Eye on the Prize

First off, thanks to Evil Twin #1 for posting so diligently during my absence. It's been a crazy few months and I am still trying to catch up... Second, apologies to Evil Twin #1 and to our readers for the delay in posting about. . . the Philly Marathon!

As ET#1 recounted post-race, we ran through the streets of brotherly love on November 19, 2006. I believe that despite the lack of cartilage in her knees, ET#1 is a natural born runner. In contrast, I am not what you would call athletically inclined. Racket sports are definitely not my thing as a result of poor depth perception and hand eye coordination. Running, because you get to set your own pace (incredibly slow in my case) is more doable for me. I am not even sure how I ended up running a marathon -- according to ET#1, I had declared (during a drunken stupor) that I would run a marathon in 2006. I don't remember saying that, but a trusted law school friend said that I did, so that was it. I was committed.

I started my training almost a year ago. It was spotty at best, and I ran my longest runs in places other than NY -- one was in Boston with ET#1 and another was in the south of France, again with ET#1. According to ET#1 she had not been running at all while she was in Japan -- ET#1 must be a running machine since she was able to run 12 miles no problem. She was able to do this despite carrying my water bottle and wearing far too much clothing (it was a lot hotter than we thought it would be). I, on the other hand, was well hydrated but struggling to keep up with ET#1. Hmm... I think this means that I am a sloth and that I am not capable of running long distances unless someone (such as ET#1) is there to make me go running. ET#1 always says that she only has one speed when she runs -- at mile 10, that speed is pretty damn fast.

Fast Forward 1 month, Team Hot Rock made a strong appearance in Philly. ET#1 smoked the course (despite minimal training since running the Boston marathon this spring) in 4:16:47. It took me a little longer -- 5:30:44. My goal had been to beat BF's time when he ran the NY marathon in 1998. He told me that he finished it just under 5 hours. Initially, my goal was to beat that time. As my training progressed and I fell further and further behind in sticking to my schedule, I revised my goal. All I wanted was to finish.

I wouldn't have been able to finish the race if it wasn't for the support of my friends and family, especially BF, Kentak3, Mamacita, and Xtian. BF gets a gold star for walking me to the start so early in the morning and for managing to meet up with me at miles 3, 8, 14 and 24. Seeing Kentak3, Mamacita, and Xtian so close (yet so far) from the finish gave me the boost I needed (or was it one of the 4 powergels that I had previously sucked down) to finish.

I thought that it would be pretty easy to find ET#1 at the start line -- I was wrong. The first 10 miles were great. The Philly course winds its way through Center City, South Street -- various places mentioned in the Boys 2 Men song, Motown Philly. I had downloaded 7 hours of music onto my ipod shuffle and was feeling great. That is, until I had to stop to use one of the port-a-potty at around mile 6. If I ever decide to run another marathon, I will be sure to NOT eat bananas in the morning as they make you have to go #2 mid-race. As I approached mile 13 and saw signs for the route for the half-marathon, I contemplated going right at the fork in the road instead of going left for about 2 seconds. Then I saw a sign that said "last hill, almost there". So, I kept going. That sign was a lie.

The second half of the course wound its way through river-side parks. It also takes you past the art museum (cue Rocky music) more than once. This is where ET#1 scared the crap out of me by yelling at the top of her lungs, "Go, [ET#2]!!!" (see the photo above) She informed me that for the last 2 miles of the race she was known as "Friend of [ET#2]". The last 4 miles of the race were the hardest thing that I have ever done physically. I had fallen behind the 5 hour "Cliff Bar Pace Runner" after I stopped to use the bathroom earlier on. I never caught up to her. So, the last part of the race was me and a bunch of middle aged ladies and the 5 hour 30 minute pace runner. I am not ashamed. Ok, maybe a little.

At mile 23, at which point I had shifted my race strategy to a run/walk instead of just a run, I was thrilled to see Xtian, Kentak3, Mamacita and BF at the road side. I even picked up my pace a bit! BF and Mamacita were kind enough to run the last 2 miles to the finish with me and encouraged me to keep running if I started walking. I managed to finish and even sprinted (probably more of a brisk walk, but at that point it felt like sprinting to me) across the finish line. They wrapped me up in a propaganda laden foil blanket and we walked back to the hotel where I took the best shower EVER.

I really hated running when I started my training. But now, I can't wait to go for my short (wow, I never thought that 3 miles would seem short) runs. I've signed up to do the Atlanta half-marathon in late March and BF and I are running the Boston Run to Remember (another half) in May. The winner has to pay for the other person's entry fee times two. I think I have a pretty good shot of winning, seeing as BF has yet to start training and I am running about 10 miles a week right now and am following my training program, more or less.

Postscript: I went to brunch with BF and some of his high school friends a few weeks ago. I hadn't seen them since I ran the marathon and they congratulated me on finishing. When they asked me what my time was, I told them "slower than BF's." But then one of them said, "Are you sure?" It turns out that BF's actual time was just under 6 hours, not 5. I met my first goal without even knowing it!