harikoa/joy

I ran marathon # 2 yesterday. the Auckland marathon! And it didn't turn out the way I would have hoped. It started off with my ferry from the city to the start of the race being delayed by a cruise ship that was parallel parking in the harbor... not an easy or quick task. So I arrived at the beginning of the race with just 15 minutes to go the bathroom one more time, shed my extra clothes, and then find my spot in the lineup behind the start line. Needless to say i was stuck behind a couple thousand people and it took 2 and a half minutes before I even crossed the start line after the horn was blown. (I realize that that's nothing compared to marathons like the Chicago or New York but still). I spent the first 3-4km's weaving my way through the pack before I was able to run naturally...but i wasn't able to get into a good groove until much further along in the race.

Crossing the harbor bridge was a highlight once again. the Weather was perfect and beautiful and the view from the top was great. But as I finished the bridge and approached the halfway mark I knew that the race wasn't going to be a good race for me. I finished the half marathon still on pace for my 3 hour goal (1:30) but things just didn't feel right. As my lovely wife handed me my second power aid bottle of the race I could just feel that the second half was going to be painful. With 12km's to go I had my first severe leg cramps despite drinking more fluids than I could have imagined possible. For the rest of the race it went like this: run half a km, walk for a minute, run a bit...cramp and scream in pain, stretch and repeat. it was a bad race. I'm happy to say that I finished but it took every bit of mental strength I had to keep going. And as I take my second strike in my quest for a 3 hour marathon I'm left feeling disappointed and disheartened... 6 months of training and then to have just a shocking performance on race day is pretty tough!

Highlights/memorable moments of the race: My lovely wife getting up at 4:30a.m. to drop me off and then get ready to be my personal aid station (she is way too good to me and i couldn't have finished without her help). Watching a guy do the entire marathon while skipping rope. Seeing some new friends from ultimate Frisbee Cheering me on at different points of the race. Watching the 5th place guy collapse right in front of me as he ran back toward the city (don't worry lots of people went to his help immediately). Watching a husband catch his wife as she collapses into his arms with less than a km to go but yet they still finished together. and the best...two guys dressed up as Fred and Barney from the Flintstones attached together in the Flintstones car run the whole marathon.

Special thanks to the Bradley Clan, Laura, and Caro sticking around after their race to cheer me on. To ultimate Frisbee people being the loudest fans in the bunch. To an unlikely source of energy to help me finish the race (coke). Philippians 4:13. And to Sarah for putting up with this craziness!