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Utah Valley Marathon

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Location:

Provo,UT,USA

Member Since:

Oct 04, 2008

Gender:

Female

Goal Type:

Boston Qualifier

Running Accomplishments:

8 Marathons completed; PR of 3:29.  Hoping to run Boston in next few years if I can ever register before the dang thing fills (have missed the last 2 years because of this).

Short-Term Running Goals:

Hoping to re-qualify for Boston sometime in 2011.  Hoping to hit marathon #10 in 2011.

Long-Term Running Goals:

Run 100 marathons in my lifetime and live to tell the tale.

Personal:

Married.  2 daughters.  Have a love/hate relationship with running.  Hate the first 3 miles of EVERY run without fail and grumble the whole time.  Feel okay during 3-6.  Love 6+ and LOVE how I feel when I am done (like I can take on the world and then some!). 

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Miles:This week: 0.00 Month: 0.00 Year: 0.00
Race: Utah Valley Marathon (26.2 Miles) 04:20:53
Total Distance
26.20

Hmmm.  Thoughts are very scattered tonight as I read others' race entries and sit on my couch with a boot on.  UVM was a good race.  Restored some confidence and allowed me to finally hit the big #10.  Started out feeling good.  Heard the gun shot go off while in the POP.  Good times.  Ran first few with Luz and was feeling optimistic about both of us finally running a race together where neither one of us was stopping at every POP or throwing up on the sidelines.  Enjoying the beautiful, beautiful scenery.  Thinking how glad I am to be back in Utah and loving the mountains and snow and loving the race.  Start to feel stomach pains around mile 4 or 5 so I pop another Immodium and a mile or so later I feel better.  Feeling great and feeling no pain, but a little worried about Luz when we stopped at mile 9 for a POP and she tried to get me to head off without here.  Averaging around 9s and thinking we are heading for a 4 hour marathon if we keep on pace.  A few miles after 9 Luz starts feeling not so good.  Around 11 or 12 we catch up with Smooth and Lowell who starts telling me all kinds of fun law stories from his early days.  At 13 Luz stops to use the POP, I say I will wait, she says no, go, go, go and I can tell she is serious.  I debate, then decide to head off.  Hang with Smooth and Lowell for a few miles, then start to lag at around 15.  By 16 the leg pain hits.  I should have known it was coming.  The leg ached all the days leading up to the race and even ached the morning of.  By mile 17 I am pretty worried.  Leg is hurting pretty bad and I am worried that if I press on it just might break or cause some long term damage so I do what I always do and start praying that it will subside.  Sure enough a mile or so later, the leg feels better, then of course, everything else starts to hurt.  By mile 18 or 19 I am really feeling it in my knees and legs.  Turns out NOT training for a marathon, despite how many you have done before, always catches up for you.  From 20 on I could tell that I hadn't put in the mileage and hadn't done the work to prepare my legs for it.  Not really my fault given that I couldn't with the dang "Summer of the Stress Fracture" but still a good reminder that you can't fool a marathon.  Or at least you can't fool miles 20-26 of a marathon.  By mile 20 I am thinking I just need to get to the mouth of the canyon because my friend, Wendy, said she will be there at around Riverwoods to meet me and run with me till close to the end, then Madeline (my 7 year old) is meeting me at 25 to run me in.  Things are starting to hurt and as I get to 21 I am looking and looking and can't remember where exactly she said she would be.  I get to 22 and start wondering if she forgot.  I get to 23 and am really hurting and figure by now she isn't coming.  Good thing I didn't know she wasn't going to be there because 20-23 would have been even worse.  At 23 I lean over an orange cone and stretch the pain out.  I feel slightly better and start up again slowly.  Then I see Scott, Madeline, and Isabelle honking at me and driving by.  This cheers me up and gets me running again, even if slowly.  At 24 I lean over another orange cone.  At 25 I lean over another orange cone and can see the finish line.  I keep hoping to see Madeline and, as with Wendy, keep running waiting to find her.  Turns out they couldn't get parked and to the finish in line, which I figured out by the time I am at 25.75 or so and can see the finish.  My brother and his wife and kids are there.  I bite my lip and speed it up.  I finally cross at 4:25 and figure I did a 4:20 with the chip time factored in.  I lean on a nice volunteer as I breath asthmatically and try to regain my balance.  Never ceased to be amazed by these volunteers and all they do for us crazy runners.  I grab a creamy and head back to the finish to watch people come in.  Wish I had it in me to run back for them but figure I would only slow them down.  I get to watch my brother and sister in law finish their first, then Scott's sister finish her first.  I watch for Luz and watch and watch.  I see RAD strolling through the running area in the distance.  I don't see Smooth and wonder if I somehow missed Luz.  I call her as soon as I get in the car and hear about her race.  Funny that we are always so worried about each other.  Nice to know I have one of the bestest, dearest friends in the universe.

All in all, not my finest race.  Was neither trained, mentally prepared, nor physically fit due to stress fracture, but happy to have finished the big number 10.  Did not expect to run half the race by myself without music and without mental preparation, but figure it was a good experience.  Had, of course, several of my usual, "This is the dumbest thing I have ever done" and "I will never do this again" moments, which I have to wonder if I will ever NOT have, but figure that since the time between those thoughts and thoughts of repeating the race shortens each time (about 5 minutes after finishing I was already thinking about St. George) that I am getting tougher.

Happy to have finished.  Happy to see so many first timers.  Happy that my leg worked enough to run.  Happy to be in a boot now and headed towards what will hopefully be permanent healing this go around in the boot.  Happy that I have my stationary bike to keep me sane in the meantime.  SO happy to be now living again in the running mecca and to have chatted with so many awesomely great people and have met new runners on the road.  So here is to the next 90!

Comments
From Smooth on Tue, Jun 14, 2011 at 23:50:44 from 67.2.124.123

Oh Cath!!! We were so worried about you! Luz even went in the med tent to look for you! What a race!!!

WAY to tough it out! You are seriously amazing! I wanted to cry reading about the agonizing last miles where you had hoped to have friends/family to run you in! I can't believe you ran with SF, on second thought, yes I can, you are a REMARKABLE girl!

Heal up well and completely! #11 will be a better race for sure! :)

It was so fun hanging out with you at the start. I am impressed that you weren't annoyed by Lowell's too much talking! :)

From RAD on Wed, Jun 15, 2011 at 17:58:33 from 98.202.17.113

I'm SO glad you had a wonderful race. I also was worried when Luz couldn't find you! I thought for sure you guys would be together at the finish. Those last 6 miles really are the worst, trained or not, with or without music and friends - definitely the worst! Especially when you see the finish line moving the mile of the race. Sorry it was so crowded your family couldn't get there to run with you, but sounds like you had some good finish line moments anyway!

It was great to see you. Bike and heal well and I will see you at some good trainers for SGM! :)

From RAD on Wed, Sep 07, 2011 at 15:21:16 from 76.27.16.189

are you out of that boot yet girl?!? I think we need to find a way to do Halloween half again!

From Smooth on Wed, Sep 07, 2011 at 22:37:59 from 174.27.216.165

Hey Cath ~ How've you been? Hope all is well with you and yours!

From RAD on Thu, Oct 11, 2012 at 14:46:41 from 98.202.23.178

Okay, I need to know how St George turned out for you!! I was looking for you, but never saw you. I hope it was good. Send me a message, will you? We need to go on a run!

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