Race Day Recap

As my alarm buzzed it's morning greeting, I had already been stirring for a few minutes prior. The nervous energy that had accumulated over the past few days didn't allow for the soundest of sleeping conditions, and I found myself drifting in and out of consciousness throughout the night. I did rest much more consistently than the year prior, likely due to knowing exactly what to expect from the coming event. My lovely wife awoke alongside me, and without much prep apart from the usual morning rituals, I was off to the starting line. She had intended to wait in the stands for the duration, but the unseasonable cold had us reassess our plans. She dropped me off at the shuttle bus, and we would reconvene at the finish line. I was able to estimate my arrival to the stadium finish line within about 10-15min, as I knew my pace was steady and true, so she would only have to endure the chilly air for a short while. I, on the other hand, was about to subject myself to the same intense conditions for about 2 1/2 hours.

As I walked from the shuttle drop-off to the starting line, I began to come under a deep focus. I repeatedly assured myself that I had trained well for this, and that I would undoubtedly better my time from last year. Then, an intense blast from the frigid North wind reminded what I was up against. This was going to be a tough morning, but I was prepared. I only chatted with one familiar face out of the thousands waiting for the event to begin. We had run the first 5 miles together last year, and he was a big help in encouraging me along the way. He was participating in the relay, so his advanced pace wouldn't allow us to run together on this day. As we parted ways, I made my way to the starting area, staying near the back of the pack. My numb and shuddering hands made the simplest tasks seem horribly difficult. It must have taken me 5 minutes to pin my number onto my shirt. It was ridiculously cold, but in only a few moments, the weather would be much less of concern.

As I crossed the starting line, my pace was immediately locked in. Based on many weeks of training, I estimated that I would be finishing in a time of 2:20, which would be a 20min improvement over last year. After the first mile, the cold wasn't much of an issue. My body gradually warmed as my heart rate increased and found it's own steady pace. The first half was quite comfortable and pain-free, and by the midway point, I remained on pace for 2:20, almost to the minute. From my prior experience here, I knew the second half was decidedly slower, and mostly uphill, so I hit the turn at around 1:07, allowing for a slight decrease in pace for the extra challenges that laid ahead. Unfortunately, no amount of training could have prepared me for what was coming.

Mile 7 was the beginning of the first uphill climb, and I fought through it, but began to feel slightly laboured by this point. Almost as if there had been small amount of weight added to my feet. I knew that a slight bit of relief from the steady incline was just up ahead, as I made my way up onto a bridge into a very open area. As the shelter of the trees vanished, a gust of wind (again from the frigid North), proceeded to blast me head on. The wind was unrelenting as I made my way over the bridge and onto a seemingly endless stretch of road. Soon, every step felt as though my feet were made of lead, and the icy wind was making it difficult to take proper breaths. As my breaths became shorter, so did my stride, and I could now feel myself slowing down. The glacial wind persisted for the next 3 miles, and by the time it subsided, I was exhausted. Just in time for the most brutal climb of the entire distance. The last few miles seemed to take an eternity, as the gaps between the mile markers appeared to lengthen.

When I spotted the Mile 12 sign, I felt a sense of relief that the end was near, but I knew that I still had to make it to the finish. The last mile seemed perpetual. Every corner I turned gave way to even more runners in the distance, but eventually, the stadium was in sight. As I hit the stadium's track for my final lap, I managed to find a small pocket of energy that allowed me to pick up my pace, shaving a few seconds off my time, and allowing me to cross the finish line with a little bit of gusto, in a time of 2:36:14. As I received my medal and countless high fives from the wonderful volunteers, I made my way to the recovery area. And though the run was finally complete, one of the most troublesome experiences of my life was just beginning.

As my eyes darted across the crowd for a familiar face, I munched on an apple, and powered back some water and a bit of yogourt. My wife was to meet me at the finish line between 9:30 and 9:45, and my arrival fell perfectly into that time frame. Not willing to stray far from the finishing area, I searched for someone nearby that might be willing to loan me their cell phone. After three calls and no answer, my concern began to rise, but I patiently paced around the area for 30min. As the crowd began to disperse, there was still no sign of her, and I was getting very chilled. She was in possession of the warm clothes that I was supposed to change into immediately after finishing. Thankfully, a medic noticed me pacing around the area and came over to check me out. I explained what was going on, he gave my vitals a quick check and led me to the infirmary area. He felt as though I may be going into shock from the cold and wrapped me up in a blanket. I was somewhat stabilized within 30min, and was watching the finish area very closely for any sign of my wife.

Not content to sit and wait, I returned the blanket, and told the medic that I was going to head out and see if our car was parked in the shuttle bus lot. It was a relatively small lot, so it would be easy to spot the car if it was there. It was possible that she had fallen asleep on the couch at home. I hopped on the next heated bus for the 10min trip to our lot, and spotted the car almost immediately as the bus pulled in. This confirmed that she was indeed at the event, but where? After two bus loads of people had arrived at the parking lot, about 30min had passed, so I headed back to investigate further. By this point I had left countless messages on her cell phone, updating the situation and my location. I also had informed the shuttle bus drivers and they were communicating via CB radio to be on the lookout.

As I arrived back to the race site, the full marathoners were filing out, and the finish area was becoming very sparsely populated. It had been 2 hours since I had crossed the finish line, and the shuttle buses were scheduled to cease in 1 hour. I tried to keep a level head on the exterior, but internally I had numerous dire scenarios cycling through my head. Over the course of the next hour, I had checked the infirmary, had her paged over the stadium's P.A. system two times, and had been to the parking lot area and back one more time. The final shuttle bus was leaving shortly, so I had begun to calculate a Plan B for getting home and dealing with this mystery from there. As I approached the lone bus, the driver immediately recognized me and gave me the "thumbs up" signal through the windshield. As I quickly hobbled toward the doorway, he mouthed the words "Found her.". As I limped off the bus for the last time, I thanked the driver and his crew for their help. She bolted out of the car and ran over to embrace me. I was beyond elated that she was OK, and after the initial shock subsided, I was anxious to hear her side of this ordeal.

She had arrived a little bit earlier than planned to stand alongside the race course and root me on. Near the runners' entrance to the stadium, she found a comfortable spot to view the final meters. Camera at the ready, she proudly waited to cheer on her hubby. But, she somehow managed to miss me as I tottered by. So there she remained, no cell phone (her battery had been drained), and no idea that I had already finished. She stayed in that spot for nearly 3 hours playing out her own calamitous scenarios of what may have happened. Certain that I was lost or injured, she did some investigation of her own, and finally managed to remotely check her phone messages, leading her back to the car. Good intentions gone bad, I suppose.

My recovery was more swift and much less painful than last year, and it was likely a combination of good preparation combined with a lot of (inadvertent) walking after the run. No chest congestion this time, just a day's worth of sore knees, and a few days of sore muscles. So, another year gone by, and another 13.1 miles under my belt. I would ultimately like to do at least one half marathon per year, maybe even working myself up to two. But, I won't consider the full marathon until my body weight is at or below the 200 pound mark. My joints just couldn't handle the punishment.

As for this blog, I will continue to compile my thoughts and post them on a monthly basis at the very least. I've really got to analyze what it's going to take for me to actually change my habits for the better. Check back here this time next month for a full progress report!

Thank you all so very much for your support, I will be a success story yet, mark my words.

Week 26 & 27 - The Time Is Nigh

Well, it's almost here, two days away. 21kms this Sunday morning. I feel very prepared, my last long run was perfect. I felt as though I could have done the 21kms that morning (I stopped at 14kms), now all I have to do is replicate that effort this coming Sunday.

The problem is that this whole exercise was supposed to inspire me to lose weight. Instead I have "maintained" at best, still hovering around the 240's. I'm going to have to step back and re-think this whole weight loss plan. As much confidence as I may have in myself, I just can't stop eating poorly. Nobody can stop me. I'll keep sneaking little nibbles here and there when no one is looking, as though I'm ashamed. It's a sad state that I've been in before, and without some sort of help, I'm not sure that I'll EVER snap out of it. I'm going to step away from this blog for the rest of the month as I try to sort out what it is that I need to do to get my mind in tune with my body. I feel as though I've tried everything apart from hypnosis, and I'm still in the same position I've always been, spinning my wheels.

I will post my results when they are made available, and then will take some time to sort things out for myself. Look for my next update at the beginning of July sometime.

Thanks for reading and please wish me luck for this Sunday, I'll surely need all the support I can muster.