4 Days ago I put myself to the test. It was my second attempt at a feat I've always wanted to accomplish, but never knew if I'd actually commit to preparing for.
I ran the 2013 Eugene Marathon and somehow completed it with the WORST TRAINING and PREPARATION possible.
Last year, I gave it a go. I didn't do a single long run, I skipped out on a lot (and I mean A LOT) of training runs and I didn't take it seriously. When the day came, I made it to mile 20 before my right knee completely gave out and I had to quit. It was a terrible feeling, but nothing a little Red Robin couldn't fix.
This year I decided to try again and luckily one of our friends decided he was going to run it as well. He stuck to his training plan like a champion, which helped keep me on track much more than I would have on my own. Because of my crazy schedule I only completed one long run and I failed to keep up with the training schedule I had found online. I pretty much was setting myself up for failed attempt #2.
The day of the race, I got up at 5 am, got dressed and forgot my good-intentioned stop at the store to get a bagel before the race (probably due to nerves). Instead, I pulled up next to the shuttles at Valley River Center, downed a 5 Hour Energy and called it good.
Sitting on the shuttle, I began to feel my nerves ripple through my empty stomach. I was lucky enough to sit next to two old men who decided to get chatty with me about one of my favorite authors and I welcomed the distraction. After arriving and exiting the shuttle, I found my friend Joe, who was near the starting line. While we waited in a maze of lines to use the bathroom, I did everything I could to try and not think about what I was about to do. The bathroom situation used up most of our wait time, so when we finally got in our corral for the start, we only had a few minutes to get situated before the race began.
Our chips were embedded into our race bibs, so they didn't clock your time until you crossed the start line. I decided to walk up to the start line behind a sea of slow moving joggers, as though saving 30 seconds of jogging would allow me to conserve enough energy to run for 5 hours.
Once I crossed that start line, I set myself into my slow and steady pace; a pace that I didn't stray from or stop** for 4 hours and 56 minutes. (**Twice I saw friends cheering along the course and I ran over to them to give hugs/kisses WHILE jogging in place - gotta be honest here!)
I had prepared a playlist on my phone that held everything from Macklemore, to the entire Pitch Perfect soundtrack, to Mumford, to High School Musical. I even had the entire Catching Fire book on there in case I wanted a change during the race.
I was completely overcome with adrenaline for the first 10 miles. There were people everywhere along the route we ran. Playing music, waving funny and motivational signs, cheering for their friends and family. It was so entertaining that I almost missed the 7 mile mark where I wanted to send Shane my first picture update. It looked something like this:
After that, I focused my efforts on the next big milestone in the race: the halfway point. The half marathon runners split with us a few miles before that and I trotted on my way into the woods. It definitely put a sad spin on the race when I realized that almost everyone I was running next to was on their way to the finish line while I wasn't even halfway done. But, I grabbed a half banana from a race volunteer, splashed as much Gatorade into my mouth as I could while running and kept on my way.
Once I hit 13.1, I sent Shane another picture. I still felt really good - no aches or pains and mentally I was still completely in it. I found myself in Springfield, running past Value Village and then winding around past Autzen to Alton Baker Park. We were entering an area I was more familiar with in terms of running, so the change in scenery was a welcome one.
I decided to send Shane one final picture once I hit 20 miles. That was where I had stopped last year and I wanted to show I was still going strong. Just before mile 20, as I was passing Valley River Center, I noticed a few of our friends on the right side of the path. My excitement grew as I realized one of them was holding Colin and as my gaze drifted down the line, I saw Shane and Evan cheering me on with big smiles. This gave me a HUGE burst of energy that helped me forget the slow aches and pains that were starting to register. I ran up to give my boys hugs and kisses and then kept on, feeling my eyes start to sting with tears because I was so happy to see my family.
Realizing you still have a 10K to run once you've completed 20 miles is a little bit of a downer. Seeing my fam energized my mind and body for a few miles, but once I got to mile 22 I started to become more and more aware how much further I had to go. The phrase, "so close, yet so far away" kept repeating itself in my head and even my music wasn't helping to distract me. Every mile seemed to take forever and as I lost track of where I was, I figured the mile-markers could NOT be right. There was no way I was only 2 miles from Hayward Field and they were going to make me run forever.
Once I hit 25 miles, we took a turn and I finally realized how close I was. I knew during the final stretch my body would kick into overdrive to finish as it typically does, but getting to that point without stopping to walk was my concern. I'd run the entire race - a goal I had never set, but now it seemed like the only one that mattered. Turning another corner, I trotted onto the U of O campus and down Agate Street toward the finish. The crowds were thin (what do you mean no one wants to watch someone who ran 11 minute miles finish?!), but the ones who were there were flashing smiles and clapping wildly. I picked up my pace and ran through the gates to Hayward. The sight of the finish line gave me the boost I'd hoped would come and I started to run faster, crossing the finish line as I heard a woman announcer say, "Sarah Foster!!"
I will never forget that moment. My eyes immediately flooded with tears and I jerked/stumbled/sniffled as a young girl put a medal around my neck. "You don't even look like you ran a marathon!", a woman said as she put my space blanket around me, no doubt trying to console the emotional wreck in front of her. I have NO CLUE how I did it. Without the dedicated training runs, without the supplements...looking back on it now I feel so lucky to not have gotten hurt and to have recovered so fast.
All in all, I'm so glad I did it. The mental game for the last few miles was the hardest part, but if I can do it on one bottle of *5 Hour Energy and half of a banana, anything is possible.
*I'm expecting my endorsement deal any day now.
