THE RICHMOND MARATHON - America's Friendliest Marathon is the most appropriate title. The crowds were amazing, even in the cold and wind! Richmond is a beautiful, old city with history and awesome architecture.
What a day Saturday, Nov. 16, 2019 was for a marathon! Things started well and ended extremely well at the Richmond Marathon for me. It is the events in the middle that at moments were very rough.
I am not even going to say that things were good and bad. It was a marathon and things happen that are out of your control. Even when things happen with your body, those things are pretty much out of your control. It is 26.2 miles of being on the road, in your own little world even though you may be around hundreds of people.
I do want to be clear that any issues with Salt-Wasting Adrenal Insufficiency were nonexistent. Many people may say that is amazing. Yes, it is. They may say how is that possible? It took lots and lots of training and years of experimenting with dosing and hydration. I will also say, that everything could change in my next round of training. This is what I owe my amazing and possible results to...hydrocortisone dosing and proper hydration with INFINIT Nutrition during the race:
Pre-race was pretty typical...get up and ready (Thankfully, not as early as some races), drive and find a parking spot (That was a little difficult), check-in post-race bags at the UPS trucks, use the Port-A-Potty (A must for any racer) and then the pre-race selfie with The Wife, also known as Merrill!
The weather...that must be mentioned. It was cold and WINDY! It will come up in the race description. We had been watching the weather for two weeks. It had gone from possible rain/snow mix, to rain to warmish, to cold, to warmish, to cold and winds of 15-20 with 30 mph gusts. Notice I did stop at the last forecast.
We started and I felt pretty good. It was interesting to see the shops on the main street and then go through the Virginia Commonwealth University area. It was a long straightaway for the first few miles. Merrill was just a head of me and I could see her. The run got a little monotonous, but I was holding strong. Around mile 6 there was a fantastic downhill. I caught The Wife and passed her. This was great. I felt it all coming together and this was going to be a great marathon time.
Then, in mile 8, it all started falling apart. It was the first bridge over the James River. I can't explain it. There was no gas in the engine. I tried eating some Bonk Breaker. My mouth was too dry. I had to spit it out. I knew this was bad. The wheels had fallen off the wagon and there was no getting them back on correctly.
Miles 8-12 were a very dark place for me. Nothing like this has happened. Running along the James River wasn't fun. Merrill had said how pretty it was. There were some pretty areas, but the COLD and WIND were horrendous. The sun that we had for a little while was gone. I did a little bit, very little bit of running in this stretch to 12 miles. I knew I was done and my main race goals were gone.
Merrill and I laugh about this part. Both of us for different reasons wanted to quit. Why didn't we? Were we determined to finish the marathon? NO! Waiting for someone to come get us was going to take too long and we knew there was no other way to get back. Plus, the theme of the day, it was COLD and WINDY! We didn't want to wait in that weather.
Traffic control by the variety of law enforcement agencies was amazing. I never felt unsafe on the roads around Richmond. There were some major intersections which were completely blocked off for the runners or law enforcement was directing traffic away from the runners. Thank you officers!
At mile 15, I must have been extremely giddy. I was making the turn to approach Lee's Bridge back across the James River. Almost everyone who has ever driven knows the unmistakable sound of a fender bender. Plastic crunching. Yep, I heard that and knew exactly what happened to the car that had a pickup truck hugging its bumper. What made me laugh so hard? There was a police officer leaning against his car watching out for us runners not more than 40 feet away. He was not happy that he had to move and break away from the cup of coffee that was keeping him warm. I was a bad person for laughing so hard!!! LOL LOL LOL
If you have ever wanted to experience bone-chilling wind and cold while only wearing a thin thermal shirt, gloves and running gear, this was the moment on Lee's Bridge. I could not muster the energy to run in this headwind, so it was a long one mile walk to mile 16. I cannot emphasize how miserable this was. Many race descriptions I have read have mentioned this area as the worst part of the race.
What wondrous thing awaited me after this horrible moment? "We have Coke here!" If you have never run a long event, then I will tell you that Coke, that has been sitting to have the carbonation go away, is the most wonderful elixir at this point. It was at one other point maybe around mile 21 or so. This may have been what saved my day.
From Mile 17 to the finish I was able to get some kind of run interval back. I was feeling pretty good. Wiped out, but pretty good! There was a point when I was walking that I saw a Little Free Library. I was at that sort of delirious, crazy thoughts moment. For a minute I thought, "I should go see what they have in there and grab a book to take back." Don't ask what was going on in my mind.
Mile 23.5, the moment the blister on my right foot ring toe popped! Son of a B**ch!!!!!! I guess I could equate it to when the tire on a car blows. You know it happens and things drastically change. It hurt. I couldn't walk correctly and running was not going to happen. This was going to be a long few miles to the finish. Thank goodness, around Virginia Union University, I could start running again. YAY!!!!!!!
The finish line was coming up. I knew it was. Oh look, it was one of the Sports Backers Marathon Training Team coaches who was wearing a blue grand poobah hat! Her name was Carrie. We talked and ran and walked and ran some more. Amazingly, this last mile was one of my fastest and smooth. Thank you, Coach Carrie!
The finishing downhill! Merrill warned me about it. I watched people come down it last year. It is steep. I LOVED IT!!!!!!!!!! I was safe, but fast. Oh, it felt good.
Uh oh, emotions were starting to take over. Endorphins, emotions, thoughts all were there. I'm finishing. I just completed the hardest thing. It was not what I was expecting it to be. I was proud of myself. The tears were held at bay.
I crossed the finish line, got my medal, my water, my blanket and my hat! "Would you like a hat," they asked? Of course, I want my darn hat. I earned that hat. I worked hard for this finish.
"BRIAN!" It took me a moment to process it was Merrill. I hadn't seen her at the finish area. I was looking for her and was going to go find her. She was sitting down, covered with the jacket she brought for after the race and the finishers blanket. I briefly told her how the race had gone and that is when I lost it. Tears and choking up. I had finished this thing that around miles 8-12 was so dark.
We quickly gathered up our things. Took a couple pictures and headed to the car. Then this happened in the parking garage. There may have been some very bad words said when we saw it. Thank goodness we were only on the 2nd floor.
Post-Race eating...four years ago after my first marathon, Marine Corps Marathon, I was in a pretty bad AI crisis. Food was the last thing I wanted. This time I dosed appropriately post-race thanks to my virtual dosing BOSS. This gave me the opportunity to BRING ON THE FOOD. The more the better. This is a small sampling of what I ate in the next 24 hours:
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| Top to bottom: Mod Pizza, Waffle House, Starbucks and obviously Fried Pork Skins! |
What is next? For a few days to maybe a week and a half, I will not be running. After that, I will begin training for my next adventure. And, this is a true adventure, the London Marathon on April 26, 2020.
I have two fundraising pages. My GoFundMe page is to help with all London Marathon expenses. The JustGiving page is specifically to donate to St. John Ambulance, the charity that I am running for at the marathon and that has generously allowed me to get an entry into the London Marathon.
Thank you for any help you may be able to provide. Share the links with anyone you know that may want to help.
It is a blessing to have all of you who follow the adventures of the Adrenal Insufficient Warrior Athlete!
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