Marine Corps 17.75k – A Race for a “Golden Ticket”

The morning started out with a super early 4:30am alarm, thankfully my friends Denise and David let me crash in their hotel room the night before or I would’ve been on the road to the race by 4am! As we were settling into the morning routine, water, bathroom, getting dressed, I realized that I FORGOT one very important item of clothing (I’ll let you guess what it was)!!! I was completely freaking out and did not know what to do, thinking “THIS is NOT a good way to start race day morning... AT ALL!!” Thankfully, Denise talked me down and convinced me that with the generous time limit at the race I could slow down my pace (HA! I was planning on going slow anyway) and that the lack of this clothing item was not a big deal.

We got dressed, I packed two mini bagels with peanut butter and we headed out the door to drive to the shuttle location. We arrived at the commuter parking lot at 5:40 am and were on the shuttle heading towards the start by 5:50 am.  I have to say, the marines run a tight and efficient ship and we were at the runners village by 6:00 am.  I said goodbye to Denise and David and headed off to find my running buddies John and Paul.  As soon as I found them we headed into the Montclair Tabernacle Church which generously opens their doors to the runners on race day morning.  It was nice to have a warm (even though it really wasn’t super cold) place to hang out before the race and not have to sit in the grass for an hour.

After about 45 minutes in the church we headed out to the start line (this race is very informal and everyone just lined up wherever they could squeeze in), they sang the national anthem and we were off.  I am coming off of a pretty painful hamstring injury after ignoring it for two months while training for, and running, New York and have only been cleared to run for about a month now.  My PT told me that I needed to take it easy, avoid running big hills and add my mileage back in slowly... I’m a runner; I don’t follow advice very well.  Because I did not have a lot of time to properly train for this race (I went from 1mile to 3 to 4 to 6 and my longest run post-injury was 8.7 miles the week before), the plan for this race was to finish, collect our “golden ticket” for entry into the Marine Corps Marathon and leave happy and healthy (SPOILER ALERT: All that happened). 

The Start Line! 

Miles: 11.03 (17.75K)

Water Stops: Approximately miles 2, 4, 6 & 8 (they only had water on the course this year, not sure about other years).

Elevation Gain:  250 (some) feet.

We settled into a very slow 2 minute run/1 minute walk knowing that we could beat the 20 minute mile cutoff even if we walked.  I’ve heard that in past years the weather for this race has been miserable (I witnessed the miserableness last year when cheering our friend Rachel at the finish line – it rained for the entire race), this year it was HOT and super humid.  Training in the DC area, you become accustomed to this humidity during the summer when your runs feel more like swimming through soup.  However, we get a little reprieve during the winter months and it’s just enough time to get unaccustomed to the humidity.  This makes for a painful time when you try to run in the forest, after not really running for a few months; hence why I wasn’t prepared with all of the running “essentials” that I needed that day.  Mental note: Leave a full running outfit in the car from now on.

The first three to four miles or so are the only significant downhill portions you will run during this entire race, that’s not to say there aren’t any uphill potions but the rest of the race after you enter mile four seems like it’s entirely uphill.  The first two(ish) miles and the last two(ish) miles are on a gravel road (think the big stone gravel, not the itty bitty gravel) and this is not friendly if you step wrong, just ask John who twisted his ankle a bit when he stepped wrong.  Around mile 3 you enter the paved part of the race and its smooth concrete until about mile 9. 

Seriously? Where's the hill?

Everyone kept talking about the hill that is mile 4-5, how it was a huge hill and super hard and blah blah blah... I was worried about this hill and, frankly, a little stressed that I would hurt my hamstring and not be able to run for a couple more months (probably my worst nightmare at this point).  Thankfully, Paul and John had the same “race strategy” as I did: just get that golden ticket. We walked up the steepest portion of the hill which really wasn’t that long.  I’m not saying the mile 4-5 hill isn’t a jerk but, like some things that runners stress about in races, it wasn’t as bad as it was made out to be, the first part of the hill was steep but the rest was a steady gradual incline.  I honestly thought that this hill was going to cause people to drop out of the race like flies and it did not.  Was it steep? Yes.  Did I want to run at full speed up it? No.  Was it mildly uncomfortable to walk up? Sure.  Was it coming in between me and the “golden ticket”? Heck no!!

After mile 5 we resorted to a more laid back approach to the race, it became a run when we want to and not stress if we don’t.  The hills were starting to bother me and my legs were complaining about the lack of hill work and the lack of training in general before the race. We were still well under the 20 minute mile cutoff and we knew that even if we walked the entire rest of the race we would still make it to the finish line before we were swept.  This made it a lot easier to just focus on the task at hand: get that “golden ticket” and bypass the lottery for the 42^nd Marine Corps Marathon.

Around mile 9 is when things started to get interesting.  We departed from the nicely smooth paved path back onto the gravel road that we had entered the park on.  Remember the downhills I mentioned at the beginning?  We were beginning to see them again only as uphills.  I’m pretty sure that I remarked around this time that I did not remember them being as steep when we were running down them but they were probably the toughest hills of the entire race (for me).  My legs were tired, my hamstring was complaining (although pain isn’t the way I would describe what was happening, sometimes I can just feel my hamstring, I’m not sure if that will ever stop but I’ll take it over the pain any day), I was hot, sweaty and ready to have that golden ticket in hand.  When we passed the mile 9 marker we were told that it was “kinda in the wrong place” and we actually had less than two miles to go.  I’m not sure if that was a lie, but it was definitely a lie when the same two guys told us that we would be done with the hills after the one we were on.  I suppose that it gave us something to look forward to, but the disappointment was huge when we came to the bottom of another massive hill.  About half way up the next hill, we were told again that there were no more hills after the one we were on; I didn’t listen I couldn’t tell you if there whether there was another hill after that one or not (all the hills started running together).  I can tell you that I knew at that point that we had about a mile and a half standing between us and the golden ticket and I was starting to get really excited to finish the race and get some food!

Photo Courtesy: Paul
This was the top of the final hill

 At mile 10.25 there was a quick, flat, (not even) quarter mile out and back; I suppose that they needed to get in a little more distance to the race; it was not a big deal to go out, turn around and come back and it may have been one of the easiest sections of the course.  With that being said, there were some reports that people saw some of the runners cutting this part of the course.  I don’t understand people who try to cut courses, and I especially don’t understand trying to get away with cutting THIS course at the EASIEST PART.  You aren’t really in a huge time crunch, I know a couple of people that WALKED the whole course under the 4 hour cut off time.  Saving yourself (maybe 10 minutes) isn’t worth not getting your golden ticket or, worse, being banned from all Marine Corps races.  Yes, the course wasn’t super friendly; I will even say it was hard; but not so hard that it was impossible.  They definitely make you work hard for your bling at Marine Corps races but they aren’t unreasonably hard.  Especially this race, if you have any running experience and/or you’re used to walking long distances you are fine in this race.

 

Finally around mile 10.75 (ish), you leave the park... Hallelujah!! Once you leave the park, you leave the gravel behind for the pavement again.  It’s just a smooth, paved, flat quarter mile to the finish line. 

1,775 Feet to go!! 

Photo Courtesy: John
Haha the boy marine was distracted! 

At the finish you are first greeted by uniformed Marines who put the medal around your neck and congratulate you on your finish.  Then as you are walking out of the finisher’s chute you are greeted by ladies handing out the coveted “golden tickets” that have the code to register for the Marine Corps Marathon and allow you to bypass the lottery.  Guard these tickets WITH. YOUR. LIFE!!!! Just kidding, sort of.  After obtaining your golden ticket it’s pretty standard, they have post-race snacks, bottled water and THE BEST DARN stale popcorn you will ever eat.  This year they also handed out the finisher throw away jackets from the marathon in October that they didn’t give out because it was 80 degrees on marathon day, we didn’t really need afterwards either because it was pretty warm at the end of the race.

 After leaving the runners area, we headed to the lines for the shuttle back to our cars.  Like I said before, the organization getting runners to/from the designated parking lots was impeccable, we stood in line for about 15 minutes and we were back to the car in no time.

All in all, I would say that this is a good race.  After running two other Marine Corps Races I would say that the 17.75 is the most laid back (yet, still well organized) Marine race that I’ve done.  Will I do it again? Depends on whether or not I can register fast enough next year!

DONE!! Access Granted! 

Have you run this race? I would love to hear your thoughts. 

11 weeks until the NYC marathon

Longest run this season: 12.4 miles. 

I couldn't decide what shirt to wear,
so flat Emily was shirtless for a while. 

Ready for the race.
From left: Me, Lisa, Jamie and Natalie (front)

This summer has been rough for training. It's been so hot and humid every long run day (mostly Saturdays) since the beginning of July. The heat and humidity are killing my pace and ability to run the miles I should be running and many of my long runs have been cut short. I have been feeling a little nervous that I am going to be ready for NYC and I have been really hard on myself about cutting runs short and barely hitting any of my long run mileage. In comes the...

Leesburg 20k Race. - Training run with blingThe race started out (and continued to be) hot, humid and overcast. The first 7 miles were mostly uphill with the first 6 being a gradual incline. Personally, I would rather have some bigger hills that I can tell are hills than a gradual uphill. With the gradual uphill climbs, you don’t always realize why your pace is suffering (especially in the heat and humidity) and it can be very defeating in the earlier miles of a race.

I woke up with major tummy issues and a terrible night's sleep. I'm used to training runs on Saturdays and, for me, it’s easier to fall asleep early on Friday nights after a long week at work than on Saturday nights. Luckily, Sunday training races remind me to prepare properly for Sunday goal races. It’s so easy to hydrate on weekdays while sitting at my desk, it’s hard to get the proper hydration while running around on Saturdays, it takes a concerted effort to get the water in. Fortunately (unfortunately but I learned), I ended up super dehydrated earlier in the week after a short and easy 3 mile run (the “feels like temperature” has been over 100 degrees every day for the last few weeks) and I was prepared to do everything I could to not have that happen 3 miles into a 12.4 mile race.

I started out running with Jamie, Natalie and Lisa at a pretty uncomfortably fast pace (for me – especially with my tummy issues). I felt terrible in the first 1.5 miles and decided to run my own race. I was not racing this race and I was not trying to beat any time so I slowed my pace to a nice comfortable training speed. As soon as I slowed I knew I was going to completely lose Jamie and Natalie so I yelled out goodbye to them. I was ok with this since I did not feel well and I hate to feel like I am slowing people down. Lisa stuck back with me and we settled into a good pace. We were chatting and getting into the race when we started talking to another runner (Lea) right before mile 2. Apparently, we had overheard the same conversation between two male runners about marathoners pooping their pants (one of the male runners will appear again in this recap), we chatted a while about running marathons and on our walk interval she ran ahead of us.

Water Stop at Mile 2.
Used the restroom, regrouped and reassessed my goal for the race. We caught up with Lea again and she inquired about our run/walk intervals. I explained how they worked and she expressed interest in trying them. I told her that she was welcome to run with us if she wanted to. She said she was going to think about it and somewhere between miles 2 and 4 she settled in to run with us.

Water Stop at Mile 4.
Grabbed some Gatorade and water and mixed it. I always have an issue with Gatorade at races being too strong and my tummy was already constantly reminding me that it wasn't happy running this race.

Miles 4 to 6.Somewhere around Mile 4.5 we saw a giant pile of horse poop and we joked that on the way back to the finish line we will know that we will have less than 4.5 miles left when we see that poop again. We kept going but I amused myself with the thoughts of being excited to see a pile of horse crap. My favorite bridge on the whole W&OD is around mile 5.5 of this race, it's an old railroad bridge that I find incredibly beautiful. I didn't get a photo again this year because I was focused on running my race and being in the moment. The bridge is also right at the bottom of the biggest hill of the race (which because it’s an out an back, you have the pleasure of running up twice).

Water/Gu Stop at mile 6.
They had my absolute FAVORITE Gu at this stop (strawberry banana) and I grabbed a couple and kept going. I have to be very very careful of Gu that I get at a race because I am very sensitive to having caffeine when I run, it makes my tummy hurt. We momentarily lost Lea when we got separated during the confusion of the stop (this is also the mile 7.5 stop after the turn around). She thought that we had pushed ahead and we thought that she had stopped for the restroom. We ended up seeing her right before the turn around and we agreed to meet at the Water/Gu stop at mile 7.5.

Turn around mile 6.5(ish).

That feeling everyone (at least that I know) gets in a race when you realize you are on the way back and have less ground to cover than you've already done. I had convinced myself that the rest of the race was going to be all downhill. Unfortunately, the course marshal (although friendly) dashed those dreams by reminding me that we had to go back up the hill that we had run up around mile 5.5.

Water stop at mile 7.5.
Met back up with Lea and pushed forward. I grabbed another round of Gatorade and water to mix and may have grabbed another couple of my favorite Gu packs. By this time I was really feeling the heat and humidity and the sweat was starting to sting my eyes. I grabbed one more cup of water and poured it on my neck and was ready to go.

Mile 7.75.
While we were running (back) up the biggest hill in the race, we started discussing the advice of many race directors of summer races. They say "if you start feeling bad, stop and find a course marshal for medical attention"... We started discussing the difference between when you feel bad because you've run X-amount of miles and it’s hot and you’re uncomfortable and when you actually should seek attention. Basically, the difference between feeling like you WANT to die and when you actually WILL die. Probably not the greatest discussion to have when you are 4.5 miles from the finish line but at that point it was a fight to the finish.

Mile 8, top of the hill.
What goes up, must come down! Running down the hill back under my favorite bridge and knowing the gradual uphill that was the first 3/4 of the race will be a gradual downhill for the last few miles. Feeling good, feeling good!

Mile 8.5 (ish).
Remember the horse poop that I mentioned earlier? There it was, now I know there is less than 4.5 miles to go. I am giggling at this point because I have never even considered that seeing a pile of horse poop would give me a renewed energy to finish a race. Haha, I might be weird but I’m ok with that. Also around this time one of the police officers in the race (who was an INCREDIBLY ATTRACTIVE tall bald man) informed us that it was going to be a gradual downhill grade for the rest of the way into Leesburg. This was music to my ears! Also Mr. Officer, if you are reading this and you are single... hit me up!

Water Stop at Mile 9.5.
Grabbed another Gatorade and two waters. Dumped one water on my neck and one in the Gatorade. Chugged the Gatorade and kept pushing on. Getting closer and closer. Less than 5k to go. We can do this!!

Mile 11.
Oh man, this is actually happening, we're going to finish. Oh no...! I have to use the bathroom, it can't wait until the end... all that Gatorade and Tailwind has caught up with me!! We catch up with (or he catches up with us) one of the guys that had been talking about marathon runners pooping their pants. I ask him where his buddy is, he jokes that he pushed him off the trail down a hill and we have a good laugh. I told him that it was probably for the best as I never liked that guy anyway. We part ways.

Water Stop at Mile 11.5.
Gatorade, water, dump water on neck and use the bathroom. We've got this. Less than a mile. Push push push. We lost Lisa at this point, turns out she didn’t see us stop and kept going thinking we had gotten too far ahead. We caught back up with her with a little less than a mile left to go. Right about that time, I heard the cowbell and my name being screamed... It was SHANNON and SALLIE and they were just the little push I needed for what happened next.

1/4 of a mile to go.
"Hey! Wonder Woman!! Ruuuuuun!!" There he was again, the guy that was talking about marathon runners pooping. This time his friend was back with his medal. I have to say that this ALWAYS HAPPENS to me at this race (ok, the second year in a row). There is always a guy that I'm bantering with during the race, who challenges me to a race to the finish. I LIVE FOR THIS!! The race to the finish is why I run.

What happens next is almost second nature to me...

I take off and he takes off. I gain a good lead.

My hamstring (which I've successfully had been ignoring for most of the race) starts screaming louder than ever!

I round the corner; I can see the finish line up the final hill. I think to myself: “Oh crap! Who put a damn mountain here? It’s ok, I’ve got this!”

Hamstring screaming!

Push, push, push!! Come on Emily, faster!!

What's that I hear behind me? Breathing!! He's catching up.

I move to the left to get in front of him. He gives me a friendly push! "Come on Wonder Woman!! You've got this!!"

Run faster, faster. FINALLY I’m sprinting. I can't breathe!! You’ve got this Emily!!

I hear my name from ahead of me. "Come on Emily!!! Gooooooo!! You can do it!"

Push harder, feet moving faster – faster - faster! I see the finish line. There it is, right there.

The announcer calls out my name...

And I'm done!! A medal appears in my hand out of nowhere, I finished!! - I realize someone handed me the medal but I was so dead by that time that it seemed like it was not there one second and there the next.

My hamstring is screaming, my heart is pounding, I'm drenched in sweat, I can barely breathe. I've completed the 2016 Leesburg 20k!!

Did the crowd go wild? No. Did anyone post a video of my finish on Facebook? No. Did my friends scream and yell and applaud my finish? Absolutely! Am I proud of myself? So proud.

August 21, 2016 was a good day.

2016 Leesburg 20K Finishers! 

My Bib and Bling

Marine Corps Historic Half - Recap

At the finish (photo credit: MarathonFoto)

On May 15, 2016, I ran the Marine Corps Historic Half in Fredricksburg, VA (my 4th half marathon).  This race was not in any way my target race for the season and was barely on my radar from the beginning; but it was AWESOME. I will race this race sometime in the future but after 2 half marathon PRs this season and a tough (almost PR) 10 miler a few weeks earlier, I was EXHAUSTED going into this race, then circumstances leading up to the race sealed my quest to just have fun with this one...

RACE WEEK: 

The week leading up to the race was a tough week and I abandoned all hope that I was going to reach my 3rd Personal Record of the season.  For starters, the weekend before the race was Virginia Gold Cup and I skipped my long run to watch the horse races and hang out with my friends.  Sometimes as runners we have to make a choice to prioritize friends and social obligations over our runs and try not to feel guilty about it.  I am the type of person that feels guilty about not running when I feel that I am "supposed to be" or not giving a race my all, I am working on this and practiced this at the Marine Corps Historic half this week.

The Monday before the race I decided that I was going to go for a hilly run to prepare for Hospital Hill and knocked out 3.5 hilly miles.  When I got back from my run, I looked down to see that my ankles were super swollen, about an hour later (after freaking out and putting on compression socks) they hurt like I had just run 10 miles. Ughhhhhh... that was another indication that racing this half was NOT going to be a smart idea.  The next day was spent icing my ankles (which still hurt) and convincing myself that I was not going to run because preventing injury is more important than a run (my weekly mantra).  I decided that my ankle problems were probably from the shoes that I bought online (from a not so reputable shoe retailer) and they were probably factory rejects.  So I headed to Potomac River Running to try on different shoes.  I ended up buying a pair of Asics (I am a Mizuno girl all the way, but they felt so good on my feet with the extra cushioning) and am super happy with my new purchase.

By Wednesday, I was finally feeling better and decided to join the Potomac River Running 101/201 training group for a short run. I managed to knock out 2.5 miles with no swelling and no pain.  I felt good like I could go a couple more miles but did not want to push it.  The next day I took off to go out to dinner.  Friday, Cristina and I went for an easy "shake out run" of 3.1 miles and it was HARD (even though we tried to keep to a relatively flat course)! Why is it that some runs are so hard when two days earlier you felt like you could run  forever?

This leads me into Friday night before the race and the reason that I had to squash any time goals that might have been lingering in my head for this race... MY SISTER HAD A BABY on Saturday morning, but I was woken up at 1:30 in the morning to go to the hospital for labor support.  This is probably the BEST REASON to not race a race!! I was on the fence about whether or not I wanted to leave my sister and my niece's side but decided that I was going to go an treat it as a 13.1 mile fun run.

THE EXPO: 

Rachel, Natalie and I having fun with 13.1

I picked Natalie up on Saturday around 3:00 pm and had to run home to feed my little monsters (they were already not happy about being left around 1:30 am) and pack for the race. I was seriously so sleep deprived that I almost forgot my running shorts... I'm not sure how decent it would be to run in just a sparkle skirt, but I'm glad I didn't have to find out. 

We were on the road to drive the 100 or so miles to Fredricksburg around 4 pm and the GPS was showing some heavy traffic, luckily we still had a good buffer because traffic was terrible!! 

We Arrived at the race expo at 6pm (plenty of time to get our bibs and shop a little while), Rachel got there about 45 minutes before us so she had already done her shopping.  All in all, the expo was ok, there was no line to get the bibs and shirts (they had plenty of sizes left), the other race merchandise was marked down and really picked over.  I was ok with there being a limited selection of race merchandise, I do not need any more race shirts.  I bought the obligatory race pint glass (I started collecting them at MCM), a pair of sunglasses and body glide (I forgot to grab mine in my rush to pack and get out the door - also, sleep deprivation). 

After the expo we headed to downtown for dinner and ended up at Jay's Downtown Sport Lounge.  Without going too far into details, we were there for over an HOUR AND A HALF and by the time we left we had still not eaten dinner (even though we did order... TWICE).  We ended up stopping at the Panera by our hotel on the way to check in.  Upon check in we were given a welcome bag (it had a Gatorade, two granola bars and a water), and we were immediately offered a 1 pm checkout... it was probably the first time anything had worked in our favor since leaving NOVA and we were so happy to not have to worry about packing up before we left in the morning.

Flat Emily ready for race day - I changed 

hydration on race morning for some reason

THE RACE: 

During the race I used a 2:1 run/walk interval... except when I got distracted and/or the hills were too much.  Like I said, I did not take this race seriously I was out there to have fun and fun is what I had. 

Pre-Race

The alarm went off at 5:00 am on race morning and, unfortunately, I woke up feeling like I had not slept AT ALL. After not sleeping on Friday night and the ladies in the connecting room next to us being extremely loud until midnight, all I wanted to do was skip the race and sleep.  I finally peeled myself out of bed and began my pre-race ritual... body glide feet (I don't chafe but if it's humid I get blisters), chug a Gatorade, get dressed, fill water pack (why I thought that the marines wouldn't have enough water is beyond me... I was delirious).  On the way out of the hotel I grabbed a blueberry bagel to eat in the car. 

Thankfully I grabbed my old OBX sweatshirt as a throw away because it was CHILLY! We parked across the street from the start line and headed over.  Marathonfoto was out in full force and they were offering free downloads on all photos so we totally took advantage of FREE PHOTOS!! 

Heading to the start (photo credit: MarathonFoto)

We arrived at the start line with just enough time to use the porta potty and meet up with our friend Jen before the howitzer fired.

Obligatory Pre-Race Selfie

miles 1-3

Nutrition: 

- Clif Shots - Razz before the start and at mile 3.5

- Sips of water on walk breaks and Gatorade at water stops.

The start was pretty chilly on race morning, but I opted to not go with my throw away pants as planned since I was wearing compression socks.  I was glad that I didn't wear them and ditched my throw away sweatshirt within the first 1/4 of a mile.  The temperature seemed a lot warmer than when we were standing around waiting for the gun to go off.

The first two miles of this race are run through strip mall after strip mall and it was really hard to get my mind into the game. It was especially trying at Mile 1.3 when the Semper5 racers where passing by and only 1.5 miles to the finish.

After Mile 2, I FINALLY reached my comfortable stride and started feeling pretty good.  Then at mile 2.8 (or so) came the first HELL HILL... I decided that since I was not racing this race and I was sleep deprived and just out there to have fun, I would take the hill at a slightly faster pace than a walk (but not as fast as I could've or normally do take my hills).

Starting at Mile 3, I started taking selfies with the marines at the mile markers to give me something to look forward to and as motivation to keep going - a DNF is never an option for me, but this race was trying that rule.

Right before the Mile 3 marker a family was out in the road with a hose that they were spraying up in the air, I was so hot by this point that I ran through it and it was probably the highlight of the race thus far... it's the little things, really.

Favorite Sign: 4 More Houses Until Downhill (this was about 1/2 way up the first hell hill). 

miles 4-6

Nutrition: 

- Clif Shots - Razz  mile 6 (or 6.5)
- Sport Beans at mile 8 (ish)

- Sips of water on walk breaks and Gatorade at water stops.

Mile 4 was the slowest mile I had, I realized after running through the hose that I had to stop and use the dreaded porta potty.  I lined up with 10 of my new BFFs and waited, and waited, and waited for my turn.  This was painful even though I was not trying to beat or make any sort of time in this race, I knew that the longer that I waited in that line, the harder it was going to be to get back into the race.

FINALLY, I got back to the course (after about a 10 minute stop) and was finding my groove when all of a sudden THIS HAPPENED:

I name thee OSCAR

For anyone who knows me, I am a HUGE sucker for a feline and I will stop and pet a cat (or a dog - I pet plenty of dogs during this race too) any day.  This cat was super sweet and he gave me the "where the hell are you going? I didn't say you were done petting me" face when I had to run -- thankfully I spotted him on a walk break and my watch told me that I should keep moving or I would've sat there all day.

At the end of Mile 5 for about a 2 block radius there was a wonderful fresh donut smell wafting down the block.  Anyone who has run a race with me knows that I crave donuts while I'm racing and this was absolute blissful torture. If I had had some cash, I may have stopped and ordered one... I'm kidding... sort of...

Miles 6-7 were pretty uneventful.  They were through downtown Fredricksburg and the streets were pretty quiet. There were some people in amazing costumes, my favorite was this kid:

Mile 8 was the blue mile and as usual with any race with a blue mile, I removed my headphones and ran in silence while looking at every photo of every fallen soldier featured in the first part of the mile.  The blue mile ALWAYS gets me and I always tear up thinking about the fallen, how young most of them were and the sacrifice that they (and their families) made for our country.  The second half of the blue mile is always volunteers holding flags and cheering you on, I try to high five and thank every single person holding a flag.

Headphones out, time to run in silence and contemplation

mile 9 - 13.1

Mile 9 was one of my favorite miles of the race.  I was feeling beat up and tired entering into it and at about the half mile marker I saw the (what I would later realize) Team RWB giving out bottled water.  As I grabbed a bottle of water, I told the guy handing it out that I loved him (and at that very moment, I did).  Then (my new friend) Thomas called me over and asked me if I wanted a beer (Do you think it had anything to do with the "How Far To The Bar?" headband that Rachel got me at the expo? Me neither.)... DID I EVER!! I stopped long enough to drink half a Bud Light and chat for a minute and take a selfie with Adam: 

The Team RWB crew really helped me keep going

After mile 10 came (what everyone said was) the most dreaded hill in the whole race.  This hill had been hyped up almost as much as Beat The Bridge at the Marine Corps Marathon, and just like beat the bridge at MCM, this stupid hill was not that bad... ok, so I didn't run the entire way up in, and I was prepared to run it slowly, and I can see how it would be terrible if you put forth 100% effort the whole race. I just didn't really think it was as bad as some of the other hills on the course, for example the hill in the last half mile of mile 11 was worse in my opinion, at one point I was walking up it BACKWARDS.  

FINALLY I hit mile 12 and all I wanted to do at that moment was be done running the race, shower and have brunch.  This meant a final push to the finish at my normal race pace to finish strong.  Even though I had not hit anywhere close to my race pace the entire run (and I was ok with that).  Unfortunately my body had other plans for me during Mile 12... about 1/4 mile in I had to PEE again!!! Ugh.  So I did what anyone would do... I stopped at McDonalds on the corner, ran into the bathroom with the whole restaurant staring, and begged the woman at the front of the line to let me go first because I was still in the race... I told her I was going to win (she had already finished).

After my unexpected bathroom break, I finally hit my stride for the last 3/4 of a mile and finished at a pace that I'm proud of. All of the Marines at the end were so awesome and encouraging, giving me high fives and cheering me on.  I finally crossed the finish line THIRTY MINUTES SLOWER than my first half marathon (which was a terrible - but fun- trail race that ended up being a "run when you can" type of race).  I am not going to reveal my finish time right now (I probably will for other races) because there are a lot of haters out there that may get angry to know how not seriously I was taking this race... However, I did cover the same distance as everyone else and I earned my medal just like everyone else and I am displaying it proudly as my second favorite medal (the 40th MCM medal is my favorite... that one is dope).

FINISHED!!!! (photo credit: MarathonFoto)

This cutie marine gave me my medal

Our friend and training buddy 

JEN HILL getting TWO

personal hotties escorts to the finish line. 

All in all this race was awesome.  I will be back to actually attack Hospital Hill head on in a year or so. Before I make plans that far in advance, it's time to take a few weeks of rest before JUNE 18, 2017 when I start training for the 2016 TCS NEW YORK CITY MARATHON... STAY TUNED. 

Have you ever just run a race to have fun?  I'd love to hear your experiences in the comments below. 

Introduction: My Running Journey Begins

Hi! Welcome to my blog!!  I'm glad that you've decided to join me for this crazy ride! A little bit about myself: 

My name is Emily, I am a Litigation Paralegal and distance runner in the DC area.  I am also a single woman trying to date in this crazy atmosphere that we call the DC dating scene while trying to juggle work, friends, marathon training and family time. This is my journey to run ALL THE RACES!

I embarked on this crazy running journey in September 2014.  My sister decided that she did not want to buy me "stuff'" for my birthday that year, she wanted to get me an "experience"... I'm positive that she did not realize that, with that purchase of a Potomac River Running training session (101/201 program, whoot whoot), she would create a total monster.  During that first 8 week session, I realized for the first time in my life that I LOVED RUNNING!! 

Let me back up here, I have to say that I was NEVER EVER EVER anything close to a runner at any point before I was 32 years old... seriously, never.  I was the kid in middle school and high school that would walk the track so slowly that the gym teacher would get irritated that I was only a half done with the mile by the time that gym class was over.  I was never athletic at all, I preferred watching TV and playing Sega Genesis while eating ungodly amounts of junk food. Yes, I played some sports when I was young but never more than a season and I never put any effort into getting any better (swimming, dance, softball, lacrosse).  I just wasn't into it and I was lazy.  This did not catch up with me until after college, I was always rail thin until my 25th birthday when it all caught up with me. 

When I embarked on that first 8 week session, I could not run a mile, at all, and I never thought that I would ever improve or get better.  At the end of the session I ran my first 5k (Potomac River Running Turkey Day 5k) and I could run it almost ALL THE WAY THROUGH (I only stopped to walk twice)!  After that I was HOOKED.

Turkey Day 5k Around Mile 3

I decided that I was going to sign up for the Potomac River Running (anyone else see a theme here) Distance Training Program (DTP) and attempt to run a half marathon the next spring.  Yes, I threw myself into running hard core; and no, I don't necessarily suggest that someone do the same.  

After another 5k and a 15k, I was ready to run the 2015 Rock n Roll DC.  Then a week before, I came down with a nasty case of Bronchitis, basically my doctor told me that I would need a miracle from God himself to be better by race day. I was not better by race day, in fact it was still rough to get out of bed and/or off the couch by race day and I was still using my inhaler like my life depended on it!  So I had to do what most runners fear (including myself) and go into race day with a DNS, It was a lesson in moving on and really visualizing the idea that there is ALWAYS another race to focus on; and that's just what I did, I set my sights on running the 2015 Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Miler and I have to say that the race was AWESOME!!

So, funny story about this time in 2015... I was out on a run with my friend and running buddy Cristina (who also started running with Potomac River Running 101/201 at the same time as I did) after she ran RnR DC (I had convinced her to run with me and then had to bail).  As she was recapping her race day experience (think monsoon) and casually mentioned that she had signed up for the Marine Corps Marathon Lottery.  All I said was "ok", meaning that I was going to sign up too. 

On March 18, 2015 I received the greatest and most frightening email that I had ever received...

The email that changed my life

I was registered for the 40th MARINE CORPS MARATHON!!  My initial thoughts (after I almost dropped my iPhone) was: "HOLY CRAP, I haven't even been running for a year, how the heck am I going to run a MARATHON??? At that moment I knew that sh!t just got real and I was actually becoming a serious runner!"

... and so the journey began...