Go Runners Go!

The Marine Corps Marathon was yesterday. I could hear the announcers from my bedroom in Arlington. I could see the road closures from the windows. And part of the race course was on the road by my apartment building. I was feeling pretty sad. I got up at 7 and went for an hour run. Then I pulled myself together, ate some donuts, and dragged Boyfriend out with me to cheer on the runners.

IT WAS SO MUCH FUN!

I love to cheer people on in races. I love to race more, but if I can't race, I want to cheer. I would never avoid a race because I wasn't doing it. I can't imagine going for a long run instead of cheering on the runners. It was a BLAST!! I had a cowbell and someone gave me a big horn and I was not quiet for one minute. Constant cowbelling and yelling are my style. I was meeting them all right after they hit mile 23. I got there around the 2:15 hour mark and there were already a bunch of crazy runners speeding through. They didn't really acknowledge my cheers, but I don't always either. I know how important it is to have people cheering you on, so I just kept yelling. But after we hit the 3 hour mark, that was when people were giving me the thumbs up, high-fiving me, and screaming "THANK YOU!!!" as they shuffled by. There were several people who were walking as they approached me but when they got close to me they started running again. I absolutely believe in the power of a cheer squad and I can only hope that I helped some of them through the last 3 miles.

Some tips for people who are going to cheer at a marathon:
1) cheer for everyone! ring your cowbell or wave your sign for everyone who walks by. it doesn't matter if you know them or not!
2) if you see someone who's wearing their name on their shirt, call it out! if they don't have their name on, but they have writing on, yell that out. it will lift their spirits! (for runners: put your name on your shirt or your body somewhere!)
3) if you bring your kids (and I suggest you do!), don't let them get so close to the race course. There were two little girls cheering next to me for a while and they kept blowing their horns into the race course. Like abruptly raising a huge plastic horn into runners' paths. Their caretaker did not seem too concerned, which really started to irritate me.
4) have fun! Runners need positive energy as they power through their race. Laugh, cheer, and dance! It will lift runners' spirits.

I pretty much gave up on specific cheers and stuck with "great job runners!" "you look strong, keep it up!" and "you can do it! finish strong, stay strong runners!" Maybe the people next to me got sick of it, but everyone needs to hear you. The runner passing you 5 minutes ago doesn't care if you're still telling the people behind them that they have a good pace too. I really believe that there were a lot of people out there yesterday who needed to hear, "you CAN do this!" I know that I've needed that little pep talk in a race before.

I made myself a promise yesterday. As long as I live in the DC area, I WILL do the Marine Corps Marathon. I can't stand to miss it ever again! What an incredible race! Congrats to all the finishers!!

It's not too late to do another marathon....RIGHT?!!?!?

First off, let's kick things off with a shout out to Rich, who made my YEAR by commenting on my blog. Let's all go visit his new blog at http://mydaddyisarunner.blogspot.com/. He had the misfortune of having me photobomb a few of his race photos in the Hershey Half Marathon and was kind enough to search me out and comment on my blog post!

In other news...I'm debating signing up for another marathon before 2012 hits. I'm feeling the bug pretty badly and I'm not sure if I'll be able to resist. I figure that I can get in a few 20 milers in November and do a December marathon? The only problem is that I'm late in registering, so there's not a ton of races left, ESPECIALLY in my vicinity. Doing this would probably mean going down to Florida or something and as nice as that sounds, it's probably not gonna happen. Sooo....Rehoboth or some trail run in Baltimore? Thoughts? Suggestions? The Rehoboth one happens to be the day before my Jingle All the Way 8k...but 8k is only 5 miles (not even 5 miles, just under). I think it would be totally feasible but would it be a really jerk move to do that since I signed up for the Jingle race with friends and family? Would anyone go to the beach in December to support me? I guess I may find out...I'll keep you all updated on my decision.

This weekend I'm going to go cheer on the Marine Corp Marathon runners. I'm so excited to stand on the street and yell at people for a few hours!! I was going out for a morning run yesterday and a random guy in my apartment building asked how far I was going. In general I hate that question, because I often don't know yet. I just go for as long as I feel like. So I kind of stammered and he ultimately got around to saying, "You should do the Marine Corps Marathon! I think it's next weekend." Oh, dear, poor fellow really set me up for that one. Ready for my spike? "Oh yeah. I've done that one. Twice." BAM. Right in the face!! He looked shocked (although I'm not sure why, I think I look like I run pretty steadily) and all he could muster was, "well look at you!"

Yeah that's right. Look at me! I'm a runner!

Does 13 seconds really make a difference?

This weekend, I did the Hershey Half Marathon. It was one of the smallest races I've done (only 5,000 people). Let me tell you - small races may be the way to go. It was so personal - names on the bibs, easy to get to the starting line, convenient parking, very decongested start line. There were a LOT of spectators, which kind of surprised me, except when you think about it, people bring their whole families to the smaller races. Don't get me wrong, it was no Marine Corps Marathon. But it really was a great race. It was a gorgeous day for it and it went through the beautiful PA countryside AND through Hersheypark. They also had a chocolate aid station, which was wonderful. The schwag was pretty awesome too - a great reusable bag, cool t-shirt, 13.1 bumper sticker, and an insulated lunch box filled with goodies at the finish. I think I just might do this race again next year...

I also managed to improve my time from the Philly half marathon by 13 seconds - so I shaved off one second per mile. So I PR'ed this weekend, which made me ridiculously happy for some reason. I also was in the top 500 finishers in the race (which really only happened because it was a small race).

In other news, a 100 year old man did the Toronto marathon this weekend. FULL marathon. UNBELIEVABLE!! Can you even imagine being 100 years old and doing 26.2 miles? He said he was so happy that it only compared to his wedding day. I told this to my friend and she immediately responded with "that'll be you someday." I think that's what every runner, deep down inside, wants. Yes, we would like to win races and improve our times, but in the end it's about running as long and as much as possible. Keep going till you can't go no more!!!

Fanatic?

So far, I've had several people send me an article about the woman who ran the Chicago marathon while 39 weeks pregnant (she gave birth a few hours after finishing the race). At first, I was a little confused. I am not pregnant and I was not lucky enough to run the Chicago marathon. Then I realized a great thing: when my friends and family think of marathons, they think of me.

That makes me smile.

In October 2008, I completed my very first marathon: the Marine Corps Marathon. Since then, I have completed 2 (soon to be 3) half marathons, 5 ten-milers, 10-15 10ks and 5ks, 5 marathons, 2 ultra-marathons, and one triathlon. I feel like that's a great start. Now let's keep going!!

Who wants to be on my race crew for this in 2013?