Sunday, October 26, 2008

A Marathon of Firsts

The Niagara Falls Marathon presented a number of firsts for me including:

1) First time crossing an International Border by Foot - That was awesome!!
2) First time meeting Laura, who by the way is just as awesome in person as she is on her blog.
3) First time running a 2:51 30K and 3:03 32K. My marathon PB for 30K was 2:53 and change. My only offical 30K race was Around the Bay and was 2:55 and change.
4) The first time I have run (without walking) 32K. My first walk break was around 32K after which they were plentiful!
5) My first time finishing before the 4:00 hour pace bunny......

..........





OK, now I am playing with you, but being honest at the same time. The 4:00 pace bunny finished around 4:2-, he tanked during the race.

I did get my PB (barely). My official time is four hours, fifteen minutes and twenty seconds. And I am pleased. I had some really bad blisters and quad pain that really slowed my last 10K. I am a little dissapointed that the last 10K took my 1 hour, 12 minutes, but overall very pleased that I still held on for a PB. This marathon was a great course, and the weather was great! Best of all, I know I can improve on this time in Philly in a few weeks.

Overall, I feel extremely grateful. I have a lot of support. My husband (love ya), family, running friends, and ofcourse my running blogger friends. I was truly touched by the support you offered for this and other races (that didn't go as planned). I carried thoughts about each and every one of you to the finish line, and it really helped me get through. Thanks for that!

I will post a detailed race report later, but for now, thanks again, and thanks for reading. I hope everyone else's races went well today.

22 comments:

Laura said...

CONGRATULATIONS MARCI! You did so fantastically well - that wind was awful and you were looking strong when I last saw you - I'm so glad to hear you met your PR!

I spent the whole plane ride writing my race report and I just have a few more miles to cover, so hopefully I'll get it posted tonight. I want to think you so much for meeting up with me - as you'll read in my report, I was in a bad mood leading up to the race and you and Moe were so positive that it totally inspired me to push myself really hard. This wasn't a PR time for me but it's still one of my proudest races because I didn't give up, and I have YOU to thank for that!!!

Hoping to see you in Philly :) Let me know if you guys want to stop by NYC on the way, and I'd love to show you around :)

Marcy said...

CONGRATS MARCI!!! You did FABULOUS chica!! WHOOOOOO HOOO!!! ;D ;D You DID IT!! A PR is a PR no matter what ;-)

Aron said...

awesome job!!!! congrats on the PR and cant wait to read the whole report!

BeachRunner said...

YAY!!! Congrats on a great race and an awesome PR! Looking forward to the full report.

Jess said...

Congrats!!

Marlene said...

CONGRATS ON THE PR!! You are amazing! Those are some incredible milestones too. Looking forward to all the details. :)

Hmmm, maybe I'll see you in Hamilton next weekend. ;)

AddictedToEndorphins said...

You continue to inspire me. You ROCKED that race. Congrats on more than one PR! Way to kill it and have a good time.
And it's always fun meeting up with bloggers!

Rest up sunshine!:)You deserve it. Infact, I'll have a grilled cheese sandwhich in your honor!

<3<3

Mel-2nd Chances said...

WOW!!!! Congrats Marci! You did awesome! Congrats on all your firsts too! Very impressive and inspirational! Take care of those feet :)

Nikemom said...

Congrats!!!

Unknown said...

congrats! Always like to hear when PRs go down. Looking forward to the detailed report.

Julianne said...

So many great firsts!!! Congrats on your PR Marci!!! Way to go! :-)

Anonymous said...

Well done. Congratulations on the PR. Sounds like you had a grat race. Can't wait to read more about it.

Vava said...

Marci - great work! It was windy windy windy and you managed a PR despite that and the other factors you mentioned. Congratulations!!!

tfh said...

Congratulations! Way to get a PB despite some painful circumstances. Looking forward to the full rr!

Denise said...

CONGRATS on the PR!! Great job!

Stacey said...

Congratulations! There's nothing quite like getting a PR! I got mine this month too! ( :

Erik said...

Congratulations!! Great job!!

RoadBunner said...

Congratulations! I can't wait to read your full report!

Ali said...

Congrats! Well done on the PR.

Run Mommy said...

Way to go Marci! I think I will call you to discuss.. :)

Sonia said...

Woohoo! You rocked it! Very happy you got such a great result, hope Philly is even better for you. How do you recommend this race as far as spectators and course?? It's been on my list for a future marathon.


Crossing an international border by foot is VERY COOL! You should do Detroit half or marathon, they both cross over to Windsor (ON) where you run on the bridge and in the tunnel. Pretty amazing!

Arcane said...

congrats on another marathon and PR. I talked a bit with the 4 hour pace bunny on saturday and he was a bit nervous as it was the first time he was going to be doing it.