Monday, September 20, 2010

Been' Running! - 26.2 mi in Thunder Bay, On.

Hello everyone!

This past week I had the opportunity to run in Thunder Bay, my home town. The Thunder Bay "Miles with the Giant" marathon ran this week, and so did I. This was my 5th marathon... and it was tough!

I was super excited at the start! I got to stand right at the front ( I wanted to see the elite athletes - the two Kenyans at the front who finished in under 3 hours!) You can see short ol' me in the front looking dreamily at the elites.

The course itself was tough; half the course was uphill, the rest was down and flat. It was a circuit of 13.1 miles, which I had to repeat twice. I hate that type of run because crossing the 13.1 finish makes you want to give up (that was when I hit the runner's wall - a time of despair). Luckily, I didn't and kept going. In the end I made it, not without a little pain in my hip, foot and knees. Today I have a sore back too!

My time for my 5th full Marathon: 4 hours 29 minutes!

I was thrilled. It was such a bad year for training with injuries and the humidity, so finishing at my 2nd best time was thrilling!

My mother-in-law at the finish line. My parent's could not reach the end through the crowd. They met me along the way and ran with me a little though! Prior to the marathon, she gave me a butterfly cookie cutter set telling me to "Fly like a butterfly straight to the end of the course." It was very touching .

Flowers for my finish, and today, a day of rest! Time to relax.

Soon to come: Cupcakes!

Hugs!

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