Blog Hijacking

I am so not cool enough to have a guest poster, but I do have a post to put up written by Matt. Who is family not guest, so the concept of the guest post really doesn't apply here.

Anyway, folks keep asking about the marathon. (Apparently my account just insn't through enough.) Matt wrote this lengthy description of the event to a friend (minus all the embarrassing, insanely sweet and truly appreciated stuff about me at the end) to a good friend, and I thought why not just post this. So here is the description of running the Marine Corps Marathon from the guy who actually did it .........

Well, here's how it went:

I wanted to finish under 5 hours, and for the first 13 miles I was right on track to do that. There are a bunch of hills in the first 8 miles, so to be on pace I thought I had a good shot. It was a PERFECT day for running, about 50 degrees at the start and only got up to 65 or so, with a nice breeze.

Coming down Spout Run towards the Key Bridge was really pretty, and then looking across to Georgetown all covered in fog was awesome.

Sadly, mile 13 is out on Haines Point, a real desolate part of the course, and the wheels started to fall off. For the next six miles or so I was doing 25% walking and 75% running, and my sub-5 hour finish went out the window. I didn't get really discouraged, and the crowds on the Mall really helped me along.

BUT...I did accomplish one goal. I knew that a local runners group had a beer table for runners at around mile 23. Since I knew my finish time goal was shot, I grabbed a beer, there's even a picture of me with the beer cup in the online photos.

I thought my knee was going to let go at mile 24, but the pain went away and I was able to run the rest of the way in. The last hill up to the Iwo Jima Memorial sucked, but at least you could see the finish line going up it.

So how did it feel? It hurt. It hurt like a sonofa*****.

Sunday afternoon I was just achy, but I couldn't sleep that night because I wasn't comfortable in any sleeping position. Monday I tried going into work, but left at noon to come home and be one with the couch. I felt quite a bit better Tuesday, just have some dull aches today, and will probably be fine tomorrow.

More important than anything I may have accomplished on Sunday, is what Shan has gone through in the last year and a half of my new found “athleticism”. For the 5 hours, 17 minutes, and 52 seconds I was running on Sunday, I had multiple water stations, food stations, cheering crowds, and Marines basically telling me to HTFU (triathlete acronym for Harden the F*** Up, meaning suck it up and keep going). In the days since I have had many people tell me how great it is that I finished.

Shan spent those 5 hours, 17 minutes, and 52 seconds, and the rest of that day, and most of the day before, alone with our wonderful, but time consuming, daughter. She had no course support. She had no cheering crowds. She had no Marines telling her to HTFU. She did not have people telling her that she did a great job on Sunday.

Thanks baby, for everything you do, on Sunday and on every day we have known each other. You do a great job every day raising our daughter. Now HTFU and get packed for the Bahamas.