All Things Marathon: Game Time

In less than 9 hours (going to keep this short since I do need some sleep), I will begin a run I have trained long and hard to accomplish. There have been ups and downs over the last 17 weeks. From knee pains, to fantastic long runs (some even alone), to my planned marathon race being canceled, to pain free runs: it has been a roller coaster for sure. Knowing that I survived all of that and more, I know, without a doubt in my mind (despite my words), that I CAN and WILL dominate 26.2 miles tomorrow morning.

Thanks, in advance, to all my friends and family that are planning to be there tomorrow to support me. Waking up early, hanging out in the cold, giving a Sunday morning to support and cheer me on, y'all are so great. Thanks to all the friends and family who will be "running:" with me tomorrow. My writing on my shoes thing back fired a little in that I am a wee bit OCD and didn't think I could make it perfect. But I have written all the names for my fellow "runners" and the encouraging scripture and phrases on wrist bands that I will wear around my ankle tomorrow. If anyone else would like to "run" with me or has a special verse to share with me it is not too late. Comment/text/fb message and I will add you in the morning! I am so blessed by all the love and support I have received through out this entire process.

Race details are this... I still don't know much but this is what I got!
Location: Bachman Lake....2832 Shorecrest Drive, Dallas, Texas 75220
Start time: 7am
Course: 8 loops around Bachman Lake (boring I know) and a 9/10 miles out and back. Not really sure what that means but I'll soon find out.
My parents and some friends will be camped out at the start line, address above, in my car. They plan to cheer when I pass and then hibernate in my car while I keep running. I plan to finish between 5 hours and 6 hours. Without having run a whole lot in the last couple of weeks, I am unsure what pace I will have throughout the race. This is a much smaller race than I was anticipating, smaller than anything I have run. Little crazy seeing as it will be the longest I have ever run yet smallest.

Okay, bed time. Big day tomorrow! :)

All Things Marathon: Spontaneous Registration

I have officially processed and come to terms with the fact that the MetroPCS Marathon was cancelled and I did not have the chance to run my very first marathon this last Sunday like planned. When I decided that I was going to run a marathon, the goal was to run it before 2014. Around 7 o'clock tonight, after completing day 1 of insanity (yuck), I decided I want to keep to my original goal. Determined, I rushed to google and searched Marathons in Texas 2013. I found a couple different races but the only race that still had space is this coming Sunday. FIVE days from today! So, I did it! I took a very spontaneous plunge and registered for a FULL MARATHON without knowing anything about it!

Here are the details I have so far, I'll post more once I research this race and learn more!
Whine Not Another Marathon
Sunday, December 15
7am Start time
Located at Bachman Lake

All Things Marathon: Disappointment

Words can not describe the disappointment that came rushing over me as I read the official cancellation of the MetroPCS Dallas Marathon. It is hard to process that after sixteen plus weeks of training for one race (one huge, massive giant race) that it won't be happening. Like that, in one blink of an eye, the race day I have been anxiously anticipating is gone. Let's add to it the fact that it is totally and completely out of my control (I might have trouble with needing to control many things in life). I will be honest, I am deeply disappointed. I have shed many tears (currently crying as I type this) and will shed many more I believe. I know that it is for the safety of myself and all the other runners but that doesn't ease the disappointment. I am totally blessed for being surrounded by supportive and comforting friends (thank goodness for our snow day slumber party). I cannot get my emotions under control for few minutes at a time right now before I lose it again. Therefore, if ignore your call/text I am so sorry I just can't handle it yet. Yes, I will still run a marathon, when that will happen I am not sure.  I don't believe they will postpone the MetroPCS Marathon. I will begin looking into other marathons in the near near future to register for and run. With that being said, training will then drag out longer than just sixteen weeks (makes me want to cry more). 

Thankful for Ashley, Katie and Celina for sitting by me while I cry and try to process what just happened. So much thanks to everyone for the support and kind words during this very disappointing time.  I appreciate all the care and concern. I hate that I am unable to respond right away to the sweet messages. I will slowly start responding to messages and calls as time passes. 

All Things Marathon: Anxiety

So I might be suffering a little anxiety right now. So much has happened in the last 24 hours and I am struggling with how I feel about everything.
Yesterday morning I woke up to run 3 miles with Marley. It was very chilly but it was a good, pain free (PTL) 3 mile run. Very encouraging. By the afternoon, the encouragement started to wear off. My throat started to get scratchy and it was getting colder every hour. I wanted so strongly to believe that the bad weather was a media hoax. Texas weather is always so unpredictable, so how could they really know that it was going to be so cold and icy three days from then. However, Texas pulled through and proved the weather people right. In anticipation that the rain/sleet/ice nonsense was going to freeze, I trekked to Fairview to get iced in with friends. So thankful for friends to help distract from the depressing weather outside.
This morning (Friday) I woke up with a sore throat, boo. Rumors of the marathon start time delaying started spreading from the news people (see why I thought the weather was a hoax). Turns out that the Friday expo (packet pick up) is delayed till 2. They will not decide anything about race day till tomorrow evening or Sunday morning. When I first heard the rumor of the race delaying till 2pm, I no joke wanted to cry.
Over time I have gotten to a point where 5k, 10k and half marathons don't stress me out. I am stressing out about this marathon, very much so. The weather is heightening the stress level. I am praying the sun will come out a little to help warm up the ground and melt the slush. I pray the precipitation is done and gone for a couple days. I am closely watching email and the Marathon home page for updates on race day. In an attempt to prevent rising stress level and anxiety,  I am attempting to steer clear from social media, well really media of any kind (silly media hoax nonsense) to help prevent the anxiety. I am staying in and loading up on vitamin C and sleep to help kick the sore throat. Hopefully this afternoon, I'll go over to the apartment gym and get in a quick 15 minute run. It will be my last run before the race.  Trying to stay positive and mind over matter on this whole marathon thing.


p.s.- Thanks to everyone who has text/facebooked/called giving encouragement and prayer. Words can not express how thankful I am for everyone and their kind words. The offer is still on the table for anyone who wants to "run" with me. Feel free to call/text/facebook/comment and I'll write your name on my shoes and carry any and all sweet encouraging words you are willing to share with me. I am so blessed.

All Things Marathons: Prayer Requests

Pray for my LEFT knee. Since I ran 20 miles about 2 weeks ago, I have been having a terrible pain in my left knee. It is not a pain I have felt before. I have forced myself to run through it during long training runs but that is not idea for actual marathon day. I do not know what I have done to it. It is not a constant pain. I mainly feel it when I bend my knee. Pain does subside with rest, ice/heat and ibuprofen until I run again, usually kicks in around mile 3.

Pray for my friend Michelle. Over the last several weeks, her family has been fighting a nasty stomach bug and can't seem to get rid of it. Pray it leaves her house quickly and that she doesn't get it. After 16 weeks of training, getting sick the week of a marathon is just awful!

Pray for my FULL marathon running friends: Bethany, Michelle, Sarah and Stephanie.  These girls are fantastic! Just about every Saturday for the last 4 months we have met up at the butt crack of dawn to get in our long runs together. For most of us, we are running our first full marathon and will be our longest run yet!

Pray for my Relay girls: Marley, Katie, Kelsey, Ashley, and Jill. These wonderful girls have agreed to give up a Sunday morning to run and support me as I reach this HUGE goal. Jill and Marley helped me train for my very first half marathon and have continued to invest weekly in me and my running. Kelsey and Katie have been wrangled into running half marathons with me. Some of the best and most encouraging roommate I could have asked for. And last but not least a new friend Ashley, we have not had the chance to run together but once but her encouragement and kind words are superb.

Pray for decent weather. While many would assume warm weather is ideal for running, I would rather have 50 to 60 degree weather and no precipitation of any kind. I can really deal with any temperature, however, I can't deal with rain or sleet.

All Things Marathon: "Run" with me!

My relay team is actually running with me for my marathon but I invite YOU to "run" with me as well.  No running is involved and you don't even have to come cheer me on (but I would love it if you  did actually come). Just let me know that you want to "run" with me and I will write your name on my shoelaces.   I also invite you to send me a verse or passage of scripture to go along with your name on my shoes, it would truly mean so much to me!

THANKS so much to Shannon Schiefer for the idea! :)

All Things Marathon: Exchange Points

As many of you already know, the Dallas Marathon has a 5 person relay that runs along the full marathon course.  Back when I dreamed up this dream to run a full marathon, I had the brilliant idea to get together a relay team to run along side me. I have some superb friends who thought I my idea was brilliant as well and were totally down for running my marathon with me.  Thanks so much to Marley, Katie, Kelsey, Ashley and Jill for your support and love. They are rockstar and will all do a fantastic job distracting me and keeping my mind off of the fact that I am running 26.2 miles. 

On race day, I only plan to stop long enough to switch relay runners, take a quick picture, and maybe take a GU or drink some water at each other the exchange points. If anyone is wanting to come and cheer along the course I suggest coming to the exchange points. Below I have listed out all the different relay legs, location of exchange point, my estimated time of arriving at each exchange point and how to drive from location to location with avoiding road closures. 

I had to tweak things a little from last year, a couple of the exchange points have changed since last year but a super big THANKS to Amanda Redding for the original driving directions. I don't think I would have been able to wrap my mush brain around typing it all out from scratch. 

Relay Exchange #	Relay Exchange Location	Approx. Position on Course
1	Reverchon Park on Maple	Mile 5.7
2	Anita between Bremen and DelMar	Mile 10.7
3	Bath House on E. Lawther	Mile 15.3
4	Open Field on West Lawther and Tokalon	Mile 19.7

Leg 1 – Marley – 5.7 miles – 12:00 pace - 68:00 – 9:08

Leg 2 – Katie – 5 miles – 12:00 pace - 60:00 – 10:08

Leg 3 – Kelsey – 4.6 miles – 12:00 pace -  57:00 – 11:13

Leg 4 – Ashley – 4.4 miles – 11:00 pace - 48:00 – 12:01

Leg 5 – Jill – 6.5 miles – 11:00 pace - 71:00 – 1:22

Total time on course: 5 hours, 22 minutes

Estimated finish time (based on 8 am start time): 1:22pm

To Exchange 1 – Take I-30 W, exit 44B for I-35 Denton, exit 430B-430C for Market Center Blvd/Wycliff Ave. Turn RIGHT onto Market Center Blvd. Turn RIGHT onton Harry Hines. Turn LEFT onto Wycliff Ave. Turn RIGHT onto Maple. Park anywhere past Reagan.

Google Map: Maple and Oak Lawn

We will exchange at Maple and Oak Lawn, before the technical exchange point to avoid larger crowds. 

To Exchange 2 – Take Maple back to Dallas North Toll Way, Get on DNTW North. Exit Mockingbird. Take a RIGHT onto Mockingbird. Turn RIGHT onto Matilda. Parking is a battle here. Stonewall Jackson is the best place to park if you can find a spot.

Google Map: Anita Street and Del Mar

We will exchange on Anita between Matilda and Delmar, Team will find an open spot (closer to Delmar) to use for the exchange.

To Exchange 3 – Get back out onto Mockingbird toward Abrams. Turn LEFT onto Abrams. RIGHT onto Northwest Highway. RIGHT onto N Buckner Blvd. RIGHT onto Tarleton. LEFT onto Erie, LEFT onto Luna Pla. Park anywhere in the neighborhood. 

Google Map: Bath House Cultural Center

We will exchange close to the actual exchange point.

To Exchange 4 – Get back to Buckner. Turn LEFT onto Buckner. Take the Mockingbird/Peavy Rd exit. Keep LEFT at fork, follow signs for Mockingbird. Once on Mockingbird you till turn LEFT onto Williamson. Drive all the way down Williamson, it will take you straight to the course. Park as close as you to the crowd/course.

Google Map: W Lawther and Tokalon

We will exchange at the actual exchange point.

To Finish Line – Take Williamson back towards Mockingbird. Turn LEFT onto Mockingbird. Go South/LEFT onto 75. Exit 284A for I-30, take a RIGHT at the fork, follow signs for I-30. Exit 45 for Ervay Street. Merge onto Griffin St. Parking will be crazy.