The Results Are In...

This weekend was the big race, I trained hard for nine weeks in spite of my 2+ weeks of being sick slightly recovering only to get worse right before race day.

I headed out to LA on Saturday around 2pm and picked up my race bib before heading to my cousins Jeremy and Jodi's house. They live less than 4 miles from the start line. I made it to their house around 5pm giving me plenty of time to catch up with the family. It had been over a year since our last visit. I can talk for hours with Jeremy and Jodi, they are so much fun- and finally was able to meet their son Jr. After getting to bed at a very reasonable hour (9pm) and actually sleeping (thanks to my NyQuil), I didn't have to wake up until a little after 5am. I had a nice bowl of oatmeal, took my time getting ready and Jeremy dropped me off about 25 meters from the start line. I was there pretty early and headed straight for the port-a-potties. (I've trained myself to go there first even if I don't have to "go.") The lines are typically so long that by the time you get to the front you NEED to go. However, there was no in line. I found a few fellow Team World Vision friends and introduced myself. After saying my hello's I decided to try to get a short warm-up in. After doing my leg stretches we met together with the team captain of world vision. He had recently visited Uganda and told us of the "rain catchers" that were placed around the villages to catch the water and filter it for drinking water. So far, our fundraising has helped raise enough money to provide clean water for over 7,000 children! I say so far because apparently the fundraising does not end until 2 weeks after the race- which means if you are still interested in donating... you can!

After our team meeting, I decided to hit up the restrooms one last time, there was only about 15 minutes until the start of the race. By this time the lines were huge! I was a little worried that I would not get through the lines in time for the start of the race but I decided I would take a chance. Fortunately, the race was delayed just long enough for me to finish and find my place at the start line. After a singing of the national anthem, we were off! It was not as crowded as I expected and so getting settled into my pace was somewhat easy. The first mile was along the beach road. We passed several market shops on one side, and several homeless people on the water side. I also noticed the Venice Beach Fit club... there were several weights and machines that you see on TV where big muscled dudes tend to show off- I mean work out.

We headed inland for several miles and the beach was out of sight leaving me with just my pace and pavement to focus on. I can't remember how far we went but we eventually reached a wide sidewalk that ran along the sandy beach, still far from the ocean but no longer surrounded by buildings. I maintained my 7:40 pace the entire time, I felt really good. By about mile 7 we started to head up off the beach and onto a road at higher ground. Then it hit me, the most awful smell- worse than a dirty diaper. I can't really wrap my head around it somewhere between a garbage truck and poop. It was horrifying... for over a mile and then it started to disappear. Now we were really heading up a hill, a wide asphalt road. By now I noticed that there were several people running in the opposite direction of me, which just means at some point we had to turn around and head back in the other direction. I was thankful because that meant we eventually got to go back down this slow rising up hill. However, by the time we turned around we only had 3 miles left and my 2 weeks of sinus issues, mucus and inability to fully complete my training are starting to take over. No matter how much down hill there is, I know I probably won't be able to beat my best time, my hips are bothering me, my chest is starting to tighten and my knee is aching. As people start to pass me, it is starting to sprinkle... water. Which reminds me of my little sponsor girl in Uganda. It's all I can think about to push through the slow growing pains to finish with the best effort I can. As I see the 13 mile mark approaching I know I only have .1 mile left to go and I push through to the finish taking on the pace of two tall skinny men running along side me. I'm done! I pass the finish line, and check my watch. Here are my results:

Finish time: 1:43.55
Place: 360th overall out of 2,829 recorded finishers
Age Division place: 12th
Overall Pace: under 8:00
Gender: 69th place

Some Photos: http://www.marathonfoto.com/index.cfm?action=site.login My cousin Jeremy shot a few pictures as well. I am hoping to be able to post some of them on here as well.

It's a pretty good accomplishment I guess- for being sick and all. I knew I would be paying for my efforts over the next few days, but I was determined to run if my sickness didn't get the best of me; and for the short time during the race, it didn't. However, two days later, I seem to be as sick as ever, and now my muscle are fatigued. Thankfully these next few days are pretty low key so I can stay home and recover (hopefully).

I am happy to report that my fundraising goal has been achieved and I've raised an additional $100! Thank you so much for your support! I have been informed that the fundraising is still not over for another two weeks. If you would still like to donate, you are more than welcome to! CLICK HERE TO DONATE Thank you for taking this journey with me. It has been such a privilege to help Sarah and the other kids of Uganda. I plan on running again for their benefit one day.