The Race Day Experience

     Many people have asked me about my race day experience.  First, I want to say this is wonderful event, and I hope to participate in it again.  It is more than just a run, but it is a run to remember the 168 people whose lives were stolen from them on April 19, 1995 in downtown Oklahoma City.   Every runner is encouraged to choose one of the victims, put their name on slip of paper and run in their memory. 

     As I approached the start, I was really excited, and nervous.   I decided to do the early start, at 4:30 AM, to give myself more time to finish.  I was not alone.  At 4:30 AM, I lined up with about 250 people in the dark.  At the starting line, there were pictures and teddy bears left to those who lost their lives in the bombing.  I can remember the day the bombing happened as if it were yesterday.  As the starting gun goes off, I am filled with excitement, and emotion, determined to run in the memory of someone who was my age when they lost their life. 

     The first mile goes by easily.  I run by the arena where the Thunder had defeated the Mavericks in the NBA playoffs just 5 hours earlier, still full of emotion.  We turn north and head up a long overpass that seems to take ten minutes to clear.  At this point, we have a police escort, but we are totally in the dark, and I realize we most likely will be until 6:30.  My GPS watch does not have a light, so I have no idea what pace I am going, but my legs tell me I am moving a little slower than usual.  I don’t want to break out ahead of the pack, because I am afraid I will get lost, so I go ahead and stay at the slower pace, remembering the words of my friend Kenny O’Malley, “You can’t start too slow.”

     The first hour and a half are fairly easy.  I am going slow, it’s cool outside, and there are not many hills. I stop at the outhouse, and when I start up again I speed up again to catch back up to the pack.  It’s then I see the three young men, about 20 years old, with backpacks full of weights strapped to their backs.   I ask them how much weight is in the packs, and they say 56 pounds in each pack, which totals 168 pounds, one pound for each person who lost their life in the bombing.  I run with them for a mile or so, then move ahead, completely inspired and in awe of these young men.

     The sun comes up, and I hear the gun and race start 10 miles behind me.  I am feeling great, and run an even pace towards the lake.  I cross the half marathon point, feeling great, and I stop at the outhouse again, and take time to adjust my shoes.  I approach the lake, and I am feeling great.  I cross mile 14, then 15, then 16, and I stop in the outhouse gain because the glow in the dark laces on my shoes keep getting loose.  While I am in the outhouse, it starts pouring down rain.  I start out again, and though the rain only lasts a minute or so, my feet are now totally soaked.  During one of my stops, the young men with the backpacks pass me.  At this point, one of them is standing on the side of the road, with leg cramps, but he refuses to quit.  We all cheer him on as we pass him.

     After the lake, there is an overpass someone else had warned me about.  It’s not that steep, but it’s long, and after 17 miles of running, it’s a challenge.  Once I clear it, I feel good again, and head into a long stretch with no hills.  I look at my watch, and realize my 15 to 19 mile stretch has been my fastest of the day.  As I approach 20, I am feeling great, and wondering why I am not hurting more..  I am drinking at every water stop, taking a banana whenever it is offered, eating pretzels when they are offered, and taking a GU gel every hour.  As I approach 20, I am feeling great.

     The next stretch is the loneliest stretch of the race, a long run down Clausen street.  This is the only area of Oklahoma City I am actually familiar with, and it’s at this point I realize how far away from the finish I am, 6 whole miles.  The mental fatigue begins to set in.  My legs feel good though, and I push through my temporary pangs of panic, and before I know it I am into mile 22, and I can smell the end.  There is a little rain again, but it’s not bad, but I do feel my toes starting to rub against my socks.  I don’t know what to do.  I don’t have an extra pair of socks, and although I feel good, I know there is probably no way I can bend over and take my socks off and put my shoes on again anyway, so I just push through it.

     Mile 23 comes and goes, and I am getting tired, but I’m still feeling good.  The crowds are getting better.  People are more and more encouraging.  At this point, there is no doubt in my mind I am going to finish, but the question is, how am I going to finish.  My toes start to hurt a little more, and I realize I have blisters on both feet.  My feet also feel like they are on fire.  My legs feel good, my back feels good, I have not gotten any cramps, if it was not for my feet, I would be doing great.  Unfortunately, I need my feet to finish!. 

     Right past mile 25,  a woman offers me a jolly rancher.  She looks at my face and says it will help with the pain.  I don’t know if it really does, but I take it, and keep moving forward.  We catch up with a group of half marathoners, and they start to encourage us.  At this point, every inch of my body is in pain.  I have not gotten a cramp, but I am willing myself to move. Finally, I get to the 26 mile marker, I turn the corner, and I can see the finish line.  People are lined up on both sides of the street, and I pick up the pace a little, the pain less noticeable.  I get to the finish line, and it’s over.  5 months, 400 plus miles out on the trails, early mornings, late nights, running when I felt like it, and running when I didn’t- it all ended at the finish line.  What a great day.

The Marathon

      My five month marathon adventure ending yesterday after a 26.2 mile run through the streets of Oklahoma City.  I started training back in December, and logged over 425 training miles in three states.   I have lived and breathed marathon for the past five months.

     What is the point of doing something like this?  I have nothing to offer the athletic world.  I have no talent for running.  I’m not fast or graceful.  Back in November, a pastor in Houston suggested I try running a marathon.  I had run a few half marathons, and knew I could do it, but I was not sure if I wanted to do it.  She suggested the marathon and training for it was a metaphor for ministry-  if you can endure this, you can endure anything.    I have to say after completing my marathon this is true, not just for ministry, but for life. 

     Training for a marathon is a grueling experience, both physically and mentally.  Running is punishment in every other sport, and many mornings it felt like that to me.  So what special talents or abilities did I use to accomplish this?  The only thing I did was get out to the trail and put one foot in front of the other, whether I felt like it or not.  Whether it was raining or hot, or freezing cold, one foot in front of the other.   Like Forrest Gump, I ran and ran and ran, and when I got tired, I walked.  Then, one day, it got easier.  Over time, ten miles was a warm up, and my Saturday morning 10k barely made me break a sweat.  It wasn’t easy, and it didn’t happen over night, but eventually,  I was ready to run.

     The race day experience was a tremendous one.  I did not want to be in a hurry, so I chose the early start, 4:30 AM, for those of us who are slow.  It was two hours before anyone else was on the trail, and I past the half marathon before anyone even passed me. On that day, I put one foot in front of the other.  As the hours passed and miles amassed, I just put one foot in front of the other.  15 miles, and I started to feel good, my fastest miles actually being from 16 to 20.  Then, I crossed mile 20.  20 miles was the furthers I had ever run.  I realized every 10k I had run on Saturday mornings  was to prepare me for this last six miles.  I had heard horror story after horror story about the last six miles. When I got there, I just put one foot in front of the other.  I could not believe it, but I was to mile 24 before I suffered at all. A blister had developed on my left foot.  I gingerly walked mile 25, and then reached for everything I had to run the last 1.2 miles and cross the finish line with a smile on my face.

     Everyone has asked me, will you do it again?  After the race, after I had cooled down, I could not even move.  I went to get a massage, and asked a child to take my shoes off for me.  Pain.  This morning, I woke up, and I was sore.  Now, I feel great.    So, will I do it again?  The answer is, of course.     

The End

This week, April 30 to May 6, is a week I have been working towards for several months.  It is a week that will mark the end of a wonderful period of our lives, and will bring the beginning of an exciting new chapter.

Yesterday, I accomplished a goal I set for myself many years ago, one that seemed impossible as I had fallen out of shape and gained way too much weight.  I finished the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon three months short of my 40th birthday.

On Saturday, I will complete another life goal as I will walk across the stage at Oral Roberts University with my Masters Degree in Theology.

And, on Sunday, we will end 16 years of children's ministry as we head off to answer God's call in church planting in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

This is a week that has long been circled on my calendar, one I have worked towards with both anticipation and dread.  Over the next week, I will recount my marathon and seminary adventures, as well as recap my time in Children's ministry.  

14 miles on a perfect day

Today was the perfect day for a run. There were some headwinds in the first 7 miles, but it was nothing that slowed me down. The first 12 miles were pretty easy, then I hit the wall. I had chosen to begin my run in a different place than I normally do, so I could leave my truck at a friends house. I will do that again for the long runs, but he lives at the top of the longest and steepest route on the route.
I probably went too fast in the first ten miles, and for my 16 mile run in two weeks, I'll try slowing down a little in those early miles. The thing that really encouraged me today as I reached the 13 mile mark was how much better shape I am today than I was the last time I ran a half marathon back in May. Running three 4,5 and 6 miles three times in a week in addition to my long run is starting to pay off. The second best thing about my run today was no cramps during or afterwards.

Ten weeks into training

It's been awhile since I have posted, but I have still been running. This is my tenth week of training, and I have not missed one run since I started. Today, I completed a 5 mile run after work, it was training run number 39, for a total of 188 miles.
On Monday, I was able to complete 12 miles without any cramps. I think that is because I have learned how and when to hydrate, and have incorporated some stretching into my routine. The biggest difference I have noticed is in the ease of the runs. Once I get past that initial mile, mile and a half, it's getting pretty easy. I know I am not ready for 26.2 yet, but I am starting to actually believe I will be by April 29th. I just have to put one foot in front of the other.

I meet my match

This morning I ran my first double digit run, a 10 mile long run out at the River Trail. I have really been picking up some speed on the shorter 4 and 5 mile runs, so for some reason I foolishly thought I could run 10 miles at that same pace. I did it, and I paid the price.
The first five miles were easy, as I did not realize what kind of tail wind was propelling me. I knew exactly what I was dealing with when I turned around on mile 5 and was running into a strong headwind, slowing me down almost a minute a mile.
I was greeted by the first cramps I have experiences during this training. I had to make up for lost time, so I got to experience cramps in my calves, hamstrings and abdominal muscles. I was a mess and reached for the ibuprofin. As bad as it was, it was as till a great way to spend my day off.
On my next long run, a 12 miler in two weeks, I'll do a better job pacing myself. I will be praying for a nice day on April 29th in Oklahoma City, with minimal winds and no rain like they had last year.

100 miles

I hit my first milestone on Saturday morning, 100 miles. I planned for it to happen somewhere on Riverside, but it ended up happening on a treadmill at my gym.
I thought I was ready for cold weather running. And for my California friends and family, when I say cold weather running, I don't mean 30 degrees. It was 15 when I started, and below zero wind chills into the north wind. My gloves and hat were useless. I ran a mile into that wind then turned around and ran back. I was afraid of triggering an asthma attack or worse, so I finished on the treadmill.
It turned out being the best run of my training, time wise and energy spent to get to that time. It was my 24th run, 106 miles run.
In times past, I am not sure I would have finished that Saturday morning run. While I was disappointed I was not able to finish the run in the cold, it took some discipline to drive to the gym and make myself finish on the treadmill. I am starting to see the benefits of not just the physical, but the mental toughness and mental training that is necessary to complete this goal. It's amazing how much this has taught me about myself.

Six weeks and counting

It's been a very challenging week of training, not so much out on the trail, but just getting to the trail. A friend of mine passed away, and I went to New Mexico to preach at his funeral. That was priority over any marathon training, but with a little creativity and some sacrifice, I was able to stay on track and not miss any runs.
On Monday, I ran 5 miles in Albuquerque. Even though I lived there for many years, I was never serious about fitness then, and had never run that far at that altitude. I had walked five miles before, but never ran hard in a serious training mode. The altitude seemed to bother me for the first mile, but after that, it was a normal run. It was absolutely gorgeous, 38 degrees, clean air, mountains on one side, I think it even started snow for a few minutes, but it wasn't cold like Tulsa.
My 3 and 4 mile runs yesterday and today were par for the course. I don't like the two short runs, they are just a necessary evil.
I will end week 6 on Saturday with a 9 mile run. It will be my 24th training run, and put me over the 100 mile mark. I am looking forward to it, and I will find the flattest trail I can find.

Rain or Shine

Being a pastor, sometimes my schedule allows me to have a normal life, and sometimes it doesn't. When people are your "business", you never know what is going to happen, and they are the priority.
My best friends brother passed away this past week. As I sat and thought about my best friend, and his brother, it reminded me of many parts of our childhoods that I had not thought about in years. Times like this always make you grateful for what you have, and that is certainly where I am at this moment.
As for running, a long day at work and school precluded me for being able to get my 4 mile run in yesterday, so I ran today. Actually, a day off was probably what I needed. I ran a hilly 4 miles, but didn't have any shin splints. On my Wednesday run, on a flat track, I had shin splints the whole time. I guess I need to be thinking about setting a more realistic pace at this point.
Tomorrow, I will get in 5 miles on the flattest trail I can find. Then, on Monday, I will attempt a 9 mile run at altitude, a mile high run in Albuquerque. I'm anxious to see how that will be. Though I lived there many years, I was never a runner back then.

The week 5 grind

I was back on the road this morning for a 6 mile long run. After my two great runs last week, I didn't know whether to push hard or just get the mileage done at a slower pace. Because I ran 8 last week, I decided to go ahead and push a little today, and I ran the 6 miles at the same pace i ran my 4 mile run on Saturday.
For the first time in my training, I'm starting to get some aches and pains. My right heel, an ache that has been a problem in the past, started to get really sore on Friday. I also had an ache in my back today as well. I had some shin splints during the first 3 miles today as well. I am hoping these could all be taken care of with better stretching.

It's starting to get easier

Today, I decided to do my four mile run on a different trail. I had never run there and was not sure whether it would be hilly or not. To my dismay, there was a big hill about a mile in to the run. I felt really good though. I got lost in my music and the sunshine, and when I looked at my watch, it revealed I had run the first 3 miles at the fastest pace of my training. I finished with my fastest 4 mile run, by almost 3 minutes, and I felt great.
Along with the running, I have been on weight watchers. I have lost 11 pounds, and I am feeling such a huge difference. I did not think it would make that big a difference, then I though, what would it be like if I filled up a bag of sand with 11 pounds and tried to carry it on my back? I am really enjoying this so far.
At the end of four weeks, I have had 16 training runs, logged 67 miles. Next week, the training steps up a notch as I will break into the 20's in training miles in a week for the first time in my life.

Another beautiful day

What a beautiful afternoon. When I stepped out of my truck and on to the running trail at 5 PM this afternoon, it was 68 degrees. It was a perfect day for a run.
I have lost ten pounds since I started, and I am starting to really feel the difference in weight out on the trail, especially on the hills.
I ran my fastest 4 mile run on an outside trail today, and beat it by over a minute. I am sure it's a combination of the new shoes along with better endurance, but I am really starting to see improvement.

Midweek running blues

For some reason, the 3 mile run is my least favorite. I never seem to get loose, and it hurts the whole time. This morning was a little better. I decided to just get out there and run it as hard as I could and get it over with, and I did. There's really nothing else to report, but I guess these runs are necessary after the long runs to facilitate recovery.

It's the shoes

Back in the day, I used to love the Spike Lee and Michael Jordan commercials, where Spike Lee would ask Mike, is it the shoes?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Abr_LU822rQ


While, I am starting to wonder if it really was the shoes. I did my 13th training run today, my 4th long run. It was 8 miles, 56 total training miles. These 8 miles were by 40 seconds a mile the fastest ones I have run. What changed? It's the shoes!
After my four mile run Saturday, I walked into Tulsa Runner and asked for the exact same shoes I was wearing. The guy in the store wondered how in the world I had been running in my old shoes, with over 500 miles in them. At my weight, they should probably go much less than that.
Shod with my glorious new Brooks Adrenaline GTS 11's, it was like running on a cloud. That was about as comfortable as a run that started sub 30 degrees could be. I won't wait so long next time.