Let me begin with the pain. The following is an inventory of the parts of my body that hurt today:
- big toe on right foot -- where the blister was
- ball of my left foot
- right achilles
- right ankle
- inside/back of my knees
- outer thighs on both legs
- inner thighs on both legs
- lower back
- upper back
- shoulders
- both upper arms
I'm sure as the day goes on, I'll find some additional ailments.
But, it's a good kinda pain. I'm sure if I'd have actually trained, I'd be in much better shape, but it is what it is.
Good day for a sick day today.
The Race
More thoughts on the race.
I forgot to mention the cow bell guys yesterday. At about mile four, I started parrying with a couple of guys that were wearing cow bells. One of the vendors at the expo were giving them away. Now, I'm all okay with cow bells, particularly if they're on a cow or if someone in the crowd is banging them, but I was going back and forth with these guys for about two miles. Every time I'd pass them, I'd get just to where it stopped being annoying, then I'd slow down or they'd speed up and those damn bells would be back in the annoyance zone. Finally, they passed and I was able to enjoy the other sounds of the race.
Music was a big part of this race. The Elite Racing folks promote all of their races with lots of live music. They do the Rock and Roll Marathon in San Diego and Arizona, the RnR half in Va Beach and a bunch of others. For this reason, I decided to go without my mp3 player. In the end, this was one of the down sides of the race. There were large gaps between the bands and at one point, two consecutive bands were on break -- though I did appreciate the Led Zep that they were playing in the interim. The second band decided to talk during my run by. Someone yelled at them to shut up and play. Well put.
I was also disappointed by the somewhat sparse crowds throughout the race. At no point, other than the final finish line, were there lots of people lined up. There were no high school bands as I thought I had read, and from mile 4 through 12.5, there were almost no spectators at all. Very disappointing.
For these two reasons, if I go back to Philly, I'll be sure to bring the mp3.
On a positive note, it was amazing to be in a field so large. It was my first event of this magnitude and it was great to be there with lots of other people at the back of the pack.
Also, they did a great job with the kid's run. My boys were totally stoked to get metals, bibs and t-shirts, just like dad. (Too bad those t's now have permanent Accelerade stains. Not like dad.) For $15, a worthwhile investment.
Standings
My final placements:
Overall: 11,307/11,629
Men: 5,918/5,978
Age Group: M 40-44: 894/898
More Pics
My youngest made two pics from the official PDR site.
Here, he is #75 on the right: link here
He's dead center here, with sunglasses on: link here
More Friends
Congrats to Scott and Stacey. Scott ran his first half in a blistering 1:53. Stacey finished not far behind in 2:09. Way to go guys. Sorry we didn't see you.
That about does it from Philly. Now where can I find a nice Ben Gay bath?
L'Chaim!
10 comments:
That is awesome having your son on the web site. I too will wear my IPOD next year. The park was nice but agreed that for about 8 miles I could have used the tunes.
Way to go on the half-marathon! I am running my first one in about 2 months and stories like yours are what keep me going!!!
Keep it up!
Twinges in the hinges remind you that you are still alive.
Hang in there and careful not to put all of you into that Bengay bath....
Scratch that one off the to do list. Now you need another goal to train for...maybe a century bike ride...or full mary.
Congrats.
looking at that second picture, I would pick your son to win. He's ready to fly.
You need a good ice bath. Fill the tub with as much ice as you can handle. It's best right after the run, but I bet it would still do you some good.
Not quite on the scratch off list, Mike. Still need to get to the point where I can run more of the race. I like the distance though. I'd like to do a full mary, but when, I don't know. Maybe the century next summer.
Ice bath, Pat? Uh, gee, thanks, but no thanks.
Couldn't be prouder. 2 years ago you wouldn't have made the walk from the hotel to the starting line. Youda Man!
He looks so tough in his shades... Looks like a future triathlete, to me.
Way to go Jeff! Last year I did my first half and it was an amazing victory. Now I'm looking forward to a repeat in 3 weeks with a chance to improve on my time.
You ARE a distance runner! Keep up the good work but give yourself time to recover - actively.
I seem to remember one of your correspondents early on advising you not to set such lofty goals, thereby inviting disappointment. Bet you're glad you listened to your own instincts (and your dear old dad :-) instead.
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