My First Marathon (Saturday):
In mid-August after
triathlon season ended, I decided to shift my focus to running. For triathlon training, my long runs can be
about 16/17 miles, so distance running (or marathon training) was not a super
big stretch. I was definitely in shape,
and it would be easy to just keep running at school. I had a little less than 2 months before
leaving for Ecuador, so I looked at a few intermediate and advanced marathon
running training plans online and used tempo and hill workouts from previous
triathlon seasons. All this time I knew
that I might race in a marathon
before leaving the country, but I was not at all convinced and committed. ONE week before leaving for Ecuador, I
officially signed up for a marathon in Libertyville, IL the day before my flight would leave!! I thought, “why not?! I know
I can do the distance, so just get a feel for it and have fun with it!” (Yes, I know this is DEFINITELY not a
typical thought going into a marathon, but what can I say besides “I’m crazy!”)
Friday, the night before
the race, I drove 7 hours from Kentucky to Chicago, arriving at 10 pm. The kitchen is under construction, so our
food was VERY limited. I ended up having
a bowl (well, actually 2 haha!) of Rice Krispies and a handful of TJ’s Pumpkin
O’s cereal. BEST PRE-RACE MEAL EVER!! I
went to bed not nervous or anxious at all.
I didn’t care about what time I would run, knowing that the pre-race
circumstances were not exactly ideal. Goal=finish!!!
Race day I woke up
around 5:30 and we left the house by 6:00.
Since our food situation was nonexistent, we stopped at a gas station 15
minutes from the race site where I bought a banana with some peanut
butter. I at it quickly and we arrived
at the race. It was SO COLD-47
degrees! I had NO CLUE what to wear and
kept debating for 20 minutes. I decided
to wear shorts and a long sleeve Nike dry-fit top. I was a little too warm at the end of the
race, but comfortable for most of it.
I got in the mob at
the start and waited to start. People
were going off for a quick jog to warm up, and I thought I probably should too,
but didn’t feel like it haha! While in
the starting area, I realized I forgot to put my BIB and timing chip on, so I
quickly put that on a minute before start!
It was so much to take in, and I didn’t have a routine like I do for
triathlons.
“GO,” said the
starter, and we were off! I was very
relaxed and just taking in the whole experience. I glanced at my Garmin a few times during the
first mile, but I really tried to focus on feel and consistency. My legs were pretty numb from the cold, which
worried me a little since my knees tend to ache in the cold. From mile one on, my spits were very
consistent and controlled ranging from 7:50-8:00. I did not feel that I was pushing too hard,
and my legs felt pretty fresh. I figured
I would go at this pace as long as possible.
“As long as possible” ended up being 20 miles. For the first 20 miles, I kept pace and felt
awesome! I was really enjoying
everything, the fresh air, the people, my music, and the path. I had NO CLUE what to eat/fuel with during
the race, so I figured I would just adjust as necessary-similar to
triathlon. I had a small sip of Gatorade
at every aid station and a few energy chews every 8 miles.
Around mile 15, I
started thinking, “At the pace I’m going, Boston might be a reality today.” Based
on my running in triathlon half-marathons, I knew that my abilities might be in
the Boston qualifying range. But I
really had NO CLUE what kind of pace I could hold for 26 miles! (Or in this race,
26.4-and YES, the EXTRA 0.2 drives me CRAAAAZZZZYYY!) Therefore, Boston was not my goal in this
race, but it was a time I was aware of in the back of my mind.
At mile 18, I
passed the crowd and was told I was the 6th female. This encouraged me more and gave me another
boost! Around mile 20 is really when the fatigue started to set in. I never hit the wall the way I have in past
triathlons, but my pace slowed slightly to an 8:15/8:30 minute mile. This is
when the countdown truly began. At mile
22 I passed 2 more women, which gave me a second burst of energy to think that
I was in 4th now! About 2.5
miles out from the finish, I knew I had enough in the tank to finish fairly
strong. Soon, the crowds encouraged me,
knowing that I was SOOO close (btw: NEVER tell a runner that they are close to
finish or they will be angry, “close” is never “close enough” haha!)
I crossed in a time
of 3:32:08 and an 8:06 average pace! BQ time is 3:35:00. I was relieved to be done and kept repeating,
“I can’t believe I just did that!!”
Before the race I had told my mom that I would probably finish by noon
(under 4 hours), so to finish waayyy faster than my general prediction was
awesome! I just went out there to have
fun and run a “casual marathon” –the exact words I told my mom that day haha! I can’t believe what happened and I still doubt
my legs and how they ran that fast!-except the soreness makes it a little more
believable now!!
“Now when can I have Starbucks?!” ~Kim, 2 minutes
post race!
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Post Race Photo-Yes
I have eyeliner and mascara on!
|
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| "Cheer-balloons" my mom brought! (But FORGOT in the car...oh well, it's the thought that counts!) |
My First day in
Ecuador (Sunday):
Ok,
so running a marathon less than 24 hours before riding in a plane all day was
not the smartest decision I could have made!
I’m so incredibly stiff…ahhhh!
Got my iced coffee-which costs way too much at airports, which means I’m
ready to leave!
By
the time I got to the Panama airport, I was completely exhausted (it was only
2pm). I had gotten very little sleep for
the past few days, and with the excitement/craziness from Saturday-I was on the
edge emotionally. I had a few panic moments throughout the day with thoughts
like, “what on earth am I doing?” (Come
to think about it, I have this thought a lot, especially while racing
haha!). I had my complete meltdown in
Panama when my flight did not have a gate for my next flight because it was too
soon to have it ready (I had a 5 hour layover).
I was NOT a pleasant person that day and I was constantly on the verge
of tears trying to hold myself together.
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| Saying good-bye to Mom in Chicago! |
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| My airline ticket! |
My
next panic moment came in the Quito airport.
I worried about being picked up and if the driver would find me! It all went smoothly, and I got to my dorm at
about 10pm. I SLEPT SO WELL that night
and have passed out so tired every day this week.
So
what got me to this point???
Early
this year, I was told that I would have the opportunity to Student Teach in
ECUADOR after a loooonnnggg application process! To be completely honest, I have
NO IDEA what to expect, but over the past few years, I’ve learned to embrace
the unknown and make the most of each situation. After all, we cannot always control our
situation, but we can control our reaction to it.
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| After receiving news that I would be going to Quito, Ecuador! |
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| CCTECC orientation in April 2015 |
I’m
not exactly the most adventurous type-So why am I going to Ecuador to student
teach? Well, I am majoring in both
Elementary and Spanish Education, so going abroad to a Spanish speaking country
to teach 1st grade is a great way to combine the two. I am interested in teaching ELL students
someday, or possibly in a dual-language/immersion type school. This will give me the opportunity to see if
international teaching is something that I would consider doing. Only God knows where I will end up someday,
and this may be his way of opening my eyes and heart to something that is not
“on my radar” at this moment.
As I
am about to embark on this journey, please pray for:
-Safety/Health
-Adjusting
to my surroundings
-Relationships
with cooperating teacher and students
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