and I thought the Expo looked promising. As it turns out all of the activity was for the Special Olympics events they had going on! My "expo" was in a room on the other side of the building. It took me all but 2-minutes to grab my packet and then we were back in the car to drive the hour back to my in-laws! I did a quick shake-out run Saturday. First time I have ever done a pre-race shake-out run. It felt good just to get out, run and let my mind wander a bit. Saturday night was the traditional spaghetti dinner, lay out my race outfit and get to bed super early. I fell alsleep with Coach Al's pep talk in my head: "You've got it: steady and patient." Race Day I woke up Sunday ready to rock. I was nervous but I was to the point where I just wanted to run. I felt good. The temperature was in the 40s and the winds were at about 10mph: perfect! Chris and I parked near a house that was under construction and a porta potty was right out front. I took advantage of that (two times!) before we walked to the start where I used a porta potty one more time. I wasn't taking any chances! The start of the race was small. I had my headphones on and didn't even hear the "3-2-1" countdown. Nobody was on a microphone or megaphone and all I saw were the runners in front of me moving and knew it was go time! I did tear up a little at the start: I was racing my first marathon after hip surgery. It was awesome running through Sea Isle City and seeing all of the brightly colored beach houses. I was feeling good and made sure to to stay on pace and not go out too fast. There was plenty of aid stations along the course. For a small race I was surprised to see that. I saw Chris around mile 6 and tossed him my gloves and was excited to know I would see him next, along with Deb and her family at the turnaround at mile 13. It was so nice to look at the ocean as I ran but the bridges we ran over were a little annoying. The metal grating on the bridges ranked up there with running on a cobblestone street. As soon as we came over the last bridge to Grassy Sound I spotted my support crew and started waving my arms. Seeing them gave me a burst of energy along with the tailwind that I soon would find out was really 20mph. I rounded the 13.1 mile marker, gave Chris, Deb and her family high-fives and then immediately ran into an insane headwind. Chris would later tell me that as I was running, the winds increased. My pace immediately went from 7:49 to 8:15. From that point I just told myself to just keep running. Just keep fighting. I felt great but I was getting tired fighting the wind. I tried to get behind a few runners so I could draft off of them and it worked for a bit but then I would lose them at a water stop. I remember being behind an older gentleman wearing a Boston windbreaker. I thought to myself, "I am literally chasing that damn unicorn!" I saw Chris at mile 21 and that is when I had to walk for a bit. I was just done fighting the wind. The last mile was the worst. It was right alongside the beach and the wind was horrible. Sand was flying in my face and I felt as if I was running in place. I crossed the finish and even though I knew I didn't achieve my goal: I was happy to be done. Another marathon in the books. I crossed the finish, collected my medal and just took a few seconds to put my hands on my knees and think before I faced my cheer squad. I remember telling myself to not be upset and to be proud for finishing a race in these conditions. I met up with everyone and we went to the finisher's tent were I got some food and warm coffee. Deb went over to look at the race results on the computer to get my official time and that is when we found out I got first in my age group! Holy Shit! Never in my wildest dreams would I ever think I would get first in my age group in a race. That achievement made me even more proud. Lessons Learned
I ended up missing a BQ by 4-minutes and 1-second. But given you technically need to beat your BQ time by at least 2 and a half minutes: I missed my goal by 7-minutes. 7 damn minutes! Despite the wind slowing me down and the walk break: I came damn close. Of course now when I train for BQ attempt #2, those 7-minutes are going to push me. Sure, I am disappointed. I worked my ass off. But this race made me realize that this dream is not far out of reach. In the past if you told me I would need to keep a 7:40 pace in a race I would've called you crazy. Hell, even race morning I was nervous at seeing 7:40 and 7:49 on my pace band. Seeing anything below an 8-minute pace freaked me out. But now I know I can keep a fast pace (fast for me) and feel comfortable doing it. I no longer fear fast and I realize that is the biggest thing that has been holding me back from improving my race times. After this race, I felt a sense of relief too. I was putting so much pressure on myself worrying about disappointing those who had supported me: they had so much faith in me. In the end, everyone was happy about what I had accomplished and still proud of me. The next race, I won't have the added pressure about letting people down because I know they are proud of me no matter what. I have taken 26-days off from running after the marathon. My right knee feels good and my left hip feels stronger than ever. Six months from now I will be going for BQ attempt #2 at the Marine Corps Marathon. A course I know well but also a course that has challenged me in the past. I am excited to run a local race and take in all of it's energy. Training begins in May. Al will be coaching me again and I am excited that the weather will be warm. Between now and October I have four Ragnar Relays (two road and two trail) and the Cleveland Half Marathon. All of those will be incorporated into my training. Time to focus on those 7 damn minutes!
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