marathon

Off to a strong start. Taking it easy, but it wasn’t too hard to keep it under an 8 minute pace. Dreaming of a 3:25 finish, I was on my way. Completely unwinded, I just needed to maintain and I’d have a spectacular finish for my first ever marathon. All was well, and I was having fun. Easy cruisin’, I was getting tons of cheers from the glowing crowd and having some good laughs at the signs in Atlantic City… a guy with a sign “Run if you think I’m pretty”, another one “Happy Birthday!”, “Worst Parade Ever”, and then “Keep chafing the dream”, lol.

…Until mile 13. My hip flexors started getting sore, just like in half marathons, but now I had to do it again. I turned my head to read a sign “When your head says you can’t keep running, run with your heart”. This put a smile on my face and made me feel how much people supported us in what we were doing.

Mile 18, calves and thighs burning, I was forced to walk from both the pain and the knowledge that the legs might not work at all without a break. I was now questioning the possibility of finishing at all, let alone under my conservative goal time of 4 hours. This continued, walking and sitting and stretching, just to go another tenth of a mile and stop again. Walking brought pain to my foot, so speed walking wasn’t an option.

Fearing another pace team passing my defeated body, around mile 21, the 3:50 pacer and his crew of three started to pass me fully trucking. “C’mon let’s go, you can do an 8:45 pace, I know you got it in you!” This pacer was on it. His energy was on another level, and I had to join them, even if just for a little bit. Our pacer hyped us up to push our limits and keep pushing them. “Next target”, he said, “guy in the blue hoodie”.

I always thought I was great at hyping myself up, pushing my own limits, without even listening to music. But the fog of uncertainty had crept up on me, right alongside the fear of defeat, on the arduous journey to 26.2. I thought I was being rational and securing any hope of a finish by walking, crouching, stretching, and trudging at an 11:00 pace when I was running. And yet here I now was, firing down the boardwalk at 8:45 pace, full burn in my legs, fighting and winning against a clock, and yet my legs had not failed me.

My heart rate rose to give me a more full workout, which was nice. The miles were ticking up faster and I was happy to be just getting it over with. And I got the feeling that I was doing just as much damage to my legs at this speed than at that slow trudge. So as I saw it now, running fast was securing my finish, as I faced total leg destruction at a time unknown. Going back and forth with pacer Shane and our team, joking and encouraging each other, really raised the stakes and vibrations. Feeling optimistic, legs burning like fire, I dreamed of finishing with this crew at 8:45. It was the perfect pace for me now, pushing me just beyond my edge.

Then something came into head, clear as day. “God only gives us the challenges He knows we can do”. I now knew I was going to finish this thing hands down, with or ahead of this pace crew. I thought about some friends dealing with tough life issues, feeling powerless and defeated, and how I wished them to hear this. And that’s how it finished. I pulled ahead of my pace team with the finish line in sight and the cheering crowd filling me with excitement. And I crossed the finish line.

Thinking back, maybe I’d have had a better time if I trucked it through the walk phase, or started the race slower. But the journey taught me more than a perfect race would have. I came into this race just hoping for completion, then getting back to the half marathons, my sweet spot. I now, however, understand the drive of these wild marathon runners. It goes beyond just running. It mimics the challenges of life, which are often drawn out like a marathon. It teaches us to dig deep, even those of us who think we already dig deep, to complete any challenge that God throws our way. It told me to take advice from others like that pacer; to adjust my strategy and look at the challenge in a different light. It showed me you don’t always have to save something in the gas tank for later; just give it your all in the moment. And of course, to have fun with it!

Nothing anyone told me pre-marathon got me hooked beyond just checking it off my list and having fun trying something new. It was only by doing it that I felt the magnitude and duration of the challenge, and was able to uncork more of the reserves of fortitude that exist within us. So thank you to my friends who planted the idea in my head initially, encouraged me to do it, and made the journey so fun and worthwhile. And thanks to my non-runner family and friends for your solid support. Sitting and reflecting now post-race, I plan to apply the experience and lessons to life’s other challenges. I hope others can tap into God’s message too that He sent me. And yes, I plan on doing anoth.