The CIM race weekend had finally come but with a surprise. We were going to be running the race in hurricane like conditions. No big deal right? WRONG! All of a sudden I started to feel a little more apprehensive, second guessing wether or not I should battle the already hard 26.2 miles in the rain & wind. Having my husband and father-in-law also running the race kept my mind strong. There was no way I was going to drop-out if they weren’t. On Saturday, after the CIM Expo, My husband and I took our family (who came up for the race) to The Spaghetti Factory for some final carb. loading as it is our tradition before every long race. After dinner we all headed back to my place and prepared for the next morning: marathon day.
The alarm went off at 4:45am and I could already hear the rain. I checked the weather report and saw that it was going to be 100% chance of rain and heavy winds the whole time that I would be running. I got out of bed and made myself a bagel with cream cheese, my favorite indulgence. I also had a half of a banana to get that potassium flowing. Still apprehensive and waiting if the other two runners would say something about dropping out…I got ready…silently. Little did I know my husband was thinking the same thing. Right before we left the 3 of us put on our last piece of runner apparel, ponchos, and left for what in my mind was going to be a wet hell.
We got dropped off by my mother-in-law & sister-in-law at around 6:10am. From there we had to wait in line in the rain for a bus that would take us to the starting line. The 3 of us just stood there with a glass half empty kind of feeling as we waited to board the bus. We got on and I felt like I had just boarded the bus of doom that was taking us straight to hell. It was dark, wet & cramped. The windows were fogged up & I was sitting by a stranger. Nothing was comfortable about this ride. I sat there thinking that these busses are full of crazy people, and I’m one of them! I started to pray to Jesus Christ & invited him to run with me. Afterall, you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you. Finally, we made it to the start and once again had to wait. We waited in the rain at a gas station in what I guess you could consider a giant group hug or huddle…except no one was hugging because it was too cold to keep your arms out of your jacket or poncho. It was now 10 minutes till’ the start of the race so we decided to go ahead and leave the gas station and get in line to swim…I mean run.
The final countdown was over and we began running. All you could hear were ponchos flowing in the wind and rain drops hitting the ground. After a couple of miles a miracle happened… I started to enjoy the amazing display of mother nature and this crazy experience. My body was feeling good and I had my husband right by my side. I thought to myself, okay…this is going to be alright…I can do this. The previous year both my husband and I ran this exact race as our first marathon. Both of us had been injured during our training and injured going into the race so I had an extremely painful and tough experience…even almost dropping out…but we pushed through and finished. After that race we decided we HAD to run it again this year to redeem ourselves and get better times because we knew we could if our body would allow! So this was our chance to do it even if we had to go through a few obstacles.
We ran through a few flooded areas, passed fire crews monitoring power lines on the sides of the course and over lots of broken tree branches before seeing our family at mile 7. In times like this it was SO nice seeing them cheer us on all bundled up & under umbrellas! We shed some of our clothing and continued our adventure. At mile 10 we saw some more of our family which gave us an extra boost of energy. Them supporting us in the crazy weather…now that’s love & I am so thankful for them and all of the other spectators as they made our run SO much more enjoyable. AJ & I made it to the half marathon point feeling pretty darn good, physically & emotionally even after running straight into the wind for the last 6 miles. It wasnt till’ mile 15 when my left calf started cramping up. I had to stop and stretch for a little bit and so did my husband as his hamstring and ankle started giving him problems. I started to worry because my last month of training runs were troublesome. I had been experiencing major knee pain (possibly IT band syndrome or runner’s knee) during the majority of my long runs and was unable to complete any training runs longer than 15 miles so when my calf started acting up I thought, great…this is the end…so I started holding back a little as far as intensity goes in hopes that my body would stay efficient long enough to get me to the end. My calf cramp came and went pretty quickly and I only experienced that pain one more time about a mile later. It was at mile 18 when AJ was really struggling with cramps when he told me to just keep going…so I did.
I felt like Forrest Gump because I really did keep going and going and never stopped to walk again until I was finished. In fact, my last 6 miles were some of my fastest. I did, however, have a drink at every station so I def. slowed down at those points. I just found it amazing that my body felt SO good…I couldn’t stop…I didn’t want to lose that feeling. It was so different for me than the previous year because I was in SO much pain, every step I took I thought how am I going to get to the end… This time I knew I could do it, my body was going to let me. I kept repeating these words “strong mind, strong body” all the way to the finish line. It was a beautiful thing really, finishing the race strong and pain free PLUS a little sunshine. I was definitely not expecting that but I PR’d and finished a whole 30 minutes faster than the previous year. AJ finished about 10 minutes after I did & his dad also had a great finishing time being his first marathon in a storm and all! This race will definitely be that much more memorable and definitely something to talk about…”hey remember that time we ran a marathon in almost hurricane conditions?”
In the end I am very happy that I didn’t let the weather get the best of me. I am looking forward to my next marathon even if it’s a year away but I’m also looking forward to cut back on some mileage and get back into crossfit again. Moral of the story: “There’s no such thing as bad weather, just soft people.” Don’t be soft…you are stronger and can do more than you think ALWAYS! I continue to prove that to myself when it has always been a huge struggle in my life. Don’t let anything get in your way of achieving something.
Thank you CIM directors, staff, volunteers, my family & friends, spectators and other runners for a great race and sticking out the weather. Together we made this race a success!
Favorite signs during the race:
- “A marathon’s not easy, but your mom is.”
- “Watching all of these runners is making me wet.”
- “You’ve got stamina, call me.”
- “Running 26.2 miles is easy, 26.3 would just be crazy.”
- “You look great at mile 8.”
- “Run like you stole something!”
What I ate during the race:
- At mile 5.5 I used the porta potty and had a Chocolate GU
- At mile 10 I had an orange slice
- At mile 13.1 another GU but this time strawberry banana
- At mile 15 I had 2 Clif shot bloks- margarita flavor targeted toward cramps
- At mile 18 I had another orange slice and another Clif shot blok
- At mile 20 I had my last 2 Clif shot bloks
- At mile 23 I had an espresso GU
- At every water station minus the last one I had powerade
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