Tuesday, December 23, 2008

White Rock Marathon

Dec 14, 2008. Deb, Amy, & I stayed in the Sheraton Hotel, in Dallas, the night before the race. Jimmy and Hollee were there too. The hotel was about a mile from the race start. Jimmy, Hollee, and I walked from the hotel to the race, to help loosen up a bit. Temps were in the 60's and the wind was terrible. Jimmy and Hollee were running the half, I took on the full marathon. They had a F-18 flyover, smoke and confetti. It was pretty cool. We took off from the American Airlines center, running through downtown Dallas. It took me a full 5-minutes from the gun going off until I crossed the start line. There were plenty of spectators out there. No matter where you turned, there were people cheering you on. We left the city and headed for White Rock lake. I had a good pace through the first 13.1 miles (8:13). As soon as we turned into the wind, it all went downhill. Winds were 25 mph, with gusts up to 32 mph. It would stand you straight up. At mile 20, I started feeling it in my right thigh, just above my knee. Tried to stretch it out....MISTAKE!!!! My hamstring started cramping. About mile 23 and 24, my calves started doing the same thing. Eventually I crossed the finish line. 4:14:23. Not the time I was hoping for but, I made it. Jimmy and Hollee completed the half in 2:22. Hollee beat Jimmy by one second. Wonder if he paid off the bet yet. Ha Ha Next race is the Lake Benbrook Half Marathon, then the Cowtown marathon.