I DID IT! The Nike Women's Marathon in San Francisco!
Racing to save lives and the path to a Tiffany's necklace.
Race day. Weather perfect for a marathon, not too cold, not too hot, dry and cloudy.
Mile 0. We use the port-a-potties twice before we are heading to our starting position. The last few pre-race pictures are being taken. We hear the race gun go off and 15 minutes later we are running.
Mile 5-ish. The Golden Gate Bridge is hidden in the fog or clouds.
Mile 6. First hill. Not too scary yet.
Mile 7. Coach Stephanie finds me and runs a little with me. We see Carson in her cheering outfit and hear her cheer! All feels good.
Mile 10. This is EASY!
Mile 12. The half marathoners are leaving our route and are heading to their finish. I could have just done a half and would be done now… hhmmm…
Mile 13. It took me how long to get here??
Mile 17. Amanda finds me and runs with me and cheers me on. YEAH! GO TEAM!
Mile 18. Coach Stephanie finds me again, assures me that the run around the lake is just like a Town Lake run. Only a small incline right after the lake and then downhill to the finish line.
Mile 19. I catch up with Leslie.
Mile 20. People talking on cell phones. Cell phones are ringing all over. I understand that this part of the course is tough, but SHUT UP!
Mile 21. The Chocolate Mile. Chocolate?? CHOCOLATE?? Seriously, I want a steak!
Mile 22. This lake sucks!
Mile 23. BITE ME! Who needs a Tiffany’s necklace anyways? I don’t need to run a marathon again. EVER!
Mile 24. Only mile 24? I think it took me an hour to run the last mile…
Mile 25. Breath in. Breath out. 1 mile to go. You can do it! Coach Luis finds me and runs with me. Only 3 more stop lights to the finish line. Luis hands me off to Stephanie who shows me the actual finish line and takes me close to it.
Mile 26. My parents and brother are cheering me on. Somewhere I see my team. Nearly there.
Finish Line. DONE. D.O.N.E.!!!!! My eyes are fixed on the blue Tiffany’s box, I also get my finisher’s t-shirt. I am done. YEAH! It’s starting to sink in. I am done! A tiny smile creeps up with the last bit of energy left. I find my team and we are all excited, having our Tiffany’s boxes in our hands. Someone asks: “Did you see the hot firemen in tuxedos?” – “Where were they?” – “Giving you your necklace…” – “Oops, I must have not looked up, focused on the box and missed them.”
My marathon Q&A
Did you finish? – Yes, I did!
When did you know you will finish? – At the start line.
When did you finish? – Same day.
How do you feel? As if I just ran a marathon…
When is your next marathon? - [biting off head of person asking]
I raised over $4000 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. I would like to say THANK YOU to all my family and friends who have supported me through this journey. Thank you also to our coaches Stephanie and Luis and the whole TNT running team. It was awesome!!! GO TEAM!
View my photos from the Nike Women's Marathon 2009
