Lessons Learned from the 1/2

So this is a post about things that they don't tell you in the handy-dandy literature before running a 1/2 marathon (13.1 miles for those that don't know).

1. Bring your own toilet paper (and possibly germ-x). I did luck out as the person beside me in line did think to bring a roll and was generous enough to share. But that many people, the two rolls originally in the porta-pottys were long since gone. The one porta-potty I stopped at along the way was not much better. Enough said on this one.

2. Sunscreen doesn't last. I used sunscreen, I promise--the waterproof, sweatproof kind. But I also applied it before I checked my gear, which was then bused to the finish line, to be seen several hours later. Of course at the beginning of the race it was raining and cloud covered. It was toward the end of the race that the sun came out--you know the time when the sunscreen was gone. I'm still not sure that I would have carried the stuff around with me though or taken the time to put it on.

3. Rain, Rain, Go away. When it is raining, runners will do strange things. I saw one man with a garbage bag over him--I couldn't tell if he was wearing any clothes as he was wearing short-shorts. And he had those hotel laundry bags over his shoes. I was happy to have brought along my poncho, which I ditched at the starting line a long with many other poncho's, trash bags and interesting toss-asides.

4. Marathons are trashy. My goodness there were so many things just thrown on the ground. Powerbar gel packets, Power beans wrappers. Don't even get me started on the cups thrown down at the water stations. This trashiness is of course including the disgarded trash bags and ponchos (see point #3).

5. Powerbar gel is disgusting. Just what I thought it would be. Thick goo. The flavor I happened to pick up--double latte. The flavor was as it said, it tasted like a latte. I don't drink coffee when I am running. And the goo texture. My goodness, it is reminescent of the stuff I would periodically clear out of my drain. If I didn't need that shot of energy or have water immediately afterward to wash it down, I don't think the goo would have been stomached.

6. Water stations are hazardous (esp. when further back with the walkers). I would be trucking along nicely and all of a sudden a walker would step in front of me and come to a near stop. I didn't, but I was so tempted to pour Accelerade down more than one person's back. Then going back to point #3 again all the cups that were thrown aside by earlier runners were slick. One had to tread carefully. I learned early on that the water stations were a good time to slow to a walk. This gave me a chance to rest (relatively speaking), dodge the slower walkers, I was able to navigate the slicker terraine and I was able to drink my Accelerade without choking myself on it.

7. There is nothing like see that finish line for motivation. I was exausted. I was tired, I had jogged a race that I had trained myself to walk. But I rounded the corner and I saw that yellow banner and I ran. I heard my Mom and Dad cheering me on. Racers that had finished already were cheering me on and I ran. I went from thinking I had no energy left to feeling like I should have done the whole thing. (And no, I am no longer crazy enough to think that the whole marathon is for me).

8. And if seeing the finish line is motivation, crossing the finish line is even better. I had been meditating on my favorite passage from Hebrews the entire race. "Since we are surrounded by such a great a cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles and run the race with perserverence, fixing our eye on Jesus the author and perfector of our faith ..." I had thrown off my poncho, I had been freed from things that weighed me down and I ran the race. The real life lessons hit home as I crossed the finish line, having run the race alone, but with family and friends there cheering me on, keeping me going. I wept. I cried at the beauty that was the race, it was a cathartic moment. I released emotions that were dormant at the fact that I was free to pursue this goal and this dream without someone that had discouraged me from doing it last year. This was what I had trained for and it was worth it.