Race Report: Chicago Marathon 2012

So much to say about this one. And it wasn't even about me. But I was honored to be part of Michelle's marathon debut, and it was a day I will NEVER forget. So, long post ahead...

The weekend itself was crazy, as per usual in the Welch house. Saturday morning consisted of a whole lotta volleyball (Jenna had a tournament from 8am til 1pm) so I conned John into taking Friday and Monday off work, and I snuck out Friday morning to the expo with Jenna and a couple running club friends.

Not too busy yet...boy did that change before we left!

corral L for WINNER!

There was lots and lots of sign making happening in my house before the race. John had his own redemption brewing - CM10 was a comedy of spectating errors and I didn't see my peeps til 26. He was determined to do better this time!

Saturday night, I was lucky enough to sneak out for some pre race carb loading with Marcia and Jill. It was fantastic to finally meet Jill, and I was so glad that we could work this out! Although I am a terrible blogger and don't even have a picture. I was hoping to spot Marcia on the course a couple times Sunday morning...

I felt ready and packed up Saturday night, despite struggling with exactly what to wear. Sunday morning was a breeze, since a running club friend was chauffeuring 3 of us down. NO STRESS for me. We hung out in a hospitality room at the Congress hotel which was across the street from the start until we had to go outside. My sister and her friend made their way over to us while we were there and we waited together. Easy peasy.

Kyla, Michelle and me. Staying warm for as long as possible.

We were in the second wave which went off at 8am. Corrals closed at 7:45, so at about 7:30 we went outside. I had 2 mylar blankets from past races that we used to keep warm (so perfect! DO THIS!). We lined up with the 4:40 pacer and tried to keep calm. This was when I started to get nervous. I was running through all the people I was trying to see and locations in my head, I was trying to keep track of it all, I was getting a text ready to send out to our peeps when we crossed the line, I was hoping I'd be everything Michelle needed me to be. I was silently FREAKING THE EFF OUT.

So when Lauren found us in our corral and gave me a hug, I was so discombobulated that I introduced her as Kyla to my sis. No I'm not an asshole, really, I'm just in brain overload. But it was so awesome to see a friendly face that it calmed me down a little bit. So both sorry and THANK YOU to Lauren! Hope you had a great race!

I appreciated the wave start this year and the corrals. It only took us 17 minutes to cross the start and we were off and running. Michelle's garmin was being a little bitch so she turned it off and we went with mine. Besides being there for Michelle, my goal for ME this year was to try and soak in the experience more, and also to enjoy the hell out of myself. And to try to remind her to do the same, even when she wasn't feeling it.

We saw our family at about 1.5 and then again at 3. It was great getting hugs and smiles early on. The sign on a stick (inspired by Marcia's pumpkin) was a last minute decision that served us well throughout the day. Between that and the bright orange signs they made, I saw them long before we got to them, every time we were supposed to see them. It went SO smoothly.

John and James holding the sign next to my BIL and my niece on his shoulders

guy next to Michelle looks THRILLED

The early miles ticked off uneventfully. I could tell Michelle was not feeling the greatest, but for the moment, she was ok. Soon, though, she needed to pee. We stopped in the 8th mile for 8 freaking minutes in a potty line that never moved and then bailed. We made it to the 11th mile and managed to find a quicker line, and were in and out in just a few minutes. And then it was time to see our family again!

potty line photo op

gettin some love

hugs from mom

We saw Carolyn a few times on the course. We saw Andrea and her DO EPIC SHIT signs. I searched for Marcia early on and then again in charity village (around mile 14) but I never did see her. I saw so so many amazing and hilarious signs. (My favorite of the day was "Run Faster, I just Farted" - yes, I am so mature, haha!) I was having fun, but Michelle was wearing down some.

Just past mile 17, we saw Carolyn again. We stopped to stretch and get hugs and chatted for a second. When we started running again, Michelle's knee gave out. Her face told the story - she was in so much pain. The tears started and we walked. Slowly, she got to a shuffle, and she just kept shuffling, realizing that stopping was detrimental to finishing - she needed to keep running.

At a med station, we stopped for some biofreeze. They were out, but she got some lidocain on her knee and I got some vaseline for my HORRIBLE CHAFFING (numb legs plus not enough glide equals delayed reaction chafe. YOUCH!) and that seemed to make the pain tolerable for her.

We saw Charlyn and L on the back half of the course...she called out to us and I must have looked at her blankly because she explained how she knew us and the light bulb came back on (another "I am terrible with names" moment of the day). At the mile 18 aid station, Kayla called out to us, and again, gave us a boost. We saw our family again at nearly 21. And then Nora found us at mile 23. Some where in there was more Carolyn and at some point Andrea jumped in and ran with us for a minute. I felt like every time we needed a familiar face, there they were! THAT part of the day was amazing.

The last few miles were hard. I tried to find a comfortable pace, so I alternated between power walking and running slowly. This is that part of the course where the photogs are out like crazy so there was a lot of "fake it til you make it" going on. I reminded her to smile.

lots of this...

...and this...

but we felt like this...

and this was happening too, haha!

And then mile 25 happened. She saw the sign and something shifted in her. She really KNEW it was going to happen. And she started to run like she meant it! Our family was waiting just before the turn at 26, but we didn't stop.

We turned the corner and charged up that hill. We turned again, I grabbed her hand, and we ran down the chute to the finish. I sobbed like an idiot the entire way down. I'm not joking. I wasn't this emotional when I finished my own first marathon. I can't wait to see the finish line photos. We crossed, stopped hugged, cried. We got our blankets and medals and Michelle got a well deserved beer. SHE DID IT. And I couldn't have been more proud of her!

I have so much more to say about this day swirling in my head. Maybe tomorrow. This is enough for today. My sister is a marathoner. 5:23:52. She rocks!