Flying Pig...Initial Thoughts

What you can't see in this picture of me approaching the Finish Swine of yesterday's Flying Pig Marathon in Cincinnati, are the throbbing cramps in both of my thighs :)


The cramps had me flat on my back for a few rather painful minutes around the 23 mile mark on Riverside Drive - one of the ugliest stretches of road on earth.  Worse than the pain was the anger at the thought I may not be able to finish. I thought I'd planned for everything. I was well hydrated - as the picture shows, I'm still sweating profusely at the finish. My energy level was good. I never really felt fatigued. But - the heat got me, I guess and, as I stopped to attempt to stretch it out, I fell on the sidewalk. Ugh!!!


Soon, with the help of a couple of fellow runners equipped with salt pills (I'd never heard of salt pills, but, I'ma get me some), the nice ladies with ice at the first aid station, and a determination to not hear Denise say, 'Suck it up, Nancy,' I was back on the road.


The 24th mile was a killer as I walked/ran the cramps off a bit, but they never quite went away and my time...well...sucked.


I finished in 4:36:37, a 10:34 average minute.


So, if anyone was planning to make a donation to the Not For Sale Campaign based on me improving on my time from last year, I guess you are off the hook, unfortunately. I do hope my friends will help out anyway :)


However - I don't want this post to be all gloom and doom, because in spite of the cramps and disappointment with my time, we did have a terrific weekend!


Here's what stands out:

• The 'Street Squealers' throughout the race were a hoot. The Flying Pig is well supported by the city of Cincinnati, for sure. Tons of people came out to volunteer at fluid stations, cheer for all the runners, play music and more. My 2 favorites: 1) the handful of signs that read something like 'Run, Perfect Stranger!' - reminding me that 'with' is, thankfully,  not limited to the people we know, and 2) the folks at Deupree House, a nursing home on Erie Avenue, around the 13.5 mile mark. A handful of residents were out, wheelchairs, walkers, oxygen tanks and all; some dressed as nuns. You never can be sure if someone actually is what they are dressed as in these things - for instance, I'm pretty sure Elvis was not really there and that was not really a shark who finished the marathon several minutes ahead of me.  
• Green Dog Cafe is a great restaurant. Ate there Saturday night. Will eat there again.
• I really want to go back to Eden Park with Denise. Soon. And sit this time.
• My playlist, which featured songs suggested by Matt Stevens (always enjoyed a good pick me up with Matt at 7 a.m.), Madeline McElroy, Al Mann, Ryan Bond, Eric Quackenbush ('Life's a Happy Song,' loved it!), the lovely Emily Paige (NOT fair making your dad cry while running a marathon!), Ted Hamilton, Mark Rivera, Caleb, and my BFF Denise. I'll post the list with additional comments separately. For now - THANKS everyone for your help! Can't tell you how helpful it is for you to give me something/someone to think about while running.
• Getting txts from Courtney before the race and afterwards from Mark, Justin and Q asking how things went. Having friends is nice like cookies and milk. I really like cookies and milk.
• I was already aware, but I have the best in-laws a guy could possibly ask for. Getting out there and trooping around in the heat to encourage me and Michael as we ran is much appreciated. The time Buck put in to mapping the routes from one spot to another to assure my family would be where most needed is above and beyond. Thanks!!
• Loved running with Michael Pippen. Michael did the half-marathon, his 1st. The courses split around 8.5 miles, so I didn't get to do the entire race with him or see him finish, which I really would have loved. Michael was part of our student ministry, but is much more than that to us. He's family. I am quite proud of the young man God is growing him into.  Michael's smile as we headed back into KY across the CW Bailey Bridge with about 10,000 of our friends = priceless.
• Denise, Caleb & Emily are the best family in the world. Sorry everyone else. Seeing my kids'  beaming smiles and clapping at the finish...wow...I don't really know how to even try to describe that. How can a dad describe what it feels like to experience firsthand his kids being proud of him? At some point late in the race I'd passed a poster that read, 'Pain is temporary. Pride is forever.' I'm pretty sure it referred to the pride we'd have in ourselves for finishing the race. And, yes, there is that. But, it doesn't really matter what a guy accomplishes in life - marathons, education, career,  whatever. It's all σκύβαλον if his kids aren't or can't be proud of their dad. I think mine are. That's pretty sweet.
• Denise - well - Denise just bowls me over. Knowing that she wants me to do well even more than I do makes it impossible to quit. There she was again this weekend: getting an incredible deal on a more than comfortable hotel room; packing plastic bags with the things I'd need at various points of the race so I wouldn't have to carry them; barely sleeping Saturday night because I don't sleep well the night before races; demanding that I speed up when I passed just after the half/full split, and that I not slow down when I saw her again at the 22 mile mark - I'd already had a rough 20th mile with the cramps, and they were coming back strong when I saw her. She shoved a banana, Aleve and Gatorade in my hand and said, 'GO!!!' I went :) ; hearing later that she'd jumped out in the middle of the road to get my picture at the finish, only to learn that I'd already finished will probably always make me a bit weepy. And when I fell into her arms after the race? Well...ummm. Yeah. If I'm gonna fall, that's where I want to fall. Every time.