The Accidental Runner

11/11/2007
We had a great time in New York. It is a fantastic city. We really experienced New York City. We took buses, the subway, the Staten Island Ferry, and we walked. We did not experience the joy of a taxi ride, however. We were pleasantly surprised by the people – everyone we met went out of their way to be helpful. We stayed in the Battery Park area near the World Trade Center.

Now for the Marathon itself. About a month before the marathon I came down with some sort of overuse injury. I had several sessions with the Physical Therapist and I greatly reduced my training. I didn’t do any running for a week, and I didn’t run at all the last week before the marathon, either, in an effort to heal before the run. My toes started to go numb around mile 7. Around mile 8 I started having pain in my calf/foot. That went numb at mile 10, so I thought I was OK. I was doing pretty good (for me) when I passed the ½ marathon mark. Just after that, I developed severe pain in my calf/foot, and it spread to my left calf. Since the pain was causing me to run awkwardly, I then started feeling pain in my hips, and then in places I’d never felt it before! I ended up having to walk a lot of the second half. I finished, but it took me 5 hours and 47 minutes or thereabouts. I learned that I can do ANYTHING when I put my mind to it! I probably should have dropped out at the ½ marathon mark, but I was determined I was going to finish. I’m still sore this week.

The marathon itself was a wonderful experience – one I’d like to repeat in a few years. I took the Staten Island Ferry to get to the start, along with several thousand other runners. I saw the Statue of Liberty as the sun was coming up. I met so many people from around the world. While I was at the starting area I stood in line with a woman from England. I sat with two sisters from Hawaii and a woman from New Jersey. All along the way I heard different languages and accents – German, Italian, Asiatic, etc. I took many pictures along the way. Many other people had digital cameras like I did, and I even stopped to listen to some of the bands along the way. As we ran through each borough of New York, you could feel the energy of the people. It was evident the residents of each borough were proud of their area of New York and of their heritage. We ended up in Central Park. I was so excited when we started into the park. I knew I was almost at the end! It was a beautiful setting to finish the run.

I only wish they had better coordination at the end of the marathon. We were all herded like cows towards the exit. One side was for people who had to claim belongings from the UPS truck (loaded at the starting area). The other side was for people needing chips removed from their shoes. There was no thoroughfare for people like me who needed neither. I saw a few people close to passing out during this – and I heard several calls for medics! I was pretty shaky by the time we finally got to a place to exit. My husband and I found each other pretty easily. By the time we got to a city bus to take us back to our hotel (we stayed in the Battery Park area), I was cold and it was dark. But, I did get to see Times Square all lit up!

I would recommend this marathon for anyone, especially someone (like me) who will make this their first trip to New York City.

What a great way to spend my 50th Birthday!

9/30/2007
I completed my second 20-mile run yesterday (weekly total was just over 48 miles). I started before the sun came up. Here in Northwest Ohio it was a perfect crisp Fall morning. I started in town, and then traveled to the countryside. I saw the mist rising off of the river. As I was running past a cornfield, I heard a rustling in the field. Naturally, my heartrate jumped a bit and my pace picked up! It was probably deer, but even those can be frightening to a runner. In past runs, I have had deer run across the road in front of me.

Even though my legs were tired at the end, I almost didn't want the run to end. Perfect weather, good music (not too loud so I can still hear the sounds of nature) -- it's almost like meditation.
It is five weeks to the New York City Marathon. I plan to do at least one more 20-mile run, perhaps two before the Marathon.

9/23/2007
A little bit about how I accidentally started running. I tried to run when I was in my 20's, and my knees hurt too much. I tried to run in my early 30's, and I still couldn't do it. After having 3 children within 4-1/4 years in my 30's, I started doing a lot of walking to lose the "baby fat". As I entered my 40's, I started walking in some run/walk races (particularly the annual "Turkey Trot") just to keep motivated. At first I competed in the 2-mile walk at the Turkey Trot. Remember, this is on Thanksgiving Day, and it can be cold where I live! One year, it was so cold that I ran the last mile just to finish. Well, the next year I signed up for the 4 mile run, and ran about 2/3 of it. Now I run the 4 miles every year. I have yet to win my age group in that race -- there sure are some fast women here in their 40's! This year I move up into another age group, so maybe that will help.

I didn't think I could run any races and do very well until I competed in a 5K at the National School Board convention in March, 2004, when I was well into my 40's. I was in the upper 1/4 of my sex/age group. Now I have run several 5K's, and I even won one in my age group. Again, this is among 40-year old women, and some of us aren't too fast.
I ran in the Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon in May, 2006, completing my goal to run a marathon before I turned 50. It took me 5 hours and 18 minutes, which I was happy with. Heck, I was happy to be walking afterwards. The day after the marathon, we saw some friends who compete in Marathons. They said I must not have tried hard enough, because I was still walking almost like a normal person!

I am currently training for the ING NYC Marathon on 11/04/2007, which will be my 50th birthday! I don't have any goal set for time. I want to enjoy the marathon. I've never been to New York. All participants received a "guidebook" in the mail recently. It mentions something about going to the side of the course if you are taking pictures. I didn't even think about taking pictures until I read this. So, since I'm not running for time, I plan to take a camera (probably disposable) and take some pictures.

Yesterday (September 22) I completed my first 20-mile run of this training session. And, it was almost accidental -- I told my husband I planned to run 16 - 18 miles. But, it was a nice day, I was motivated, I had some good music to listen to ...

Those of you reading this who have run 20-milers in training know the toll it can take. I don't mind the physical toll so much, it's the mental part that gets me. I think I would have had a hard time naming all of my children by the time I finished my run yesterday! I'm going to try to post to this blog after my weekend long runs, so it may ramble a bit. I wanted to get at least three 20-milers in before THE MARATHON (6 weeks away), so I will try to run one each of the next two Saturdays.

Hopefully there will be additional posting next week!

8/18/2007

I "accidentally" ran 14 miles today (August 18) instead of the planned 12-mile run. I have been known to run extra miles on the treadmill, again "by accident". I started running "by accident", and then a co-worker recently told me she also started running "by accident". I decided it was time to start a blog after my "accidental" extra mileage today. Maybe it is the endorphins, or more likely the exhaustion that made me decide to do this. Because of all of the "accidents" that got me into running and continue to keep me going, I decided to name this blog "The Accidental Runner".