Mile 10 of Shamrock Marathon
That was when things went downhill...we rounded the corner onto the Virginia Beach boardwalk. From that point until mile 14, we had a 35 mph headwind. My energy level went from about 85% to 40% in just those 3.5 miles. That really slowed down our pace and I was starting to get worried about finishing on time. My mom met us at mile 12 and gave us each a Clif Builder Bar to eat. I really wasn't hungry, but knew I needed to eat. I got about half of it down and gave up. When we got to the half way point, we were told that we had just barely made the time cut off and that we had until 1:00 p.m. to make it to the gate at Fort Story, (mile 19) or they would close the gate and we would be transported back to the finish line and not be allowed to finish. This made my stress level go through the roof. Around mile 15 I started to feel really gross. I was feeling light headed and nauseous. I really wasn't sure if I was going to be able to finish the race. I told Christina to go on without me and slowed down. And then I got sick...
About 10 minutes later I had basically decided to give up. That was when Paula joined me. She was in her 40's and this was her second marathon. I really don't know if I would have finished without her. She grabbed my arm and said "we are finishing this. let's go." She stayed with me until about mile 18 when I finally started feeling better. At that point I knew I just had to get to the gate and I would be able to finish. I met a mother and daughter duo and told them about the time requirement and we all made it to the gate just in time. We all stuck together until we got out of the base about mile 21. The final stretch I did alone. I think because I got sick early in the race, I honestly never hit "The Wall" that people talk about at Mile 20. Miles 21-25 were just a straight shot down Pacific. About Mile the weather finally changed and it started sleeting. At that point I knew I just had to finish. About half way through Mile 25 I met two ladies who were still there watching the race. They asked if they could run with me the last mile. I told them "Sure!" And they talked to me and kept me distracted while the weather got worse and worse. I finally hit Mile 26 and only .2 was left to go.
Running through the sleet at Mile 26
The last .2 was glorious. I could see the finish line and finally knew I was going to finish. My mom was on the sidewalk beside me and yelling for me and my two new friends that were running with me said "You got this! Congratulations!!" and stepped over to the sidewalk to let me finish alone. I always thought that I would break down and cry when I finally crossed the finish line. Quite frankly, I think I was too tired to do that! The volunteers handed me my medals (I got an extra one for completing the 8K the day before) and that was when I saw Christina. I had finished just 30 seconds after she did. We were officially Marathoners.
Post Race Bash on the Virginia Beach Oceanfront
