Ogden Marathon

On may 19th I finished my second marathon!! I did the Ogden marathon and it was Amazing! The course was absolutely beautiful and had some great downhill when you needed it most. I totally surprised myself and finished in 3 hours and 18 minutes which was about a 7.32 pace. My first marathon I did in 3 hours and 32 minutes. So this one I was hoping to at least get a 3.30 but secretly I wanted to do 3.25. That's what my training plan said that I should complete based off my training but I thought that was pretty fast and I was definitely unsure that I could do...little did I know I would beat it!

There she is!!!

Here is a little run down of the day. Woke up at 3:30....yes in the a.m. so that we could drive down to Ogden which was bout 25 minutes away to park and be on the buses by 5 a.m. We jumped on one of the first buses and headed up the canyon to Huntsville.

Me and Emily...bright and early!
We got there and made our first pit stop in the trusty porta Potts. :)

 Emily

That's me right when my camera started to wig out...that's all the pics I could get pre-race. :(

Then we nestled in by one of the many fire pits that they had going cuz it was freezing. Bout 1/2 hour to go time we thought we needed one more pit stop at the john but the lines were so long and the time kept ticking away. Luckily I had brought an old blanket and we made our own little porta John on the outskirts of the fence...tmi I know...just trying to prepare anyone for what they have to look forward to if they run a marathon. :) By the time the gun went off we were still trying to make our way to the bag drop off so by the time we started the race we were a few minutes off the actual start time. 

The first couple miles were a bit crazy...it felt like a herd of cows that you were weaving in and out of trying to find the tiniest gaps to make your way through to pass. I'm sure I pissed several people off as I squeeze by but it was nuts.  When I finally got out of the madness I was finally able to soak up the beauty that surrounded us...all around. The gorgeous green mountains, pastures, streams, lakes, cattle, horses, waterfall...you get the picture. I couldn't help but smile and soak it all in.  I felt amazing and couldn't believe the pace I was keeping the first 14 miles. When I hit mile 13 I was wishing I was doin the half cuz I still felt so good and would have been more then happy to be crossing a finish line. :) But I kept going...only 13 more to go. Bout mile 14 my calves started to get a little tight and from there it only got worse and worse with each step but I couldn't let it stop me. I would see people pull off and start rubbing and punding their calves and it looked pretty good but I knew if I stopped I wouldn't want to start again.

This is around where it was hurtin pretty bad...but watch out green guy!!!

My face just realizing there were poeple I knew cheering for me! I was REALLY excited although my face can't physically show it...Jeremy even made me a sign! ;)

So...just like my last marathon I thought off my sweet Dakota and what he would give to feel his little chicken legs running again and it only made me wanna go faster and try harder. It made me even more grateful for a strong healthy body. That is one thing I have come to appreciate SO much and is what I thank my Heavenly Father for every day. Mostly I am thankful for a strong healthy body so that I can take care of my sweet Dakota. He is getting bigger and heavier all the time and he definitely gives your arms and back a workout every time you hold him...but I am grateful for my ability to care for him. I often worry about the future as he gets bigger and grows...what if he never learns to walk again??? How will I continue to pick him and and take care of him??? I try not to think too far ahead because I don't know what the future holds and I don't know what Dakota will be capable of so there is no use wasting today worrying about tomorrow...but it is always in the back of my mind. I ran into a mom of a 31 year old son who had a brain injury at birth and needs all the cares Dakota needs. One of the first things I asked her was...how do you get him up every day and take care of him? She said...I do it myself cuz my husband is often out of town. I tell people not to mess with me because I pick him up 2 times a day! I thought wow...she was no body builder but she had the strength and heart of a mom and a healthy body...so that is all I need! Dakota is all I need for motivation. He is my inspiration...I have to say, I think he is the reason I did so well.

Kisses for him after the race!!!

Anyways...Bout mile 20 a girl that had been back and forth with me at first and then I had lost her for most the rest of the time came up on me. I told myself...don't let her beat me! We stayed neck and neck til the last two miles and my little legs just had nothin left in them. She pulled ahead and I literally could not run any faster no matter how hard I tried.  I was just moving to finish.  The finish line was a mad house with tons of people lining each side because the half and full are ending at the same spot. I didn't see Zach and Dakota but they saw me!  When I crossed the line and started walkin my legs were so weak they felt like jello. I grabbed some drinks and some snacks and made my way through the misters. After stretching and breathing for a bit all I wanted to see was my cute family. Zachs grandparents had picked them up to be there at the finish. I didn't have my fan club like last race but my friends families cheered me along the way and I can't tell you how much I LOVE the spectators that cheer for you even though they dont know you! They are the best! It took me forever to find them in the chaos but I was SO happy to see their smiling faces and kiss my boy. He has no idea how much he helped his mommy do her very best!

Telling him how much he helped me!

Nate, Terra, and Ellie came...thanks guys!!

Our little family and grandma...sad we didn't get grandpa in there...he was there though!

Thanks again you guys! Sure love you!!

I ended up 4th in my age group, 17th overall for woman, and 113 overall. I qualified for Boston again but not sure if this is the year I will go or not yet.  Afterwards Zach and Dakota took me for a nice well deserved breakfast!

Wow baby!!! The French Toast was Zach's but it all was amazing!

Then he took me out to dinner ( because you know I was not gonna cook...at least for a couple of days...I deserve that right?!) best part is a massage after dinner. It should be mandatory that everyone who runs a marathon should get a massage afterwards!

Things I didn't like or would do differently:

1. Get in line for the bathrooms before 30 minutes to race time.

2. Get in the start line before the gun goes off so I'm not stuck behind people at a slower pace and trying to weave in and out.

3. Maybe try some compression socks to see if that helps my calves from tightening up.

4. Make a better meeting plan with the family so I didn't have to look and wait for so long.

5. Crowds at the packet pick up expo, crowds at the start, and crowds at the end...too many people!

6. The unhappy stomach and all that comes with it after the race.;) that's all the info I'll give you on that.

Things I loved about this marathon:

1. The course.... with downhills throughout and especially towards the end when you needed them most. (there were some definite uphill but enough downhill to make up for the hard ups) it was also mainly a straight shot...not a lot of turns.

2. The gorgeous scenery!!

3. Just running how I feel and not worrying about pacing or anything.

4. Awesome aid stations...even handed out cold wet sponges that felt so good.

5. We were so lucky to have such great weather! It was not too hot and only really cold before you started. I liked the fires that kept you warm.

6. Grandma and grandpa Rhees, Zach, Dakota, Hirschis, Jeremy, the Allen's, and all the strangers that cheered for me along the way.

7. Loved that your number had your name on it too...made you feel special and important and the announcers along the way would say go Tessie!

8. Recovery was a lot faster on this one. Only really sore calves but no serious injuries or chaffing.