Marathon #6 - Grandma's 2

The week leading up to Grandma's was such a relief, having met our goal in Rochester. I didn't fret over weather forecasts, I didn't feel the usual phantom pain. I did go through the requisite soul-searching ("Why do I do this?") where I remember that I love training and racing and that's why I do it; not to achieve a goal time.

I was pretty giddy waiting to line up because it was COOL--not the hot humidity of last year. Our group of six held together through nearly the half, when Husband and another woman broke off a bit, but our pack of four was strong, with me pacing, AJ calling the walk breaks, and SJ and MP providing the first-marathon spirit. The day turned hot, with a searing sun, but there was a breeze (albeit a headwind) and overall it was tolerable--not ideal, but decent. Ever the superfans, my parents (aka the Green Team) appeared to cheer us on 5 times in the first 16 miles, on pace to set a new PR and course record.


















Around mile 19 we saw Husband again, and SJ took off around 20. AJ and I ran up Lemon Drop Hill and headed toward downtown, offering words of encouragement to each other (OK, I spoke up a few times and she was a bit more proffering...) and fortifying ourselves for the end. I saw my parents again at 24. My Med-City blister returned right on schedule ("Oh! blister!" "It's OK now!" taking place in about 5 seconds). Overall I felt hot and tired and worried about finishing then crashing and having to go to the med tent.... and I told myself it was OK, that whatever time I finished in was fine, I just had to keep running but didn't need to go fast.

We rounded the corner and headed downhill to the interminable, maze-like, never-ending trek to the finish line. The band at 25.5 played "Another one bites the dust," which struck me as cruel as people around me suddenly seized with cramps and nearly fell over (And another one's gone and another's gone and another one bites the dust...") My parents appeared on a bridge about 6 blocks from the finish line... I raised my hand about 6 inches in greeting. (Later on: My dad: "You looked really pale!" Me: "Uh, yeah. I was, you know, running to the finish line. I.e. completely exhausted?!)

I trailed AJ in and sliced a minute off my PR time! 4:14!

We lingered at the finish line a long time, greeting friends and people from my running group. I definitely didn't have the dancing-in-the-streets feel of PRing like I did at Med-City: but what I was really bursting with pride at was how well my running group did. All of the first-time marathoners made amazing times and ran really smart races, nearly all achieving negative splits (speeding up in the last half). I was so thrilled for them and felt very mother hen.

Husband and I stayed up on the North Shore another day. We're getting pretty spoiled on campsites, though... I used to think you had to travel far to get the good stuff., but this beauty was only 0.7 miles in, and we had the area all to ourselves.

Ely weekend

We caught part of the weekend-long dock dogs competition... dogs compete in three categories: speed retrieve, extreme vertical, and big air (pictured here). The biggest air we saw was 18 feet--pretty amazing. But my favorite were the dogs who got all excited and took a running start only to cower at the dock's edge.




























We "camped" at the cabin (i.e. no power or water) because it hadn't been opened yet.
























There are notes up at the Ely cabin with reminders about everything from where the bedding is to how to make pancakes. They have been there since roughly 1986. We love them.

29

ON TURNING 29
I had so been enjoying saying I was 28 recently (28! doesn't that sound so young?!) that when Husband asked me how it felt being 29, I realized I felt a bit old. But I've been querying my 30+ friends about what goal they set out to accomplish before their 30th birthdays (skydiving! going back to grad school! completing an Olympic-length triathlon! getting a divorce!) in preparation for next year.

STRANGEST BIRTHDAY GREETING
A personal voicemail message from my car dealership.

GIFTS
Who doesn't love a good package from a foreign country? The official stamps, the foreign language, the embarrassed giraffe cartoon... even the tape is different!


















But the contents were even better!


















At least if you're a bit of a logic puzzle nerd, like me. My dad sat next to a Japanese man on the plane who had one of these books, so he asked for the publishing info. Some people import wine from France.... others, puzzles from Japan. Thanks Dad!