03.07.07
Sunday I ran the 22nd Los Angeles Marathon with my friends Brad and Angie. It was a great day for a run and I was able to beat my 3 previous marathon times. The day started with Julien driving Angie and I to the start at Universal Studios. We met up with Brad and I quickly lost Angie in the crowd of 26,000 racers before the start as she waited in the endless lines for the port-a potty. The two of us waited a while before we pushed our way up as close as we could in order to get a good position for the start. For some reason, the organizers thought it would be a good idea to have the walkers line up in front of the runners which made for a frustrating beginning. This ultimately worked out in our favor as Brad impatiently sprinted around the walkers and I followed in tow. Our first few miles were in the mid 8 minute range and at one point we hit a 7:30. The downhill in the beginning was just too tempting for us to hold back.
Jessica, my friend from work who ran last, year jumped in as a bandit around mile 6. She ran a few miles with us while providing support. She is a trouper as her Saturday night included a few glasses of wine yet she met us on the course with loads of enthusiasm to cheer us on.
We hit the halfway point at about 1hour 55 minutes which had us on track for a sub 4 hour finish. After we saw Julien and Bella at mile 14, Brad put on the gas and went ahead. At that point I was on my own with my fantastic ipod shuffle mix. Who knew that Melissa Ethridge could be so motivating? At this point I was taking it all in and really enjoying the race.
At mile 19 I was still on track for sub 4 hour race although I knew that things would start to slow down when I hit the uphill in East LA. Just as I started to fade, I was re-energized by the site of Brenda waving at me with Sophie, Laurie & Julien by her side. It’s amazing what seeing familiar faces can do to restore energy on the course.
After 3 hours I was at mile 20 and I knew that this was the start of the race for me. Up to this point I had a smile on my face and was truly having fun. Then came East LA. I had visualized the course the night before as I reviewed the route map. I’d envisioned mile 21-24 to be a little fiesta with mariachi bands and crowds of people cheering. Instead I was met with a 1.5 mile climb over smoggy freeways with LA paramedics standing around waiting with stretchers for the next person to collapse. This is where I had to dig the deepest to keep moving. After the eternal hill, I went around a corner where I saw a mile 23 marker with a downhill grade in the pavement. I think my adrenaline hit a peak at this point as I was so happy that it was all downhill from here to the finish. That was before I realized that the course finished uphill. Who’s ever heard of such a thing?
I crossed the 26 mile marker with only the sounds of footsteps around me. It was quite different from the deafening crowds in Chicago. Finally in the last .2 miles the crowd was making a little noise. I crossed the line in 4 hours 8 minutes. Brad was already over the line after his strong 3:54 finish. Angie finished her first marathon in 5:06. I imagine her four kids are pretty proud of their mom.
Julien captured some nice photos which are on the Flickr.
Thanks to everyone that came out and made noise as well as all of the friends that called/emailed to give support. I forgot how much fun a marathon can be.
