Kaelee and I flew to Richmond on Thursday, nearly missing our flight due to Vegas airport's lame-socks signage system. We went to run the marathon, but after having so much fun doing touristy things on Friday, we briefly considered playing hooky Saturday so we could squeeze in all the to-do things on our vacation list. Well, we chose to go the distance, and I'm super glad we did because we came away with such fond memories. Best decision of the trip was to run the race while holding my camera! We ran the majority of the race together, which was just the greatest and best way to do it . . . especially since we had a camera to capture it! Ah, I just loved it (can you tell?).
Because I had run the St. George marathon five weeks previous, I expected this one to be easier, but I quickly realized that running 26.2 miles is just plain hard. It's a really, really long way to run. But the race organization was amazing, the first half of the course was beautiful, and the support was second to none. The fans were incredible, and their motivational signs were top notch. My favorite one, which I neglected to snap a photo of, said, "Motivational Sign." Awesomely original. I crossed the finish line just 3+ minutes faster than my St. George finish. Mission accomplished.
The juggling boy hoped to run the whole thing without dropping a ball. I hope he made it.
The old lady sat in her walker and cheered all alone. I love her so much.
The red-shirted man is Bart Yasso (remember the St. George Marathon keynote speaker I told you about?) He was cheering at about mile 17 and when I spotted him I pointed and yelled, "Bart Yasso!"
Natalie's Matt provided transportation, lodging, dining services, photography services, tourist guidance, and masculine presence/patience, all whilst feeling extremely under the weather. Good man.
Mr. Teletubby liked that I liked him. There were so many costumed spectators. Loved it.
Though I saw an obnoxious amount of signs with some variant of "Your feet hurt because you are kicking a$$," the signage kept me happy and moving.
We had high hopes of bouncing back quickly from the race so we could fit in more tourist stops, but the only things we managed to accomplish Saturday after the race were eating, showering, sleeping, and eating some more. Our post-race recovery was as good as its ever been, though, because we were back at it on Sunday with minimal limping and whimpering.
Marathon #6 in the books. Chalk it up to a success.
More on the non-running parts of the trip coming soon.
3 comments:
Why do marathons make me teary eyed? It really seems like this one was great. Those signs were funny and that old lady is so cool.
I LOVED this race too! I swear I'll never run a race alone again!
When I grow up I want to be like you :) Good job on your #6 marathon. Remember that one day when you said you were done running??? Funny!
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