Pre-marathon musings

There's two days to go before raceday at California International Marathon, and I m eagerly looking forward to it. I am working out all the details of when to leave for Sacramento, what to carry, etc. Its currently stormy weather around here and in Sacramento, but if the weatherman is right, then the storm should die down by friday afternoon, and it should be clear on sunday. I just realized that the temperature would probably be in the low-30s when we would start running - which is about 15-20 degrees colder than what I am used to. Brrrr! Ok - that might sound wimpy to all you east-coast and mid-west people - but its all relative, you know. Us california people are a pampered lot when it comes to weather.

Its been kind of a fun week, leading up to the race. I got to talk about running all the time, yet do very little of actual running (given that we are in "taper" mode prior to the marathon). We even got a special "super-easy" workout at track on wednesday, while everyone else was doing something gruelling as usual - this in itself is worth all of the marathon training! ;) And we were made to feel special by everyone else - fellow runners checking in to see if we were feeling ready for the big weekend, and so on. Everyone making it sound like we were on the verge of achieving something big. It felt a little funny, esp. since we hadn't actually finished the damn thing - but it was a good feeling nevertheless - a good ego boost. I guess another way to look at it would be to think of us as "lambs before the slaughter" - maybe all this feeling-good business is just a "fattening up" before the "slaughter" on sunday! Well, if ultimately I get some pleasure out of the "slaughter" on sunday, that's all that matters - it will be worth it.

On the physical side, everything is holding up so far. I have a few aches and pains, but the last few weeks have taught me that if I run for a mile or two they start to fade. All my fellow-runners in our little "sub-4-hr-marathon" team - Roger, Doug, Esther, Debbie and myself - are still intact. We will, however, sorely miss our captain/coach/philosopher/guide - Cristy. It was Cristy's idea to form the "sub-4-hr-marathon" group - but she had to drop out of running due to injury early in the training- which was a big disappointment for her. And yet, that has not deterred her from keeping the rest of the team going, and providing us with an incredible amount of support throughout our training - including diligently showing up on each of our long runs, running/biking alongside, timing us, providing us with useful tips, and so on. This support has indeed been priceless. She will be sorely missed at the race, but we'll rest assured knowing that she'll be rooting for us, and urging us mentally - "Don't go out too fast!" .

Like everything else in life, a marathon is "not a destination, it is a trip". Regardless of how the day of the race actually turns out - the training itself has been quite a fun ride. There will be so many things to manage during the run - remembering to drink enough water, eating properly, running at the right pace corresponding to the mile in question, not going too fast, etc. But I hope that, in the middle of all that, I'll remember to be in the moment and enjoy the fact that Im actually running - knowing how lucky I am to be able to do what I love to do, and celebrate it in this manner - with people all around, and friends and family cheering. Wish me luck!