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!!