It was held on September 19th. This time he was more prepared for what he was about to encounter. Marathon people puzzle me a bit. Why they torture their bodies and cause so much pain to themselves is BEYOND ME! But Howie has always LOVED to run ever since he was a small child. NOT ME MAN.... It bores me to DEATH and I am definitely NOT into PAIN!!!!
Last year he was working out of town and had to travel most of the night to arrive in Logan. He only had a few hours of sleep and I think he was exhausted before the race even began. This year we were able to arrive early in the evening and attend an open house event to kick off the marathon. We had a nice pasta dinner and they had many booths to promote different items. We got back to the hotel and he was able to get to sleep at a DECENT hour!
I think we woke up around 4:00 to get ready. Steve was eager to go. I could tell he was much more prepared, both emotionally and physically for this race. His mind was made up that he was going to improve his time from the previous year. He has lost so much weight this past year and has trained continually. My Marathon Man is going to kick some SERIOUS BUTT out there today! I can just feel it!
They bus the runners up to the top of the mountain and no family or friends are allowed to go up to watch. The spectators line the street at around the 14 mile marker. After 14 miles I would need to be hauled off in an ambulance but when my sweet husband came into view all I could see was his amazing smile plastered on his face.
No sign of fatigue or discomfort at all. Everytime throughout the race as I spotted him I would begin to get all teary eyed and choke up. I have watched Howie this past year as he has been so determined to improve. Once he gets his mind set on a goal there is NO STOPPING this guy!!! I was so very proud of how well he was doing. I enjoyed every moment of our day spent together. Once I would see him at a mile marker along the trail, I would cheer for him, encourage him, give him the needed supplies (medicine, drinks ect) give him a quick little kiss and then I would jump into my car and race off to another mile marker a few miles away. Twice during the race I had pulled my car up to an area and would be getting out to look for him and I would see Howie turning the corner or passing by before I could even catch up to him. He was so focussed!
I was concerned about him reaching the 23 mile marker. Last year that is the mile where he HIT A WALL! "FETCHIN' NORA" was all he could say. His body began cramping up and he was pretty miserable. That is the mile where he SWORE HE WOULD NEVER, NEVER run another one of these STUPID races again!!!! He had to walk a lot of the last 3 miles of that race.
I decided I would park my car and get out at that same place he struggled so much with last year, and actually try to run a portion of it with him, to help encourage him along. WELL.....First of all, when he arrived he still looked so refreshed. He took a few swigs of a drink, a bite of a protein bar, and pumped it up a notch. As he sped up I couldn't believe how well he was doing. He didn't really need my encouragement but I started running along side him and before long I could not keep up. First of all I am a wimp and secondly my neck hurts so bad when I run or do anything physical at all. With 3 miles left in the race it looked like he was going to finish without any trouble at all. YEAH!!! I headed back to my car and drove to the park to see him at the finish line.
Once again when he came into view I began crying. This time it was basically uncontrollable. I was so proud of Howie. He had not stopped running the ENTIRE race. He ran through his aches, pains, blisters and fatigue. He met his goal! This wonderful man has so much inner strength. He amazes me!
Just a few more yards to the finish line.
You are almost there, Howie!
I love this picture as he ran past me. He is focussed on the finish line ahead of him. All my screams and cheers for him were not even heard at this point. It is almost DONE!!!
I love his legs! Look at those MUSCLES!!!!
I got up on these bleachers so that I could get a good picture of him but I wish I had gotten closer to the finish line. My camera did not take very clear shots of him finishing the race. It was way too blury BUT that is exactly how I saw the finish through MY EYES. They were filled with tears of joy for my man. I could hardly see anything at all. The people around me must have thought I was nuts because WHO CRIES AT A RACE? I was just so thoroughly proud of his accomplishment. He is the BEST!
Even though you can't see this picture very clearly you can surely see how triumphant it was for Howie to complete this race.
He shaved about One hour and 25 minutes off his time from last year. Your hard work this year really paid off, Steve! I am so proud of you!!!
Because I was on the stinkin' bleachers it took me a long time to filter through the crowd to get a chance to congratulate My Marathon Man. I finally spotted him in this sea of runners.
He was given this medal for completing the race.
WAY TO GO!
I saw this ambulance parked nearby the finish line. Luckily it was NOT in use. Although, had I been entered in this marathon race, it would have the lights flashing and be on its way to the nearby hospital. SERIOUSLY I would need some EXPERT medical help probably after mile two or three. Maybe one day when my neck heals better I will attempt a 5K run possibly. But for now....Howie you are on your own! No running buddy HERE!
It was kind of funny as we were getting in the car to leave about an hour later, he stopped and said....."I would still be running if it was last year!" That is a LONG time to spend pounding your feet into the ground! Really hard on your body. 4hours and 47minutes is MUCH BETTER!
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2 comments:
That is AWESOME!! He ran that dang fast. He's a quick one. It is so impressive that he trained as hard as he did. It is such a time commitment. He is so lucky to have such a supportive and loving wife.
That is awesome my body hurt just reading this!!! That is a huge accomplishment and way to be on being so supportive you two are such a loving couple!
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