I ran my first marathon on Saturday.  I wanted to get this posted yesterday, but I didn’t the mental or physical energy to get it out.  I don’t have all of the photos I want to share loaded yet, but I want to get it started.  So I will add photos to this post, or I may create a new one with photos that Jeff took and perhaps some videos that Jenn and Crystal captured for me.

First, let me say that this was an amazing experience.  I don’t know if the next thing that I accomplish will have the exact same feeling, but I hope it is close.  I am not one to get too emotional to the point of tears, but after I crossed that finish line after high fiving most of my friends and family that came to see me, I was just overcome.  I don’t think I actually cried, but I felt like it and my eyes did water, but it could have been because I was freezing too.

For those that want more details, here are the events as they happened:

Friday night, Jenn and I drove to Charlotte to check into the hotel that Colleen works at and hooked us up with a good rate and free parking, the Crowne Plaza.  When we got there, I called Jeff and when he answered, he sounded just like the guy we could hear in the next room, in fact, he was the guy in the next room, and Melissa was on the other side of him.  We went over and spoke to them for a bit and then Jenn and I went to the Convention Center to pick up my race packet and to get some dinner.  Jenn wanted Fuel pizza, but I had planned on not eating that late.  Well, once I smelled pizza, I wanted some.  We brought it back to the hotel and I managed to only eat half a piece and water.  I went to bed around 10:00.  I tossed and turned all night and maybe got 2 hours of actual sleep.  I finally got up around 5:00 and jumped in the shower.  After the shower I went ahead and got dressed for the race and then went to Melissa’s room to see how she was doing.  Chris went out to find coffee and came back with extra hotel coffee packs.  Not the best, but caffeine none the less.

We walked to the start area and Melissa went to the bathroom in the convention center.  She must not have realized what time it was or how long the lines were going to be because I finally left and went to the start line at about 7:46.  I joined a mass of people and waited for the start.  They were a few minutes late, but when they said go, I started my watch timer and stood there and waited for almost 2 minutes before I could actually move.  There were more people than I could have imagined.  I saw Jeff as I ran by him and he snapped a picture.  At that point, I figured Melissa had gotten to the start and would eventually catch me.  She did for the record, but neither of us saw the other!

I was feeling very good for the first half of the race.  Pace was spot on and my body felt great.  The second half started fine, but around miles 19 – 21, my body started to say, “what the hell are you doing!?”  My calves started to cramp and my knees were sore.  My feet hurt and ankles too.  I stopped and stretched a few times, but when I did it almost made them cramp more.  I walked through a few water stops, but the last several miles went from 10 min/mile in the first part of the race down to 12 – 13 minute miles.  I had to quickly abandon my 4:30 goal time.  Now I was aiming for 4:45.  When the 4:45 pace group passed me, I tried to keep up, but the cramping returned.  When the 5:00 pace group passed, I was determined to stay with them.  I had about 3.5 miles to go.  We hit a tough hill and I had to stop and stretch again.  My legs were just toast.  they continued on and I thought to myself, “well at this point I know I can finish.  That’s what matters now.”  And that’s what I did.

Highlights of the race:

The guy leaning on a car holding a wooden paddle that said “smile if you need a spanking”

The guy who ran the entire marathon in a Santa suit.

Seeing Crystal, her husband, Ryan and her mom, Karen just before mile 18, cheering me on, holding signs that said “Go Kevin!” & “Keep TTP’n”  The second sign, I am told, was Brandi’s idea, but she couldn’t be there because she was sick.  Hope you are better, Brandi!

Seeing a vacant port-a-john right after mile 18 when I had to pee.

Running through the “wall” in NoDa.

Seeing the sign that said “Sign of Encouragement” next to a sign that said “The End is Near”

Giving high fives to kids on the side of the road that came out to cheer us on.

Seeing my other sister, Jenny, running towards me about a mile from the finish.  She kept me company as I finished.

Seeing Karen, Ryan, Crystal, Jeff, Chris, my Mom and Dad, Colleen, Jenn, and to my surprise, Mia and Jenn’s parents as I approached the finish line.  Truly a feeling of elation.

As I said, I will get pictures and video up on my next post when I can.

Read Melissa’s post here.

This picture from Melissa's post captures my feeling pretty closely