So I ran a marathon this weekend. Most of my run felt like a blur because I was having such a good time running. The views, the weather, the course, and not to mention the people all made the day absolutely great.

Thursday

The team arrived in Alaska Thursday afternoon. We were put in the Sheraton which was also fortunately the expo for the marathon. Not soon after checking in, my roommate and I went down to the expo picked up our bib numbers and walked around the expo a bit. They had all sorts of marathon related stuff like running equipment and the lot. There were also a few booths that had information about what to do in around Alaska. We picked up a few brochures, and I picked up some sweatbands and a running t-shirt with the logo from the marathon. After walking meandering through the expo we heard that some people were heading to a local bar/restaurant to eat. We ran caught up to them and went to a place called Humpy's. A nifty little bar with some awesome food. We got two servings of the best fish and chips that I've had since I ate some fish and chips in Fresno when Cori and I went to this festival thing at CSUF. For my actual meal I had a grilled salmon sandwich with chilli "soup." I call it chilli soup because that's what my roommate mistakenly called it and that soon became a shortlived running joke. The sandwich was okay but the chilli was a bit bland. After lunch/supper I headed back to the hotel room and relaxed for the rest of the day.

Friday

The next day we got up relatively early because we wanted to head a place called Portage Glacier which we saw in one of the brochures we picked up the day before. So my roommate Doug and I head down to the lobby at around 8:20 to get some breakfast because supposedly the girls we were with were going to get the rental car at around 9:00. We had a buffet breakfast that featured, among other things, reindeer sausage. The sausage tasted exactly like a mild Italian sausage. I liked the flavor a lot. Well after breakfast the girls went off to get the car, but there was some confusion which resulted in the rest of us waiting around in the hotel lobby for an hour and a half while we waited for the car to be picked up. Well we finally hopped in the car and set off for Portage Glacier or so we thought. We ended up going the wrong way for 15 miles or so until someone realized that we were headed North instead of South. We backtracked and then finally got back on the way to Portage Glacier. It was a very nice drive there and we got some awesome views of the surrounding mountains. I have no clue what mountains these were but they looked great.




So we finally got to Portage Glacier Lake with minutes to spare before the boat that went to the glacier departed. The cruise was short but also great, you can see a couple of the photos below. As soon as I can I will upload more photos to flickr. We drove back to town after the cruise along the way picking up some lunch. I had some delicious caramel ice cream. Three of us then went around town to do some tourist shopping. I picked up a couple of magnets for my mum and I also picked up a hat for myself. We then went to the local convention center because the pre-race pasta party was starting up.

I actually got chills walking through the doors of the convention center because of all the people cheering us as we entered. I felt really jazzed after the whole thing. The pasta was okay but not terrific much like the salad and cookies they also served but it got the job done. We listened to a few people speak about the Leukemia & Lymphoma society and about the race. The main speaker was hilarious and really kept the crowd alive and going. We didn't do much after the party except lounge around the hotel room and vegetate. I prepared my race clothes and ironed letters that spelled my name on to my race singlet. Doug and I then watched the last half of "I Spy" and learned a new word, "ass soup."

Race Day

I had been following the weather reports for the last week or so and all of them said that it would rain on Saturday. In most of my past runs I have not run well when there had been rain, so I was sort of fearing the worst. Well I woke up Saturday morning and of course it was raining. I ignored what my mind was telling me and got dressed as normal. I ate a muffin while Doug got dressed and ready. We then headed down to the lobby where everyone was waiting to get on the busses that would take us to the start. By time we arrived at the start venue the rain had subsided somewhat, which was a relief to all of us. We piled out of the bus, checked our bags, and then immediately got in line for the port-a-potties. The line took forever to move because the line we were in was only using one port-a-potty while the one next to us was using three. We ended up standing in line for 45 minutes to use the toilet after which we headed to the start line. For the past week or so before the race I had been really really really antsy. I couldn't stop moving and it was even worse just standing there waiting for the starting gun. I was bouncing and hopping around just wanting to get started. The race director talked a bit about the race, then the mayor talked some more, a group of boy scout sung the national anthem acapella which was nice, then the race started.

I started off slow like everyone told me, but I probably began a little too slow because it felt like I was walking instead of running for the first mile or so. The crowd started to thin out though and it became easier to run. I was deliberately running slower than I normally would so I could finish out the last part of the race strong. I was running about a 9:30 mile, which felt really slow but I didn't want to push it too hard. The funny thing I noticed was time seemed to sort of disappear while I was running. I'd look down at my watch and it would say I'd run 3 miles. I'd look down at my watch again after what felt like a few minutes and it would say 10 miles. Running with all the people and the absolutely amazing views just made time fly by, so the first half of the marathon flew by before I knew it. The first half of the marathon was also great because it was mostly over trails, which was great on the knees plus it was fun to run. I didn't even notice the elevation changes throughout the race. A little after mile 12 or so there was a nice long descent which I took in full stride. I think that was the most fun I had during the race.

I felt like I was flying through the course until I got to mile 22 when my legs started to cramp because I hadn't taken enough salt before the race. I tried running through the pain but couldn't take it anymore and had to stop to walk. I was really disappointed in myself because I wanted to run the marathon in 3:45 and was on target to make that time before I cramped up. I was now walking more than I was running. A mentor who was running with me gave me words of encouragement and gatorade but neither of which was helping my muscle cramps. Almost out of nowhere a coach from another TNT team appeared and saw that I was having problems. He came over to both of us and noticed that I was cramping. He asked the mentor if I had taken any salt. The mentor replied that I had drank gatorade, but the coach said that was not enough. He then reached into his pocket and pulled out a packet of salt, which he told me to eat. I ripped it open and downed it. The coach then helped me squat to stretch my quads and then he took off as quickly as he appeared. The salt didn't take affect immediately but I could start to feel some of its effects about a quarter of mile later. I started to run/walk. I didn't start to feel better until the last mile of the marathon where the dreaded "insult hill" began. I didn't even notice the hill and ran right up it and kept on running until the end and almost sprinted towards the finish line. I don't think I could have made it all the way if it weren't for the mentor who was running with me.

After running through the finish line, I heard my name announced over the PA system and then walked over to the little finishing area. I got my medal for finishing and the volunteers helping at the finish line took my timing chip. I walked over to the TNT tent to check out and get my marathon pin. I was really out of it at this point. I felt like I was walking outside myself. After getting some mylar blankets and a piece of bread I changed and started walking around looking for other people from our chapter who had finished. As I was walking though, I started to feel like I wanted to cry. I have no idea why I wanted to cry and was holding back the tears as I was walking around. I couldn't find anyone familiar, so I headed back to the TNT tent. I found a chair to sit on. At that point I couldn't hold it in any longer so I just started to cry. I can't describe what I was feeling because I had no idea. I knew I needed to cry. I was sitting there with my head in my hands crying and looked up. A woman noticed I was crying and came over to comfort me. I told her I didn't know why I was crying, and she told me some reassuring words. I eventually stopped crying after a couple of minutes so I sat there in a daze. I didn't really notice but I was really cold. Cold enough that I was shivering uncontrollably for someone to notice. Another TNT person came over and told me that she was concerned about my shivering and said that I might have a mild case of hypothermia. She said she wanted to take me to the medical tent so I could warm up. I didn't argue and gladly went with her to the tent. Along the way another TNT coach came to my side to help me to the tent. The woman told one of the medical people there that I was really cold and they sat me down and wrapped me up in a couple of mylar sheets and gave me heating pads to warm up. They also gave me grapes to eat and water to drink. I think I was in there about an hour before I was finally warm enough to get up and go outside again.

I was still somewhat in a daze when I walked out, so I walked back over to the TNT tent to see if anyone I knew had finished. I saw a few people but they were with friends or family, so I decided to go back to the hotel so I could warm up properly. I didn't feel I had enough energy to hang around anymore, and I didn't want to start shivering again.

The wait for the bus back to the hotel was longer than expected because all the buses that were coming through weren't going back to my hotel. There were at one point 3 empty buses all going to the same places but with no one on them because they were going to the wrong hotels. I eventually got on a bus after asking a bus driver if he was going near the Sheraton. I got off the bus and slowly made my way back to my hotel room still wrapped up in the mylar sheets the medical personnel had given me earlier. I changed, showered, and collapsed in bed. I was exhausted but I wanted to go back to the venue to cheer people in at the finish line. I went back downstairs and outside to where the bus had dropped me off. I stood there for about minute and realized I was too tired and sore to go back, so I went back inside to wait in the lobby instead. People slowly started to filter in when my roommate Doug showed up. We talked a bit about how we did and then he took a shower. We then went to get some food before the victory party since we had both barely eaten anything the entire day There was a place right next to the hotel called Country Kitchen. We both thought it was a buffet place because there's a "restaurant" in the bay area called Hometown Buffet which looks exactly like Country Kitchen. Luckily Country Kitchen was not a buffet but a normal restaurant. I got a huge two patty burger and Doug got a big breakfast meal. The rest of the night was one big celebration. There was the victory party where we danced, drank, and ate. I, along with some mentors and coaches, went to a bar called Chilkoot Charlie's and drank for the entire night. Although I couldn't get a buzz going at all because I was metabolizing the alcohol way too fast. A great night nonetheless.

This has been one of the best experiences of my life and I can't wait to do it again. I overheard someone talking about a marathon up in San Francisco in July and thought to myself. I wonder if I can run that? I'm really proud and happy that I ran a marathon. My words aren't nearly enough to express all the emotions I experienced that weekend but hopefully I've been able to convey at least some of what I felt.

This entry was posted on 6.21.2005 at 08:52. You can skip to the end and leave a response.