26, 26, 26

Yesterday was the big day! After all the anticipation I was all nerves. Matt stayed at my place that night and I warned him the night before that I needed to be up at 4:30am to start getting ready. His job was to talk with me and make sure I was calm and focused for the race. He did a great job and even cracked a few jokes for me so I felt less nervous. Matt made a good point too, "All nerves mean is that you really care about what you're doing. If you didn't care, you wouldn't be nervous for it." Thanks for the positive vibes bro.

I headed out the door to a bitter cold morning. I was able to get a parking spot right by the start/finish line and apparently I got there so early the volunteers hadn't even finished setting up. The website said the race would start at 7am sharp so at about 6:30 I figured I had better use the bathroom, check a bag, and then head to the start. It was freezing! I looked around for the bag check and found out it hadn't been set up yet. I headed back for the car to stay warm and some of the other runners asked if people were lining up yet. I said no and mentioned I was just looking for the bag check. They kindly reminded me that we were right next to the finish line so it wasn't exactly necessary to check a bag when we were this close. Duhh!

My friend Allie text messaged me at that point, all the way from Malaysia. With the time difference it was still early evening for her and she was at work. She called me and we talked for about 15 minutes as the race start was delayed by 30 minutes. I told her how my Powerade had spilled in my gear bag so my visor, dry shirt, and a few other essentials were completely drenched and therefore I was having to ditch them before the race even started.

Then it was time to head to the start. It was fun to be there at the start. There were so few runners none of us were really packed in like you usually are at a race. We were able to stand comfortably and chat with each other. I had met a gentleman, named Steve, when I was looking for the tents earlier and we had decided to stick together for pacing at the start. He wanted to run an 11 min/mi pace which was perfect for me to start out with. We stuck together through the first half of the race and stayed close to a 11-10:30 pace.

The first few miles we were out there were awesome. Steve and I chatted about out past races and future goals. It was nice to have someone out there to chat with. The volunteers were also great. That early in the morning, when it's that cold out, and you're only just starting such a big run having happy smiling faces cheering you on is an amazing inspiration. My birthday headdress definitely made people cheer too! As much as I feared I'd look like an idiot, it was probably worth every embarrassing moment, just because it kept people cheering for me the entire way. Other runners, spectators, and volunteers all shouted "Nice hat!", "Is that a turkey on your head?", "Is it really your birthday? Happy Birthday!".

At the beginning of mile 6 my cousin Whitney was waiting there. She had birthday balloons and birthday hats. "Go JoJo go!" I was so happy to see her. It was the first familiar face I had seen along the way and I knew at that point I wasn't out there alone.

It was only another mile down the road when I saw my parents and brother. They had just gotten to the Jaguar dealership I made sure to point out to them. It was the start of one of the big hills early in the race and I could definitely start feeling my hip flexors start to tighten at that point. When I saw my family it was just enough of a distraction that I was able to get past the pain and not even notice the pain. We made it to the top of the hill and started heading down Peachtree on a downhill all with a little push from my family.

As we started heading towards Peachtree Industrial the crowds thinned out and Steve and I realized we were towards the back of the pack. Steve had stuck in there with me and had been pacing really well, but around mile 8 or 9 he was starting to be pretty quiet. At mile 10 he mentioned he was hurting pretty bad. I tried to keep him encouraged and reminded him that we were almost to the halfway point and we'd be turning around to go home soon. Our pace slowed at that point as Steve was struggling.

We saw Bharti for a brief moment. She was so cute, all bundled up on the corner by herself. There was no missing her. There is only one Indian girl sweet enough to stand on a street corner for her friend to pass all of 30 seconds. I guess I gave her one second for every year she is old ;) (that was just for your 30th birthday Bharti, :O ).

Right after the midway point I had to say goodbye to Steve. He was a great running buddy, but decided that the full might be a little too much for his body if he continued past the pain threshold he was at. I said goodbye and I started out on my own. And I was really alone. At that point I was really at the back of the pack and the pace car was in front of me. Not good. I had to book it on the downhills at that point to make up some time. I ended up getting beyond the pace car a few miles down the road, but at that point everything was playing catch up and I was pushing myself much faster than my 10:30 pace to get back on track. I had a couple of 9 min splits.

I started to get nervous at that point because the course was being picked up as I was going along. As I'd approach aid stations they were disassembling them. Not good. That meant I was going at a pace that the course would be closed by the time I finished. Not to mention I needed to make sure that my family and friends didn't bail on me or get scared and think I had gotten hurt.
As I approached my family again I tossed them my jacket, and begged them to call ahead to my cousin to have the Powerade ready for me when I saw her a couple of miles down the road. I was preparing myself to finish the course with my own aid stations created on the fly.

I finally passed mile 17 which meant I was now in the single digits to countdown. That's probably the first point when I thought "I can do this." It was also a part of the course I ran time and time again with my friend Sowmya. I remembered all the nights out there with her when we'd go just a little bit further each time and I thought, "Well, this time I'll go just a little bit further than we went before."

I did that all the way until I saw my cousin again. Whitney was there with her dad, Fran, and my little niece Cameron was on his shoulders. They were all cheering and Cameron was blowing a noise maker. I could not help but get super happy to see them. They were jumping up and down and I was so tired and starting to feel a little dehydrated. I bent down for the Powerade and felt my legs go to jelly beneath me. I popped back up as quickly as I could, unscrewed the cap (which I promptly dropped), and chugged as much as I could knowing it could be my last time for the rest of the race I'd have the opportunity to get fluids.

Whitney asked if I wanted her to run with me. I looked up ahead and I knew Cardiac Hill was approaching and I was already starting to hurt. I nodded yes and she set off with me. She was bouncing along and she was smiling ear to ear. I was so happy to have her with me. She talked to me and reminded me that I could do it. If I hadn't have had that, I think I would have been to disheartened to keep my energy up for the next couple of miles on that hill. One thing I knew, was that if my cousin, the mother of two was willing to get out there with me and go a mile with me I could suck it up and finish. Thank you sooo much Whitney for being there for me!

It wasn't too much longer before I saw my parents again to give me water. Oh man, so happy to see them again. Talk about having your #1 fans there for you.

It wasn't too much longer before the pick up crew for the race knew who I was. At every aid station I would approach just as they were pulling up. Then they'd pass me along the way. It started at mile 16 with "Is today your birthday? Happy birthday!". Then the next stop was "Hey how old are you anyway? 17?" Yeah, sure buddy, flattery will only motivate me to run meet you at the next aid station. The next stop was, "Hey, I have a great birthday present for you. Here's some Powerade." Some of them played jokes on me. "Hey, what does your hat say?" When I replied "Happy Birthday!" he replied back "Well jee thanks, but it's not for another couple of weeks." Haha very funny! How can I focus on how much pain I'm in when these guys are cracking me up?

At mile 22 my VMO injury flared. With every step I could feel the muscle pulling and it was immensely painful. I kept going though. It wasn't too much further that I heard party horns and people shouting my name. It was Emma and Emmanuel out on the corner with a big sign! I was so happy to see them I could have cried. Here was my best friend, who had trained with me the entire time and she was there to push me on. I knew that if she could finish the first half marathon we did with knees swollen like grapefruits then I could get through these next 4 miles. I kept on trucking.

Just up ahead was my parents and brother again. This was the mile I had dedicated to my younger brother Matt. I shouted to him "Hey Matt, this one is for you!" He yelled back, "Well hell Jordan, I'm annoying enough it ought to encourage you to pick up your pace a little bit more." Haha, yeah, truer words were never spoken. I guess I owed him some running time, after all, he spent most of his childhood running from me.

The next few miles were pretty lonely. There was no one out there and my iPhone had fallen out of the sleeve when I passed my parents, so I had to hand it off to them and run without anything those last 3 miles. I just concentrated on my dedications at that point. Every person I had dedicated the race to flashed through my mind. There were points when the memories and the pain simultaneously made me start to get teary eyed. Then I would get happy to think that within just a few short moments I'd be accomplishing something truly great.

Then I rounded the home stretch. I could see the Olympic rings which were marking the Start/Finish line. I picked up the pace. Some of the other finishers reported that the clock was counting down to the 5 hour mark. That was also good motivation, to try to get in under 5. I went as fast as I could for that last .2 but in the end it wasn't enough to get me in under 5. I finished in 5 hours 1 min.

This is by far the best birthday I have ever had. No party, no gift, no speech, or card could ever come close to this feeling. Knowing that I fulfilled a major goal and had all of my family and friends there the entire time.

To Turkey Trot or Not

This is a recent conversation I had with one of my clients when we were both at a stressful point in our day. We both joke around with each other to cut the tension every now and again. Tuesday in particular we needed some relief and a great convo emerged.

4:27 PM me: hey did u ever figure out who owns the isptnnet task u pinged me about
i just remembered i hadn't responded onthat
Client: I'm pretty sure it's Callahan
I had a note from Jen from awhile ago that said him
4:28 PM me: ahh...good ole massey
i think we'll keep sending her a paycheck
Client: Or Nourallahi
Lol
4:30 PM me: yeah...we decided for her that it was too hard to spell so she is always going to be referred to as massey
Client: I still have lots of people that call me Pandiscio
4:31 PM And the new name is actually much easier
4:33 PM me: huh...well if i ever get married i better keep the J.Lo. nickname
it took years to get that to stick
and i'm not coming up with a new one
Client: I'm sure u will!
You make me laugh
me: it might be a deal breaker
4:34 PM Client: Idk, just keep L. as ur stage name
me: i should do standup on the side
ok...now here's a question for you
if you were asked to run for an hour
would you enjoy it more if
4:35 PM someone dressed up as a turkey and you got to chase them with a cap gun?
4:36 PM Client: Without question ;)
4:37 PM me: thank you
i tried to explain this to ppl at my bootcamp and they told me it wasn't PC
it's not like they're vegan
4:38 PM i mean really...if you eat turkey and u like to run this should be a great idea
hell even if you don't like to run it's a great idea
Client: U crack me up
Well I definitely don't "like" to run, but the turkey offer is tempting
4:39 PM me: yeah...u can even get in character
u could wear a little pilgrim hate
hat*
orrrr..if u want to try with the bow and arrow (rubber of course) u could put a feather in ur hair
4:40 PM Client: Really trying to be anti PC, aren't u
4:48 PM me: well..i think it is critical for ppl to understand the struggles our forefathers went through so we can be properly thankful this holiday season
Client: Lol
4:49 PM Very true, will u be having eel this holiday?
4:52 PM me: eel?
how can i incorporate that in with the turkey
a turdukeel?
4:53 PM Client: Yeah, that's what the forefathers had and you want to b traditional, right?
Lol
4:54 PM me: wow...they were revolutionaries
turdukeel it is
pray tell...how did they kill this eel for the fiest?
is there a good re-enactment that can occur?
4:55 PM cuz i'm thinking if i wear green workout gear i might look kind of slinky and slimy like an eel
so this could be an easier outfit
feast* not fiest
where is my brain?
4:56 PM Client: Lol, I thought eels were grey or something
4:57 PM me: gray is even better
do u think they have black eels?
cuz i am supposed to wear all black
but u know when patriotism calls i have to do my civic duty
4:58 PM Client: Well google reports thateels are a muckey brown
And that is my most trusted source for information
5:00 PM me: really...
5:01 PM this is the same source which provides this http://www.elvis-is-alive.com/
brown eels
doubting the credibility of brown eels
5:02 PM i'm still wondering how they killed this eel tho
5:03 PM if you say they threw rocks at it then perhaps we go for a less authentic reenactment
5:04 PM Client: Lol
5:05 PM I certainly don't want anyone throwing rocks at u
5:06 PM me: that's a good answer jen
you know how to get results
me+concussion=0 escalations
Client: Yeah, that would be very bad!
5:09 PM me: i think the lack of verification of kill method coupled with the unlikely color of brown is hampering the idea of an eel reenactment
therefore we must move forward with the only logical next course of action
a turkey
Client: It will be much more fun too ;)
5:10 PM me: i am glad we have come to this conclusion mutually
Client: B-)
me: now we can pursue our next matter
Client: Oh dear
:-o
me: for christmas should i dress up as rudolph and have the campers follow my blinking nose...
OR
5:11 PM should i dress up as santa and give them reindeer names and yell "on dancer, and prancer, and donder, and blitzen"
Client: Santa's little helper maybe?
me: hmm...i dunno
Client: Ohhhh, I like option 2
me: yeah me too
i get to yell at ppl that way
always fun
5:13 PM Client: I hope they appreciate ur creativity
me: i hope so too
cuz i was thinking of making the lady from india an indian (feather not dot)
haha
5:14 PM Client: Lol
5:18 PM me: ok...now i need to figure out how to do the tail
5:19 PM cuz that is of course what will be the signature turkey
Client: It would
me: and executive decision to leave OFF the turkey neck because that is not even flattering to the turkey
Client: I bet u could pull it off
5:24 PM me: i could probably pull off the turkey wings too but we are not going to go there

Monster Week Over!

This week was what is called "Monster Week" for the marathon training program. It consists of two 5 mile runs during the week, one 10 mile run during the week, and to cap it off the 20 mile run on the weekend. The 20 mile run is the longest run prior to the race itself.
Exhausting is the only thing which can describe this week. Every ache and pain is exaggerated at this point and everyday I felt like i was going to crash. I was so tired I had to remind myself the importance of eating, because most nights all I wanted to do was go to bed. After the 10 mile run I actually felt sick to my stomach so I was not exactly wanting to eat anything. I did though, but probably less than I should have.
The 20 miler loomed over me all week long. It's such a daunting number and I was so worried about being bored doing the same course for that long. There's only so many times you can run a route up and back before you get bored with it. I decided I needed to mix it up and do something other than the Silver Comet.
I had options. It just so happened that one of the running groups I used to run with was doing a 20 miler that weekend. They were going to meet downtown at 7:15am. As exhausted as I was, I ended up deciding that I could use an extra hour or two of sleep. There was also a new running group which was having a run that day, at the Silver Comet. At least it would be a new set of people for me to chat with along the way. The only problem there was that they didn't say how many miles it would be. I thought about it and decided that if I ended up doing the first 5 or so with that group and then had to do the last 15 by myself I'd be bored and miserable.
So I decided to do it solo on my own little course. I reviewed the marathon course the other day so I could plan out stations for family and friends to be positioned throughout the race. It wasn't until then that I realized that Cardiac Hill (ranked the #8 hardest hill in Runner's World) is the last 3 miles of the marathon. Ouch! I decided it might not be a bad idea to do a little preview run of that so I could visualize myself completing it.
I planned a route from my house to the beginning and then looped back home. I had to cut through Peachtree Battle to get to the start so that was my first 5 miles. The elevation chart showed a long steady incline up to mile10.5 and then it was down hill. I decided this would be a good way to practice the course and try to get some negative splits in (faster last half than first half).
Everything was going well up until about mile 13. The hills were constant and rolling. I managed to stay at a 10:30-11:00min/mile pace despite the hills, so I was pleased because I knew that the actual course wouldn't be as hill as what I was doing. At mile 13 though the hills really started to take their toll on me. They were relentless, and I kept looking for that "down hill". My calves were burning and my ankles and knees felt like they were about to explode with every step. It was absolutely terrible.
By mile 15 I decided to walk the uphills and jog the downhills. That lasted for another mile before even that was too painful. I finally gave up and had to walk the last 3.5 back. I finished in 4 hours, in truly miserable shape. I called Emma after the run to let her know I was done and to tell her how it went. I was so defeated. If I go at that pace in the race itself I won't finish in the time limits so I was really disappointed. Not only that, I knew that getting home in as much pain as I was in was the threshold. I wouldn't be able to do another 6 in that kind of pain, so I was pretty bummed out.
I decided to review the route I had chosen on map my run. It said 600 foot ascent, which I started to think about, most of the hills were on Peachtree Battle, not on the actual course for the marathon. Not only that, I remembered the ascension for the marathon is really more like 100-150 feet over the entire 26.2. I felt a little bit better, but still defeated, because I figured "Well, certainly that is what the ING Atlanta Marathon is like. It's supposed to be nothing but hills so I guess I should rule that out for this spring." I checked their elevation chart this morning. 150-200 foot ascension. Okay, now I realize that I messed up and that if anything I took myself to the edge and beyond. It may be a good thing. Maybe I'll get out there the day of the race and I'll look back on how miserable I felt yesterday and use that as a reminder that I'm still feeling good and I can keep going. Here's hoping!
The good news is though that I am officially done with Monster Week and I'm officially tapering!! Yeah taper!!!