Marathon Mania Monday- Memorial Day Memories Edition

[reginaphalange72]

Supposed to run the Bolder Boulder 10k today, but my foot is still a no-go (much better though - I only made it running for about 9 seconds this morning before I had to call it and go back inside my apartment).  So instead, I'm sitting in the geology building, right next to the finish line expo, attempting to get some work done and kill some time before I get to hang with andrealynn (woot!).  What better way to kill time than play around on H&F??

What was your last marathon (or longest race)?

Last weekend - the Colfax Marathon in Denver

When did you feel like you were really ready to take on the full marathon?

Summer 2009 - I had just broken my ankle playing rugby, and was forced into early retirement by a blood clot.  I was looking for something new to do, and had a student in my summer class who was just getting into tris.  He kept coming in every day talking about some sweet race he did that weekend and it sounded really fun.  I had always been a runner (ran track and cross country in high school), and shorter distances didn't really interest me - I wanted to go all out.  I signed up for my first marathon in October 2009 and completed my first one in September 2010.  Four marathons and two Ironmans later, here I am.

Where was your favorite race, and what made it your favorite?

I think it's a tie between my first marathon (the Adirondack Marathon in Schroon Lake, NY), and my most recent Ironman (Lake Placid, New York).  The marathon was awesome because it was my first, and it was really emotional.  IMLP was just awesome because those guys know how to put on a show.

How did you react when you crossed the finish line of your first marathon? How about your PR marathon?

First marathon - I bawled like a baby.  I was so happy.  It was a huge emotional release.
PR marathon - This is the one last week.  I was just really happy to have a kickass PR.  I didn't do anything really interesting though.  Just hobbled my way through the finishers area and found my family.  Then proceeded to lay in the grass and eat two Voodo donuts.

Who talked you into taking on the marathon distance?

You fabulous H&F ladies!  And my former student, who is currently working towards his pro triathlete card (Tim Russell - look out for him in the future.  He's badass).

Why is it so easy to look back at a race and forget the pain, almost like amnesia, and use only the good memories to sign up for another race? Why can't we apply that more to everything else in our lives too? Tell us your best race memory from any race.

I often wonder about this.  It's weird, isn't it?

Best memory - Mile 22 of my first marathon.  I was running along, alone (it was a very small race), and suddenly it hit me that I was really going to finish, and things were going to be real.  I just started bawling.  I was walking along, sobbing my eyes out and wailing "it's reaaaaaaaaalllll!!!!"  About a quarter mile later, I composed myself, and kept on going.  Good times.

[jordylee]

What was your last marathon (or longest race)? Last marathon was Chicago. Training for the next one starts today, woot!

When did you feel like you were really ready to take on the full marathon? I ran my first marathon in 2010. I don't know if I felt "ready" per se, since I had no clue what I was doing. I had done a few halfs and broken the 2 hour barrier that was a long time coming, so I was up for a new challenge. 

Where was your favorite race, and what made it your favorite? They're all my favorites, for different reasons. Chicago 2010 was my favorite because it was my first. Nothing compares to your first marathon, especially in a big city race. Columbus 2011 was my favorite because my whole family (including in-laws) came and spectated the hell out of the race. To date, it is the only race that more than 2 people have spectated for me, and it was so much fun. Illinois 2012 was my favorite because holy crap, it was my first time breaking 4 hours! I ran negative splits, and it had a stadium finish. And Chicago 2013 was my favorite because I got a freaking BQ! I never dreamed when I first started running that nabbing a BQ would be in the cards for me. I burst into tears as soon as I crossed the finish line. 

How did you react when you crossed the finish line of your first marathon? How about your PR marathon? When I crossed after my first marathon, it was a huge feeling of relief and accomplishment. I had never run that far before, and I was hurting pretty badly. I was so happy it was over, but so so proud. For my PR marathon, I burst into tears when I crossed. I have never been so overcome with emotion in my life. It was really overwhelming, and wonderful. 

Who talked you into taking on the marathon distance? Nobody. I just decided that it was something I wanted to try.

Why is it so easy to look back at a race and forget the pain, almost like amnesia, and use only the good memories to sign up for another race? Why can't we apply that more to everything else in our lives too? Tell us your best race memory from any race. Maybe its the whole "pain is temporary, pride is forever" kind of thing. It really only hurts for a certain amount of time, but the feelings of accomplishment and progress are much longer lasting. 

[G22]

What was your last marathon (or longest race)? Air Force Marathon last September

When did you feel like you were really ready to take on the full marathon? Well I signed up for it on New Years Day, but I questioned my ability to do it all the way up to race day.

Where was your favorite race, and what made it your favorite? AF marathon holds a special place in my heart since it was my first and my H's first. So we try to go back and do it every year now.

How did you react when you crossed the finish line of your first marathon? How about your PR marathon? I almost cried. I got teary down the last .2 running by the crowd. It was such an awesome feeling.

Who talked you into taking on the marathon distance? Me. I ran my first half the year before, and after swore I'd never run a full. Then came registration day for the AF marathon for my H and for some reason I told him to sign me up too.

Why is it so easy to look back at a race and forget the pain, almost like amnesia, and use only the good memories to sign up for another race? Why can't we apply that more to everything else in our lives too? Tell us your best race memory from any race. OMG this is so true. I was telling my H this after my painful half last weekend. I forget about how miserable and how much pain I was in mid race and only remember how it feels to finish and feels so good. And then I sign up for another one.

Best memory: I'd only managed a miserable 18 mile training run as my longest run before my first marathon. So race day came and once I hit mile 18, I got super excited because every mile after that was a new distance for me. Every time I passed another flag telling me another mile was done, I'd get a rush of excitement and energy. I truly believe that is what helped me push through the mental wall at the end.  Even though miles 18-26 were the most painful of the race, they were the most exciting for me. Its hard to match the feeling.

[cinco]

What was your last marathon (or longest race)? Boston, 5 weeks ago

When did you feel like you were really ready to take on the full marathon? After a strong Metric Marathon. I couldn't wait to challenge myself to run even further. This was in 2009, so 8 years after my 1st marathon I signed up for #2 and #3 after the MM.

Where was your favorite race, and what made it your favorite? This is like picking my favorite child. I love them all for different reasons Some of my favorites are DD's cross country races. I tear up watching her finish. She has this fierceness and determination that is pretty awesome for a 7 year old. One of her races was in this small town about 45 minutes from where we were living. It was at a lake and we were surrounded by mountains on all sides. It was breathtaking, and it was exactly the kind of place H & I imagined raising our kids. So, we moved, and now we are doing just that. I'm so lucky I get to watch all my kids run there now.

How did you react when you crossed the finish line of your first marathon? How about your PR marathon?
I hurt my knee, and it was really hot. I finished about an hour after my goal. I was happy to be done, but I don't remember this amazing moment. It was pretty anticlimactic. As for the PR marathon, one of the best moments of my life. I still can't wrap my head around the fact that I ran that fast ( it is still my PR 3 years later) I'm thankful I was able to have the race of my life in Boston. I rushed to the family meeting area so I could see my parents and H. The whole day was perfect start to finish, and I don't see how it can be topped.

Who talked you into taking on the marathon distance?
No one. It was something I decided to do for no good reason, lol. It took me a long time to run another, but I was hooked after #2

Why is it so easy to look back at a race and forget the pain, almost like amnesia, and use only the good memories to sign up for another race? Why can't we apply that more to everything else in our lives too? I feel the same way about child birth.

Tell us your best race memory from any race.
My first BQ. It was at Steamtown, and they have this little hill at the end that feels like a mountain. They have all these kids from a nearby hospital cheering for you and it is hard to not get choked up. When I got to the top I could see the finish line and saw I was going to go sub 3:30. I could see my kids in their "run, mommy, run" shirts holding up signs and cheering. DH just looked totally stunned that I crushed my goal.

[G22]

I love reading these reminiscing moments! Its making me super excited about my next marathon in less than 3 weeks!

[thom]

Nice post @vtcupcake! Thank you to all our military ladies & those who have family members that serve.


What was your last marathon (or longest race)? 2 weekends ago, Lake Wobegon Trail. It seems like so much farther back than that.

When did you feel like you were really ready to take on the full marathon? Really ready? Uh, maybe never. I feel like I still haven't had that strong, smart, amazing race where I conquered the marathon. But, I decided I wanted to take it on back in high school when I didn't like running more than 2 miles.

Where was your favorite race, and what made it your favorite? I can't pick! Fargo was an awesome first race w/ so much community support, Minneapolis was gorgeous weather and an unexpectedly huge PR. This last marathon at LWT was the first time my parents and H had seen me run a marathon, which was special. It's also the closest it gets to my "hometown" race.

How did you react when you crossed the finish line of your first marathon? How about your PR marathon? I feel like my finishes have been sort of anti-climatic. It's usually a mixture of relief and exhaustion, coupled with happiness to run a PR. In spite of missing my goal this spring I've still run a PR in each marathon I've done.

Who talked you into taking on the marathon distance? Myself mostly. I've always had this attraction to the marathon; even in elementary school. I remember having several teachers that would run Grandma's and Twin Cities, and I was so in awe that people could possibly run that many miles.

Why is it so easy to look back at a race and forget the pain, almost like amnesia, and use only the good memories to sign up for another race? Why can't we apply that more to everything else in our lives too? Tell us your best race memory from any race.

Gosh, I wish I knew! It's amazing though how our brains will do that. I think cinco is probably right when she compares it to childbirth. I guess the outcome outweighs the pain. That's probably even more true w/ kids.

[clseale]

What was your last marathon (or longest race)?
Celebration Marathon 1/26/14

When did you feel like you were really ready to take on the full marathon?
After my first marathon! LOL I knew if I could survive one on minimal training, then I could actually train & have a fair shot of having a decent race.

Where was your favorite race, and what made it your favorite?
Surf City Marathon, it was awesome. I love CA so much, and I was out there with a bunch of my favorite people. 6 of us rented an amazing beach house (4 others stayed in a hotel) & had such a fun trip. The course is awesome, and set up in a way that let us see each other multiple times along the course. It was also my strongest race from start to finish. It was the best.

How did you react when you crossed the finish line of your first marathon? How about your PR marathon?
For my first marathon, I was thrilled to be done, and vowed that 1) Marathons were not for me, and 2) That there was no way in hell I would ever be fast at them, or one of those people who BQd. 

For my PR marathon, I was thrilled to be done & pretty damn happy with my BQ! I was also very calm & "I did what I came to do" about the whole thing. My friends were laughing because they were more emotional than I was. Lol 

Who talked you into taking on the marathon distance?
A crazy bunch of people who had no idea what we were getting into. 

Why is it so easy to look back at a race and forget the pain, almost like amnesia, and use only the good memories to sign up for another race? Why can't we apply that more to everything else in our lives too? Tell us your best race memory from any race.
I have so many fun memories from my race courses. I love giving kids high fives, making people happy by grabbing beer in the final miles of the marathon, funny signs, seeing friends along the course, etc. I guess my favorite, if I have to pick one, is from the final .5 mile of my BQ. I could hear my friends screaming like maniacs when they spotted me, and DH was on his bike right next to me. I just kept running towards their cheers. When I turned off for the final .2, they were all right there. DH told me to go get it, and that he'd see me on the other side. It was just a very happy .5 mile.  

[Deleted]

What a fun question!!!


What was your last marathon (or longest race)? San Francisco In 2008--my one and only. 

When did you feel like you were really ready to take on the full marathon? Lol.  Not even a little bit.  I trained solo and knew almost nothing about fueling, body glide, etc.  I had a lot of long runs under my belt, but not many hills.  

Where was your favorite race, and what made it your favorite? SF by default, baby! 

How did you react when you crossed the finish line of your first marathon? How about your PR marathon? I burst into tears and thought I never ever ever have to do this again. I finished in a lifetime pr of 5:06

Who talked you into taking on the marathon distance? Grad school friends--we had a whole weekend meetup for the race.  It was awesome


Best t's memory from any race: I ran the CA Classic with two of my best friends last year--it was so much fun chatting and running the whole time. 

[biomaj5]

What was your last marathon (or longest race)?
Rt 66 Marathon, Nov 2013

When did you feel like you were really ready to take on the full marathon?
I, um, ran my first marathon a year and 3 months after I started running. I like to do crazy stuff.

Where was your favorite race, and what made it your favorite?
This is hard. I think the Gravedigger obstacle run from last September was my favorite event, but that's not really a race. I loved that one because I didn't think I could do it, and I did. It was a great confidence booster. As for regular races... I honestly don't know. I'll edit if I can come up with one. I have a lot that I liked, and a few that I hated, but there isn't one that is standing out the most in my memory. Scratch that. RT 66 marathon. See next answer.

How did you react when you crossed the finish line of your first marathon? How about your PR marathon?
I tried not to cry lol. I was pretty happy to be done. As for my PR marathon, it was a 53 min PR, and only 7 months after my first marathon. I was pretty stoked. Some random dude raced me for the last maybe tenth of a mile, and that made for an awesome finish. He beat me, but he came back and thanked me because he needed the competitive push, as did I. Also, it was 24F, so I was thrilled to get out of the cold.

Who talked you into taking on the marathon distance?
I did it to myself. I was the one who talked my bff into running it with me bwahahaha. She now dislikes running and won't go longer than a 5K. But I'm working on her.

Why is it so easy to look back at a race and forget the pain, almost like amnesia, and use only the good memories to sign up for another race? Why can't we apply that more to everything else in our lives too? Tell us your best race memory from any race.
Lol, see the marathon answer.

[taratru]

What was your last marathon (or longest race)?

The Arizona Marathon, February 2013


When did you feel like you were really ready to take on the full marathon?

I never really have...I'm still very intimidated by the distance.  I'm hoping to work on that confidence piece with this training cycle.  That started TODAY.  Holy shit. 


Where was your favorite race, and what made it your favorite?

Bolder Boulder is my favorite every year.  There's just something about racing something so huge, so full of tradition, so fun, right here at home.


How did you react when you crossed the finish line of your first marathon? How about your PR marathon?

My first...it was surreal.  I walked around like I was dreaming.  I couldn't believe I had done that.

My second (PR) was amazing.  I felt SO GOOD that race and afterwards I was on a runner's high for real.  Plus, I was super excited to cheer for kams, so that made me happy.    


Who talked you into taking on the marathon distance?

No one.  I just said to DH one night, "I can totally do a marathon."  And he said, "I think you should."  So I signed up.  

I feel obligated to note I was D-R-U-N-K  at the time. 


Why is it so easy to look back at a race and forget the pain, almost like amnesia, and use only the good memories to sign up for another race? Why can't we apply that more to everything else in our lives too? Tell us your best race memory from any race.


Hmmm...honestly, the one standout moment for me was running down Main Street at Disney the first time, toward the lit-up castle, with the thousands of people packed in there cheering...it was amazing.  

And finishing that race with a HUGE GIANT PR was the best feeling ever.  

[skwcm80]

I'm not training yet but I'll answer anyway.

What was your last marathon (or longest race)?
My last race and longest distance - RnR Nashville

When did you feel like you were really ready to take on the full marathon?
I started to seriously consider a full when I could run 12+ miles and not need to sleep the rest of the day away.

Where was your favorite race, and what made it your favorite?
This changes all of the time, but right now it is the Purdue Boilermaker half. It was relatively hilly, but it was so much fun in a challenging way. The Geist half marathon was also a good one (I like looking at big homes I can't afford). Both of which I can't run this year.

How did you react when you crossed the finish line of your first marathon? How about your PR marathon?
I don't know yet, I'll let you know in October. I imagine there will be tears. 


Who talked you into taking on the marathon distance?
No one, I have only myself to blame. 


Why is it so easy to look back at a race and forget the pain, almost like amnesia, and use only the good memories to sign up for another race? Why can't we apply that more to everything else in our lives too? Tell us your best race memory from any race.
My best experience was crossing the finish line at my first 10k. I wasn't particularly fast and I didn't even really feel good. I was so overwhelmed that I had run 6 miles, when I thought finishing c25k was going to be a stretch

[kams]

May 26, 2014 16:55:30 GMT -5 taratru said:

How about your PR marathon?

My first...it was surreal.  I walked around like I was dreaming.  I couldn't believe I had done that.

My second (PR) was amazing.  I felt SO GOOD that race and afterwards I was on a runner's high for real.  Plus, I was super excited to cheer for kams, so that made me happy.    

This was the best!!! taratru and I rode the bus out to the start together, and then hung out before the start (indoor bathrooms!), and it just made the whole day feel like it had some normalcy when I would have otherwise been shitting my pants with nerves! T has been with me at two of my biggest races - I love her so!

What was your last marathon (or longest race)?
The end of Ironman, last Saturday.

When did you feel like you were really ready to take on the full marathon?
Um, not really ever! I'm not worthy!

Where was your favorite race, and what made it your favorite?
Gosh, I think everything has been awesome. Ironman was truly epic, and certainly one of my most incredible days of a lifetime. But, my favorite race for the energy, my performance, & the course was Boulder 70.3.

How did you react when you crossed the finish line of your first marathon? How about your PR marathon?

I cried like a baby! My PR marathon I was pissed, lol. I was sick and was thisclose to my goal, and I knew that I would have made it if I had have been healthy.

Who talked you into taking on the marathon distance?

I am pretty sure people tried to talk me out of it actually, lol. 3 down the hatch, natch!

Why is it so easy to look back at a race and forget the pain, almost like amnesia, and use only the good memories to sign up for another race? Why can't we apply that more to everything else in our lives too? Tell us your best race memory from any race.

Oh man, that's the truth! Crossing that ironman finish line was surreal and incredible - indescribable!

[chw57]

May 26, 2014 7:30:48 GMT -5 @vtcupcake said:

What was your last marathon (or longest race)? 9 days ago (IMTX)

When did you feel like you were really ready to take on the full marathon? After 2 half marathons and about 6 years of off and on running

Where was your favorite race, and what made it your favorite?  The San Francisco Marathon - challenging, perfect weather, fun setting; plus my 2 fastest marathons ever were on that course

How did you react when you crossed the finish line of your first marathon? Tears, relief, exhaustion

How about your PR marathon? Complete disbelief

Who talked you into taking on the marathon distance? My dad had run quite a few, and then friends started running them and I thought "I can totally do this"

Why is it so easy to look back at a race and forget the pain, almost like amnesia, and use only the good memories to sign up for another race? Why can't we apply that more to everything else in our lives too? Tell us your best race memory from any race.  While on the bike at Ironman Texas I swore I would never do another one.  Within an hour of finishing I was thinking about which year I can do Ironman Wisconsin.  

[blndsnbrdr]

I'm playing...because I was one of the lucky ones not working yesterday! And clearly not doing very much work today!


What was your last marathon (or longest race)?
Marathon = Fargo 2012    Longest Race = Quad Rock 50M on May 10th


When did you feel like you were really ready to take on the full marathon?
It was peer pressure...don't let peer pressure be your sole motivator!


Where was your favorite race, and what made it your favorite?
I absolutely loved Quad Rock 50M, but I think it will always be special because it was my first real mountain ultra distance and I played it smart so it never truly sucked. I also really liked the Fargo Marathon, awesome organization, fantastic spectators + bands and overall great race!


How did you react when you crossed the finish line of your first marathon? How about your PR marathon?
I immediately took off my shoes and bitched. It sucked, my entire foot was bruised...and I'm a whiner. For my PR marathon [Fargo] I was a grinning fool, that last 6 miles of the race were the best!


Who talked you into taking on the marathon distance?
A HS friend and HS cross country coach...they ran the same race I did but with much better [uninjured] results.


Why is it so easy to look back at a race and forget the pain, almost like amnesia, and use only the good memories to sign up for another race? Why can't we apply that more to everything else in our lives too? Tell us your best race memory from any race.
I think it is because there is such a sense of accomplishment and badassery that comes with taking on the distance and meeting our goals. We remember the glory and forget the pain. Personally, I do apply that to a lot of my personal life, but I'm pretty emotionally detached like that.