D's Adventures: September 2023

Another marathon???? YEP! my 31 marathon! B.O.B. which stands for Boston or BUST! We are the BUST part. 😂 It's the last race where people can run a Boston qualifying time for the following April.

I often wonder why I let my friends talk me in to another marathon! 😜 Especially one that you have to train for during the summer months. It's been one of the hottest summers we've had here in South Mississippi. We went a whole month with the heat index over 100! So needless to say even if we started our long runs at 4am, we were still soaking wet a mile into our run. I've struggled with cramps the last several weeks and had to cut 2 of my long runs short due to cramps! It's been a battle. After having to get a hydration IV in August after our long run at the coast, I wasn't sure I'd make the 26.2 miles this past weekend. I had to cut my 15 miler to 11 and then I had to cut my 20 miler to 16 miles due to cramps. I've never ran a marathon without going to 20 miles except for my Ironman training. And during that time of my life I didn't worry because I was biking and running so much I felt ready. But this past weekend, I was nervous and unsure if I could make 26.2 miles. I went ahead and scheduled me a hydration IV on Friday before the marathon. When I had gotten one after my epic fail on my 20 miler, the nurse told me they were good to get prior to a race. So I did a little research and everything I read said it was good for athletes. I'm so glad I did it! I highly recommend it for anyone suffering with cramps. It's basically what they call the "Myers Cocktail".

So Saturday morning me and the girls met up and headed to Huntsville, Al. It was a 5 hour drive and we had to take 2 vehicles to accomodate us all. I did all the driving in my vehicle. I didn't mind, but it does tend to make you tired afterwards. Huntsville was a bigger town than we had thought. I soon realized after we all got settled that several others were also nervous about the race. It was going to be a tad cooler than what we were use to but it was going to warm up fast. We were all glad the race was starting at 6am. We went to packet pickup, had lunch, went to a sweet store and back to our hotel. We opted to stay at our hotel and get pizza that evening. We ended up sitting outside on the patio with our pizza and it was so nice just sitting and relaxing with the girls. I've said it many times... these girls are my therapy session. 😍 Michelle gave me an awesome jar of a sugar scrub she had made herself for a late birthday. It smells so good! and then Feleica surprised me with a pair of socks! We all went to bed early and alarms starting going off around 3:45am. 😁 Time to rise and shine for that 6am race start.

It was still dark when the race started, but the sun quickly rose in 15-20 minutes. It was pretty watching the sun come up around the mountains as we started running. The temp was around 68 degrees. It felt really good and during the first half all of our PPRF group ran very well. You could tell we all felt great! I was like wow this is going to be a PR race for all of us... but that frame of mind quickly changed on the 2nd half. The sun came out and it was blistering hot except for the shaded areas and the course kind of depressed you. It was an odd course. We started and went out 5 miles and back 5 miles then out another direction for 1 1/2 miles and back 1 1/2miles where we did it all again to make the 26.2 miles... so we had to run through the finish line 4 times! It was just aggravating and they only had a water stop like every 3-4 miles... and just 1 set of porta potties! It was the worse race as far as aid stations that I've ever ran! I felt so bad for the ones that didn't take a water bottle. I was very thankful I had taken my 2 bottles and when I realized the water stops were few and far between, I filled my bottles up every time I got a chance so that I would have some water. By mile 20 we were all ready to quit. Well, maybe not all... Penny was on fire! She started out saying, "y'all I'm going to pull back and settle as this slow steady pace", ... but by the 2nd half she was ahead of us all. She looked STRONG! I just knew Ms Be was going to run her BQ time and we could all celebrate afterwards, but that didn't happen. She fell slightly behind Penny and when I saw them coming in on that last loop when I was going out, I looked at my watch and knew she was probably not going to make it. It broke my heart. I wanted her to get it so badly. But I know one thing... She won't be defeated! She'll get it again. She's already qualified once before and she'll do it again! Not once after the race did she get upset or try to come up with reasons why she didn't make her time. She simply thanked God for letting her cross that finish line. She inspires us all. And every day I learn from her. She's not bold and boatsful.. she meek and mild... but on the inside she's one TOUGH cookie! I want to be just like her when I'm 70... heck I want to be like her now at 57! She's amazing! And so are all the other women in my group! Penny was the only one that finished the marathon in less than 5 hours! Like I said she was on fire! Afterwards, I was like wow Penny! She told us she had something to prove to herself and she did it. 😁

Joe was also there running his 96 marathon! His goal is to get to 100 by December at St. Jude. I'm so excited for him! He's worked hard! and We going to PARTY when he finishes his 100 at St. Jude in December! 😍

Our hotel would not let us have a late check out so we ended up taking a quick rinse off shower at the campsite at Ditto Landing where the race was held. Feleica was a tad unsure about taking a shower there, but we all reassured her it would be ok. We are slowly breaking her in. 😂 Heck she will even share a bed now with one of us. 😁😂

So that's a wrap on BOB! Would I recommend it ?? NOPE! not unless they have more aid stations! and maybe change that out and back route! Huntsville is a nice area and we did have some nice scenery while running most of the route and we did have some fabulous food at Drake's before driving home. It was a GREAT weekend except for the running part. 😁😛 Actually the running wasn't too bad. It taught us all that we can push on and we can do HARD things! So I call that a win / win! 💓 and I give God all the glory for letting us all finish. Without him, I'd be no where and unable to accomplish anything. 🙏

Here are a few pictures from our weekend. Now we gearing up for October marathons!