I AM a Distance Runner

Wow, what a weekend!

To get started, without too much info, we left home at about 4:30 Friday. Unfortunately, just in time for rush hour through Baltimore. By the time we hit the Delaware line, the kids were whining and we needed to stop to pick up something else, anyway, so we hit Christiana Mall, and wound up at Ruby Tuesday's for dinner. by the time we rolled into our hotel in Philly, it was almost 10 pm. We checked in and hit the hay.

Saturday started with a visit to the King Tut exhibit at the Franklin Institute. What a great history lesson. Deb and I missed the exhibit when it was in Washington DC about 20 years ago (for free), so it was well worth the visit, not to mention the Franklin Institute is a fantastic place to go, especially with kids. One of the best science center type museums anywhere.

From there, it was off to the expo. First off, we signed the kids up for the 1 mile kids run, then piled as much crap as my goody bag would hold into it. The bag was huge, so we got quite the haul. Then, lunch at the Reading terminal. There must be 50 different stalls to get everything from southern food to sushi. It was quite good.

Then, back to the hotel for a swim before dinner.

Dinner was at a place called the Italian Bistro. A pretty unimpressive meal. Service sucked and what I really wanted was a huge plate of pasta. That just wasn't on the menu. A bit more up scale that I had thought it would be.

We walked back to the hotel and we got ready for bed.

I was exhausted and fell asleep fine, but had a restless night as I usually do before a race.

Having awakened during the 1, 3 and 4 o'clock hours, I was up getting ready to go at about 5 -- half an hour before the alarm. Deb and I had a nice quiet chat before I left at about 6:15.

The chill was evident immediately as soon as I walked out of the hotel. I understand that the starting temp was about 49! Perfect weather for shorts and a t-shirt. Brrr. What looked on the map like a 4 block walk to the start area was closer to a mile. No biggie, plenty of time. I walked around, picked up a banana, some water and hit the oh-so-popular port-a-pottie before the lines got started.

Dan from NJ and I had planned to meet up at 7 near his assigned starting corral. We ultimately met a few minutes later and had a chance to talk right up until race time. It was great to meet Dan as we had posted on each other's sites for months, emailed and have many things in common. Turns out we had worked at places about a half mile away from each other when I lived in NJ (though maybe not at the same time). Small world.

As the clock ticked down toward race time, I had pretty much decided that I would start off running, despite my conservative plans to walk the first 10, then run the final 5k. It was just too tempting and, frankly, too cold to not work on a sweat. I thought if I just ran a mile, I'd be warmed up and good to go.

Starting with Dan in corral 12, we finally crossed the start line 7:10 after the "elites". Dan was off and so was I. (Congrats to Dan on his scorching 2:10:46 time!) At first, I paid attention to every feeling in my lower extremities. Every twitch, every ache, every feeling was cause to evaluate my continued run. Although I did have some twitches and a few aches, none were in the ankle I was most concerned about. I decided to alternate running and walking every mile, as long as I was relatively pain free.

The first part of the course took us by historic parts of Philly, including the Liberty Bell (well, actually, just the building that the Liberty Bell sits in. Can't see it from the street.) I was able to run miles 1, 3 and 5. Then, I walked most of the next two as my legs were starting to feel pretty heavy.

At about mile 7, there was a heard of 20+ geese walking single file from the park toward the street. Those geese were determined to cross the street, despite the hoards of people running toward them. The first goose stepped into the street and had to dodge a few runners. It's pace certainly picked up as it realized that it might get run over. Goose #2 said "screw it" and took flight just before the curb and set down just past the runners. No clue what the rest did, but I was past them, now. A nice bit of levity in the midst of the run.

I ran from about mile 6 3/4 to 7 1/2, then a few other bursts, planning to run the last two miles. Ultimately, my feet and thighs were killing me. My thighs particularly felt like lead. The race organizers promote the fact that the course is very flat. This is quite true. What's missed is that you actually spend mile 4 through 12 going slightly down hill leading up to the final mile at a medium incline. A cruel finish for those who believed the press.

I continued to walk up to the last half mile when a woman that I had been jockeying back and forth with over the last couple of miles yelled out to me: "hey red (see picture), you gonna let a fat chick beat you?" Well, I got a nice laugh and then got back on my horse and jogged up the rest of the hill.

As I turned the corner into the finishing chute, I immediately saw Deb and the boys waving. I smiled the whole way down to the finish.

Yes, I did say finish. Three hours, eight minutes after crossing the start line, I crossed the finish line.

Now, this is not exactly speedy, but:

• I beat my goal of 15 minute average with a 14:21;
• I hadn't run in almost 2 months;
• My 10 mile race in May was at 2:21:22, today's 10 mile split was 2:20:07.
• I hadn't run in almost 2 months;
• My longest training run before the injury was just 4 miles;
• Despite the injury, I was able to run almost 5 miles;
• Did I mention that I hadn't run in almost 2 months?

Once I crossed the line, Deb and the kids came to greet me. The kids had run the 1 mile race and were both stoked to have received medals. (I got one, too!) We took some pics, went to refuel, then off to buy a finishers t-shirt.

Then, the long, long, long painful walk back to the hotel. Felt like 5 miles! Boy do my feet hurt. One big blister on my right big toe, otherwise, no obvious signs of abuse. Shower and off for reward -- cheese steaks at Geno's! Mmmm. As the pain continued to set in on the ride home, I couldn't help but to feel a bit euphoric. It's been just 14 months since I began to exercise and I just completed an event that had the word "marathon" in it. 13 miles by foot, just amazing. I feel great. (My feet don't, but I sure do!)

I've got to thank Deb for being the ultimate in support. She was great making recommendations, moral support, sleeping support (she took a kid each night in Philly so I could have a bed to myself -- we also had a pull out in the room,) cheering section, pain relief -- I've got my feet in a massager and a warm bean bag thing around my neck. Thank you, my love, you're awesome!

It's been a whirlwind day, and it's time to relax. I think an adult beverage is in order.

L'Chaim!