When you want it bad enough.....

Well it has been over a month since I last blogged...Totally unacceptable, but Vanessa does a great job on the family one to keep everyone updated, so I digress.


Since December 28th I have been training for the Eugene Marathon...with one goal and only one goal in mind:  Break the 4 hour barrier.  I had missed the barrier by 6 minutes in October at the Marine Corps Marathon in D.C.  Training was not spectacular for the marathon.  Meaning that I had some long runs that went pretty shitty to say the least..Actually of the 3-20 milers that I was supposed to do, I only completed 1 of them.  The other 2 I only managed 14 miles.  I also put on 15 pounds since the MCM, granted half of that or so was muscle since I increased my lifting over the last 5 months....plus I had some stuff going on at work, home, etc.  all of which, any athlete tells you has a mental impact.  Finally, I also have been fighting a pain in my left foot....in the plantar area, and basically every morning for the last month, when I wake up, I wake up with a limp....So going into the marathon weekend, I was really nervous.


So the big preparation started last Sunday with a commitment to making sure that I was eating all of the right things....and trying to stay off my feet as much as I could possibly could.  If you all remember, in DC, I did not eat great and I was on my feet too much.


We arrived in Eugene on Friday evening...We love this town...and we picked a hotel right on the river, and right along the course....I stayed on my eating schedule and last night was pre-race dinner night...I called a good friend and asked him if he had any suggestions for me....You see....I have bad luck when it comes to food...my stomach has killed my races in the past and I wanted to make sure it did not happen again...So we headed to the Olive Garden and with the help of the friend I chose a pasta dish with steak, some breadsticks and about 6 glasses of water.


This morning, after waking up every hour on the hour, I awoke at 5 a.m.  and stepped out of bed...and guess what...for the first time in weeks, no pain in the foot...So I gathered everything I needed and prepared to head out the door...but not before saying the following prayer which I found on-line a few months ago, and I am hoping at some point I can commission my little brother to do some remarkable art piece using it.....Enjoy...

The Runner's Prayer

Lord, Watch over me today as I run. This is the day and this is the time for the race.

Watch over my body. Keep it free from injury.

Watch over my mind. May I listen to the signals from within as I enjoy the scenes from without.

Watch over my spirit.

Watch over my competitors. Remind us that we all are struggling equally.

Lord, Let me win. Not by coming in ahead of my friends, but by beating myself.

Let it be an inner win. A battle won over me.

And may I say at the end, "I have fought a good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith."

Adapted from The Ultrarunner’s Prayer by Carolyn Erdman & Jay Hodde

After saying the prayer, I headed for the shuttle...on the way, I picked up a bottle of water and a box of granola.  The shuttle picked up right in the hotel parking lot and we headed to Hayward Field for the start of the race.  Along the way, I was starting to think of my race...mile by mile, water spot to water spot, what would my food do, how would I feel, did I pick the right meal the night before etc.  and then we were there.  While there I got to hit the port-a pottie a few times...Those times plus the two at the hotel before I left had me worried....

Then it was time...at 7 a.m. the gun went off, and at that time I had a choice...there were the 4 hour pacers....Did I try to catch up with them (they started almost two minutes before me) or did I hang back and listen to what the pros said the previous night...DO NOT GO OUT TOO FAST!!!!'

I listened to the Pros....and I paid close attention for the first time ever in a race to my pace right off the bat...When I was going too fast, I slowed, if I was going slow I sped up....

At mile 3, I teared up..no joke...Why?  because my foot felt great....Absolutely great...and I realized at that moment, that I may just do it...but I did not want to get cocky...

At mile 8ish I saw Vanessa, Camden, Emma, and Amber for the first time...and for the first time in my running career, I told them my time and how I was feeling...and I was feeling GREAT....

At mile 14, I saw them again, and I still was feeling GREAT....was not expecting to see them at that time, so it added a boost to my step...I also need to point out that shortly after this mile, I caught the pacers and continued to lead them for quite awhile...I also teared at this point because I realized that my goal could really happen...

Then came 19, where I saw the fans again, but they almost missed me....Gotta love it when they were not looking for me, because they did not expect me yet....

At mile 19 I also looked hard at the watch and knew that I had to be done with 20 miles at 3 hours to have any chance of breaking the 4 hour mark...this would give me a little extra time to make sure that I broke the mark..and it would mentally be my battle for the next 6.2 miles....

The 20 mile mark is considered to be the wall to many...fortunately for me it was not...Instead it was the point of the race where I realized that you CAN do this....You CAN break the mark, but how bad do you want it.....the head when back and forth between looking ahead of me and looking at my watch...back and forth, back and forth....

21 still on track, but getting more sore and it is getting harder to maintain my pace....

22, still on track and uh-oh, there they go...the pacers...they pass me, and I start to think...Can I, will I?

23, a pleasant surprise...My cheer section....they say I looked great, I think they were lying...because I know I did not feel great....and at 23, I had 32 minutes left to go....Doable for sure but I was hurting.

24, 2.2 miles left and then I hear a voice say...if you want it, get it, it will hurt, but it will hurt more if you do not....so I pushed...Thanks coach....see I do listen...

25, 1.2 to go and I stepped it up...I was waivering between 8:30 and 9:30.....but I dug in because I knew what was waiting for me..Hayward Field, more specifically the track....the track where my running hero Prefontaine ran....I would run in his footsteps...

25.75, I look ahead and see what I think is the track....it is and I look at my watch, I am getting close...real close...So I dig..I dig deeper then I ever have athletically....really....then it happens, my watch stops because the distance is a little off....so now I am at 2:57 and some change so I try to count...yeah right, that was not working, so I dig some more and I enter the track...I came upon an older woman who could not decide where she wanted to run, and she apologized and I grazed her shoulder and started to sprint...or at least what felt like sprinting at this point...because I had no clue where I was for time....Digging, Digging, Digging.....

26.2, and then I crossed.....and I must have looked spent, because two gentlemen were there to put there arms under me as I started to fall forward...They caught me, and asked if I was ok....of course I was...What was my time? What was my time? "Are you ok" Yes...so they let go and I fell forward....and they caught me again and took me into the Medical Tent...Where i got some tender loving care for 10 minutes or so....A glass of Gatorade later, and a bottle of water I leaned up and was ready to go....Then the kind young lady said to me "Whoa Buddy" not yet....Guess I did not look really good yet....another 5 minutes later, I did and I walked out(hobbled actually)....

So then I tried to find the family to no avail....Thats ok, because at this point, I still had no idea what my time was....and it was eating me...Should I be happy, sad...WHAT????  Then there it was....the scoring table...they enter your # and out comes your times....I grabbed it and was scared to death...Then I looked down....3:59:07......and for the next 5 minutes....I was a man brought to tears.....

15 minutes later I found the family and we hugged, kissed and shared stories from the day....Man I love these guys....and I was so happy to hear about everyone tracking me throughout the day...and Vanessa keeping everyone up to date as well.....LOVE YOU...

So now my list of odds and ends during the race....I do not have 26.2, plus, I think I already talked about most, so here are some new things...enjoy...and THANK YOU TO all of you...

1.  I did not have one bowel movement during this entire race...Thats a first, and hopefully not a last...

2.  One woman I saw did...Poor Woman, had an accident....when she passed me later, she now had a shirt tied around her waste.  Little observation with that...If anyone else but a runner was walking around with shitty drawers, would it be acceptable...Nope...another reason to love running.

3. Jelly Belly Energy Beans...Love them, and could not have finished today without them.

4.  3088 Calories

5.  My songlist Rocked...Rocky came at the right times, and so did music that had special memories..

Enjoy the pics....both below and on FB when they are up.......