Thursday, February 7, 2008

Huntington Beach Kicked my ass!

"Weather is shitty.cold.wind.rain."


Bib: 1288
Place Overall: 983 out of 1087
Women: 365 out of 419
F 01-24: 29 out of 35
AgeGrade: 40.73%
Place: 984


FINISH: 5:44:39 pace: 13:09
3 Mile: 29:30 pace: 9:50
6 Mile: 1:01:48 pace: 10:18
12 Mile: 2:20:30 pace: 11:43
20 Mile: 4:14:15 pace: 12:43

Chip Time: 5:44:39 Gun Time: 5:45:29

My first marathon was a rougher than I expected. My finishing time was way beyond what I had hoped for. It took me a while (about 7 miles) to finally accept that it was raining and it wasnt going to stop. The wind might have been a more difficult element to deal with than the rain. My first 6 miles were GREAT!!! but by the 12th mile I was already at 2:20:30 (had it been a half marathon, I would have done worse than the SB one). Come mile 20 I was pretty done...i wasnt in pain at all anywhere that I could pinpoint, but in general i was exhausted. (more than during my average long runs). I would say the toughest part of HB Marathon was not the course (because it was pretty flat) but the weather conditions, which affects not only one as a runner, but the mood. While at times I'd forget it was raining, spectators with umbrellas and jackets reminded me that it was raining. Hmm HB was certainly a mental challenge, almost as much as it was physical. (although of course it takes a toll on your body, and here I am thursday after running a fever a few days this week).

I wish it would have been different, and I had fun on some of the course, but I wouldn't say most of it. However, I have a feeling every marathon I run after this will be much smoother. (provided I don't have the same weather conditions.)

As for a lesson found in the running of this marathon, I finally understood the bible verse on Hebrews 12:1

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us."

Runners took off their gloves when they felt they no longer needed them. Likewise, they removed layers of shirts and those too they left behind. In order to finish the run to the best of their ability, they left it all behind. While it sounds simple enough, it's not. I kept my two shirts tied to my waist. The GEORGETOWN shirt, because it's my favorite and I always wear it on long runs. The HB Marathon shirt, is nice, good quality, I wasnt going to part with it after having it less than 24 hrs. I made a conscious decision that it was more important to me to keep these on than to leave these soaking shirts that were adding weight primarily in my back (most needed to run). Maybe if I had been able to let go, I would have done better...

When seeking to follow a righteous path and in the goal to follow God, we too must leave things behind that are hard to leave behind. While there is a perfectly good reason to hold on to one bad habit or another, finishing the race requires that we drop all the excuses and the BS and do what we are called to do. The race is long I'm sure longer than 5:44:39...but in the end I am sure it will be well worth it.

(woah...i just found the same concept, when i searched the scripture http://www.xenos.org/teachings/nt/hebrews/gary/heb12-1.htm)

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