This morning I ran the 2008 Flying Pig Marathon. As I sit here with ice on both knees after a 90 minute nap, I’m trying to remember it all. What a great experience. What a great way to prove to yourself that you can do anything, with the proper training and attitude. My goal was a 4:30:00 marathon.
I woke up at 3 AM to get ready. I took a shower, ate, and did my meds. I then putzed around with my gear to make sure I had everything. I told my wife good bye and headed out at about 4:25. I picked up my friends Ralph and Maureen and headed to our meeting place in downtown Cincinnati.
We were supposed to be there at 5:00. Mental note: it doesn’t take 30 minutes to go 6 miles with no traffic. So, we were early. Ralph got us into the building by talking up security. We waited as the team arrived and we wondered around the room nervously waiting for the time to leave. We headed out the door at 5:55, for a 6:30 start.
By the time we got our gear on the bus, made a bio-break, and found our spot it was 6:25. At 6:36, we were trying to figure out why the gun hadn’t fired. We asked around, and one of the “Grunt’s” (pig volunteers) told us that there was a 15 minute delay due to a fire. A few minutes later we found out that we would be running “at least” a marathon, as they had to reroute us around the fire. Nobody wants to hear that you are going to run at least a marathon.
The gun finally went off at about 6:45. My friend Amye was going to help pace me through the race and our friends Kim and Erin were going to run with us. We didn’t find Erin at the beginning, which was disappointing. We started off in front of the 4:30 Pace Team, but waited for them to catch us. Our goal was to stay within sight of the balloons.
The early miles went well; I found my wife and kids at 1.5 and continued to stay close to the Pace Team. We lost Kim at about mile 3 or so to a bio-break. At about mile 3 my feet started to feel numb, like my shoes were too tight. The weird thing is, they weren’t. I hoped walking the water stop would help, and it did a little, but not much. We saw Amye’s family at about 4.5; they are a great cheering group. At about 5.5, we walked the water stop, took our first Gu, and I took my first salt. This slightly longer break helped my feet significantly.
At this point, we started the climb. About 3 miles of hills lead to the highest point on the course. The hills weren’t easy, but they weren’t that difficult. We made it to the top. I had to take a bio-break at mile 7, but there was no line and it took about 30 seconds off. In fact, we didn’t lose the pace group. We also found Erin with the break, which was nice, but, still no Kim. Miles 7 and 8 were uneventful. I did see my cousin Jill at mile 8.5; she gave me a huge donation the night before the Pig. Thanks again, Jill.
Miles 9, 10, and 11 were rolling, but more down then up. It was nice to be able to relax a little here. But, my Heart Rate was crazy high. I knew it couldn’t be right, but it didn’t really register why. By mile 13, we had lost Erin again. I don’t know if she just didn’t feel well, or was waiting for Kim. I’m not sure. I also had figured out my heart rate monitor issue. I took the strap off and licked it. Then it started registering correctly again. Before this, it was showing 205, when my previous max, in an all out run was 191. I wasn’t anywhere near all out at this point.
Almost all of mile 13 was down hill, so it was a nice recovery period. We were right with our Pace Team, with Theo in the lead. Miles 14 through 16 were rolling again, not bad, but I was feeling a little tired from the heat, so I noticed it. We saw Amye’s family at about 15.75 and then they turned around and saw us at 16. We saw my family right after that, or course, I almost had to run them over for them to see me.
At about 17.5 I had my second most memorable moment. We turned left and saw a small hill, but we were all starting to tire. The entire pace team groaned. Our coach has always told us to chant “I Love Hills” to ourselves when the hills were tough. I started it out loud, and Amye joined me. The entire group started doing it. It was really kind of neat. About half way up the hill, someone started playing the theme from “Rocky” on a stereo system, which really helped power us up the hill.
Miles 18 and 19 were mostly downhill again, with a few little pops. Mile 18 is on a major four lane road, which is no fun, but it’s the only easy way to get back “home.” We saw Amye’s family again at mile 19. They were yelling and screaming, and taking pictures. It was a good boost. I then started looking for my family. They were going to meet me at my 20.
Well, I never did find them. I watched all the way to mile 21. I did see Maureen’s family, later Kristen told me they were across the street from them. We saw the Fleet Feet tent at mile 21. Jeremy, one of the owners, ran with us for a little while. He took our picture and told us we were looking great. I thought to myself, “I’m glad I look great, but I sure feel tired.” My right knee had just a twinge of pain, but it wasn’t a big deal.
We pressed on, staying close to Theo and the pace group, taking Gu, drinking lots of Gatorade, and taking my salt capsules. At about mile 21.5 we had to take a detour due to a three alarm fire, the one that caused the delay. This fire almost caused a 3 hour delay, which would have been a disaster for me. Near the end of the detour, at about 22.75 or so, I had to walk. From what we could tell, Theo was going to make the 4:30 no matter if the course was long or not. We were running a 9:20 and he was still pulling away. I just couldn’t keep that up.
We walked for about a minute, and started up again. We hit a water stop a few minutes later, walked through it, I got another two cups of Gatorade, a Gu, and another salt tablet. That was my last salt tablet in my main supply, but I did have a backup supply. Miles 23 through 25.3 were the hardest miles I’ve ever run. Each one felt like 10 miles. At about 25.4 the crowds really start to build again. We walked about one minute before we hit the crowds. The list .8 miles starts with a small hill. We powered up that, mostly because of the energy from the crowd. We really started to move at this point, or at least I thought we were. I saw many friends and team members along that last .8. I remember hearing Amye’s sister yell “SPRINT!!!!” I thought to myself, “I am…I can’t run any faster!” I saw my family about .2 from the finish, they were on the wrong side and yelling as loud as they could. Amye grabbed my hand at that point and we crossed the finish line together, arms up, and running strong.
It was over and I was exhausted. I understood why they say the marathon starts at mile 20. Amye told me that she had never cried in the marathon, until now. It was a very overwhelming experience. We walked through the finish area, had our picture taken, etc. I got some chips and a drink, which were great. Amye’s family was right outside the recovery area, with hugs for both of us. Then, Kristen and Michael, with our friend Jenny, walked up. Again, more hugs, more kisses, and more pictures. Hopefully some of them will look good. But, then again, I know I don’t take a great picture.
We made our way back to the Team for Life tent and shared our experiences with each other. The team did great. Everyone finished again this year. This keeps the team record at 100% completion.
This was the most difficult thing I’ve ever done. It was also a great experience. The last three miles were all about determination. They were tough, and I can see where you may want to walk the rest of the way. But, at the end, pride kicks in and won’t let you walk because all those people would see you.
In the end, my Garmin registered 26.77 miles and a time of 4:33:28. The course/times are going to be adjusted due to the detour. We think that we went at least an extra .3 or .4 miles. If this is the case, I was under a 4:30. Either way, I’m very happy with my performance and my results.
In closing, I have to thank the team. Without them, I couldn’t have done this. Wayne, Kelby, Maureen, Victoria, Ralph, Erin, Kim, Scott, and Trish, thank you very much for the support and helping me get through. A special thanks to Amye, who didn’t worry about her time and helped pace me to a great first marathon. Finally, to my wife Kristen, son Michael, and daughter Katie, I love you very much. Thank you for the support, for the time, and for the patience on the weekend mornings when I was gone for a long run.
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52.4 - Running Marathons with Cystic Fibrosis 