Saturday: Rocket City Marathon

So, I did not blog on Thursday, because honestly, if all you have to chronicle is a brief run, the warming up of left overs and some wining about the cold, should you really blog?  As an internet personality, should you impose your dullness on the world.  It seems necessary to edit.

On Friday, I fully intended to blog about my marathon intentions and goals, but our day got a bit out of control and at 6:00 PM, I found myself hurtling down to Huntsville, AL in a desperate dash to get to packet pick-up before it closed for the evening.  After arriving at packet pick-up, everyone was grumpy, and we had to drive to find my pre-race bacon cheeseburger, which I feel is integral to my success.  While eating my cheeseburger, I could not help but notice that Ivan's eye was suspiciously pink, and it stirred in me an overwhelming fear that another pink eye saga was upon us.   It pretty much ruined my dinner, and I kind of wanted to pack up and go to the nearest emergency room and turn my child over to them and beg that we all be released from another round of the pink eye.

Anyway, once checked into our hotel, I laid out all my clothes and got as good a night's sleep as you can get the night before a marathon.  I was up early and caught the shuttle to the marathon hotel where I sat around and waited for the start.  The Huntsville marathon is a pretty laid back marathon, and I was on the start line at 7:58 mostly alone.  The race officials finally fired a starters pistol, just to get everyone to the start line.

Now, I started out the race pretty perky with the idea that I would run a 3:30, and even though I had not really trained.  Until about mile 20, I was still delusionally grasping at that idea, BUT at mile 19.5 the 3:35 pacers ran right past me like I was standing still.  I, in turn, decided to up my speed, and I felt like I was chugging along pretty fast.  I looked at my watch, and though I felt like I was running as fast as I could, I had dropped to 9 minute miles.  It was all rather sad, and I felt my good humor evaporate immediately.

I became the grumpiest of all marathoners, and I refused to partake in the "we are almost finished" marathon banter.  I was irritated with the spectators telling me that "you're almost there", and I decided that I would never run another marathon.  I decided I would devote myself to my swimming and the improvement of my cycling.  I ran in for a finish that was 8 minutes later than I had thought it was going to be.  I moved through the post-marathon lunch line and had a bagel and some vegetable soup and sat down in the dining room with all the other marathon finishers.  I sort of forgot my resolution, and answered,  "Oh yes, most definitely", to questions about running Boston in 2012.  AND, Ivan does not have pink eye, so everything is right with my world!!