The Paradise Coast Marathon in Naples, Florida had a 2 loop course. I am not a fan of loops but this was a cost efficient race. We didn't need to spend the money on a hotel and find someone to watch the dogs. My husband is great about assisting me in all of these races because he can relate to all experiences. We woke up at 4:30, were on the road by 5:00 A.M. and traveled to Naples for the event. The first half of the race (13.1 miles) I felt great. I had 16 ounces of GU Roctane to start, a banana, and a Larabar. At mile 2, I took on water and mile 3 a GU gel. I repeated this water/GU refuel every 2-4 miles. I couldn't believe it but at mile 12, I actually started to feel hungry. At one of the aide stations, they had Clif MOJO energy bars. I ate two of those while moving and then refueled on a GU Roctane drink at mile 14. At mile 17, I slowed my pace a bit. I needed to regroup. My mind was fighting with me. I managed to have a great playlist so I could sing out loud to keep me occupied. I didn't care one bit who could hear me or not. It is what helped the time pass.
At mile 18 or 19, I passed one girl who was taunting me for about a mile. I fought through the pain and passed her ass. There was no way of her catching up.
Mile 20. I knew I had it at that point. I had a burst of energy but it didn't last for long. I don't know if I actually hit the "wall" at mile 23 but I knew at that point that I wanted it to be over. I approached a group of 3 girls. I say there were probably in my age group. I flew past them (marathon pace) and I could see they were trying to catch up to me. They didn't.
Mile 25. I started to smile. I knew I was going to finish strong. I passed a couple who were walking. I felt confident running with them behind me. After I crossed an intersection and made a left turn I could see "her" coming up quickly behind me. This is a race! I couldn't let her catch up to me no matter how bad my glutes and quads hurt. I kept looking back while running. I was hoping that I wouldn't do something stupid and trip over a rock or a crack in the sidewalk. It would be over for sure then. How would I get up? I managed to keep my pace going fast enough so that there was no way she was going to catch me.
At the final turn I saw my husband and a friend of mine waiting patiently near the finish. It was great to see both of them. My friend, JD, reminded me of the last turn that I had before crossing the finish line. UGH! Finally there it was. 5 hours and 2 minutes = 26.2 miles! Thanks to my husband, Don for riding his mountain bike with me the whole time. I made it with him right by my side.
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