Top of Utah MARATHON

It was an early start and I did NOT get near enough sleep. I had to wake up at 4am on Friday morning to catch my flight home and then this morning I had to get up at 5am so we could get on the buses. we slept at Monica's so we could get to bed earlier but it still wasn't enough sleep for me. My dad was kind enough to get up and drop us off so we wouldn't have to worry about parking.
We got on the bus and had a long hour or so ride ahead of us. It wasn't too bad, I closed my eyes the whole time but I didn't sleep.
Rich has been training hard all year for this and was really excited for this day to come. He ran it last year and missed qualifying for The Boston Marathon by 9 minutes and he was determined to qualify this year. He actually set a goal for 2 hours 45 minutes which was really ambitious.
Last year when he ran he didn't stop for water or anything until like mile 20...yeah I know that is CRAZY, his body was probably SO mad at him. This year he knew that he needed to take the time this year to hydrate himself. He said about mile 24 he wanted to give up. He said his legs were SO tired but he was so close that there was NO WAY he could stop.
He crossed the finish line at 3:04:46. It wasn't as fast as he wanted but he qualified and that is all that matters. Also he improved his time, last year he finished in 3 hours and 19minutes.
They were really worried about the way he looked as he was getting his medal and the paramedic made him lay down so he could get his blood pressure and pulse. They kept asking him if he wanted an IV and told him that would really help him recover much faster. He declined (he hates needles and would never volunteer for it he would have to be forced).
He went over to the tent where they were doing massages and was able to get worked on a little bit and felt much better after that.


Monica was next to finish. She was more diligent in her training than I was. She was following a training schedule and she goes to the gym with Amb several times a week. She is always faster than me. I talked her into doing this marathon and I hope she doesn't hate me too much!!
She started having knee pain (I can't remember what mile she was at) but she had to stop and have them wrap it for her. She had to walk for a few miles but she endured the pain and kept on going.
Monica got 1548th place. Her time was 5:37:44. She was hoping to finish in 4 1/2 hours and I know that if her knee hadn't caused so much trouble she easily would have!! Great race Monica, glad you survived!!


Then it was just me. I started out slow and wanted to pace myself at about 11 minute miles in the canyon since there was the downhill help but that didn't really happen for me. I didn't get any running in the week before because I was out of town and I just needed to be in better shape overall. I really enjoyed running in the canyon, it was so beautiful.
We gave my dad our cameras so he could take pictures of us on the course. We told him to wait where we came out of the canyon so I was looking forward to seeing friendly faces as I came out of the canyon but no one was there. I was a little disappointed and kept thinking I will see them in a few minutes.
Finally I saw my dad and he and Melissa and Alexa and Amb were waiting for me. He told me that Monica was just five minutes or so ahead of me and I thought he was lying so I would run faster. He wasn't lying. It was great to see them and I was glad that they were there to support me. Its amazing how much it helps to see familiar smiling faces.
I stopped 3 times to go to the bathroom and several times to rub icy hot on my thighs, my muscles were cramping and sore and it helped alot. I also ate some goo (not sure how you spell it) I have heard from people that is is really nasty but I didn't mind it. I don't really know if it helped any but it sure didn't hurt!
I got 1583rd place. My time was 5:43:26. I was really hoping for under 5 hours but when I saw my time coming out of the canyon I knew that was impossible so I just knew that I had to at least keep the pace I was going cause I didn't want to be over 6 hours.

As I crossed the finish line and started walking over to give my sisters high 5's it was more painful than when I was still going. I guess after 5+ hours your body gets in kind of a rythm and when you stop your body has to re-adjust. I was so happy to be done and was anxious to find out how Rich and Monica did.
Rich placed 3rd overall in his age category so he got a little moose trophy and I was so proud of him. I am so glad its over but so glad that I did it!!