London Marathon

No turning back now!!! :)

 We started off our London weekend by going and picking up the registration package for my number and timing chip. The expo was quite large, and as I don't like over priced things, we didn't get any new treasures. :) We headed out to go to our apartment and started some dinner for the night. Sleep was few and far between on Saturday night, between my nerves and also the drunks having a party right outside our window I couldn't escape to my dream land spa like I had hoped. Luckily for me the race didn't start until 10:00 am and I didn't have to attempt to wake up at a weird early hour. I was able to say good-bye to the kids and Mason was ready to go with me, but alas we decided taking him along the route with me would be complicated. Mike wanted plenty of pictures, and the last 'pre' race picture is me saying, "if ya take one more picture..."

All for ASSERT--and wanted to make sure they knew it!

 Let the fun begin!! The start was incredible, all the runners, packed into little pens and waiting for their turn to cross that line when their timing chip would activate and it would be no turning back. There were 3 start areas that went for about 3 miles before the course combined and all the runners were together. I was in the Red Start and watched as people around me giggled, prayed, and mostly just wondered what they were doing! There was a 30 second moment of silence before the start to honour those in Boston, whose marathon day turned into tragedy just days before. All the runners in London were also wearing black ribbons in remembrance for Boston. I saw shirts that had been made dedicating their run to Boston throughout the whole 26.2 miles. I also saw banners, posters, and other things that spectators had made encouraging us all to press on to finish for Boston, stay Boston Strong etc..it was all very moving.
The race started and I finally crossed the start line 25 minutes after the first gun. The legs started going and I actually felt really relaxed and calm. I knew I would need to hold back and stay focused on my pace so that I didn't burn out too soon, and when I got to the first 5km marker with the timer, I knew I was right on target for my time. The marathon actually didn't seem 'that long' time wise because of the AMAZING people of London and all the other many spectators that came out to support all the runners, and I mean all of them! I have never seen anything like it and I don't think any future race will compare to London. The crowds were giving out little sweeties, chocolate, and orange slices among many other things. They were there to encourage every runner to finish, bands played, DJ's were set up, people in their homes were blasting music, and every moment was thrilling. The first half went quite well for me, better than I expected as I thought I would be dealing with the injury that had happened a couple months ago, and that I'd been dealing with for the rest of my training. At mile 12 I took a little potty break and then continued on to experience to the first 'high' of the race. You turn a corner and then WOWZERS!, Tower Bridge is right there and you are running over it with hundreds of others who are on the same journey. The sides were filled with screaming people cheering you on. The route overlaps itself a bit after the bridge and you are running miles 13/14 while on the other side people are running 22/23. I was running on the 14 mile side when  apparently the family saw me, but they were on the other side and I couldn't hear them through all the screaming, but they said I looked good and was running, so they were happy. At about 14.5/15 miles, all of a sudden, I felt very light headed and could feel my blood sugar dropping. In all my long runs this had never happened before and I wasn't quite sure what to do. At the next 'energy' station they were handing out glucose gel packs, which I had never tried before in my training and wasn't sure what they would do. I waited until the next water station to get some water, because if you have ever had one of those gel packs you might understand the need to wash it down fast. While waiting for the water station to come up, I took a few gummies from a spectator who had a bucket full of them, then I took an orange slice from someone else,   I've never had a better orange slice in my life! The water station came and I decided I didn't have anything to lose, so I opened the gel and took half of it, avoided it coming back up and pressed on with a run/walk rotation. At about 17 miles I knew I needed something else to be able to get my body going again and all I could think about is where the family was because I knew Mike had a few bananas in his backpack. I had a feeling that would see me through. However, I was worried because I knew they were planning on being at mile 22ish and my body was not going to wait that long. At mile 18 I said a little prayer that I would be able to get to them for that banana. About a tenth mile later, there I saw it. One lady, one banana, 5-6 runners in front of me passed her, when she said, "Someone needs to take this banana!" Thank you random lady who literally answered my prayers right there on the course, that banana tasted disgusting, but my stomach and body came back to life after about 5-10 minutes of eating it. I continued with a run/walk and was trying to get my body to do more running than walking, but my left knee was fighting my mind off like crazy! I had passed the 22 mile marker and decided that I probably wouldn't see the family, started to think about the kids and hoped that even if they didn't see me running they would have a good time cheering on runners. Then I turned a little curve and saw my sweet baby Cameron perched on top of Mike's shoulders! It was a glorious sight. My family!! That includes all my family that was there that day--The Schmidt's and the Kennedy's!! I gave hugs, didn't want to let go of Mike as he told me I could finish, that he was proud of me, and that I was doing great. I left them and was back to running because I had that extra spring in my step. The last 4 miles are a bit of a blur, it was so close and yet so far away. I was able to pick up my running and ignored the pain in my knee as much as I could. The spectators were again packed in to the sides and cheering everyone on. We were coming up on the House of Parliament, Big Ben and then turned the corner for the home stretch. Finally, I see the big sign that said, 800m to go! What a glorious feeling. I knew going in this was going to be a tough ride, but this time around it was very emotional. Problems with my back during training and finding out I had some disc problems going on, a doctor telling me I probably should not be running, made this moment worth it. I wanted to cross that finish line for everyone that had supported me, sponsored me, and cheered me on. It was humbling to have the generosity of so many to help raise funds for ASSERT. I was amazed at the contributions and sacrifices people were making to help those who are living with Angelman Syndrome. It was an exhausting day, but would I do it again--without a doubt!! Final time was 5:29:09--only 29:09 minutes past my ultimate goal, so I guess I will have to keep doing them until I reach the time I want. :)

Just when I spotted the family--I was SO HAPPY to see them!!

I'm pretty sure this was around 25 miles..I looked pained.

I'm the one with the pink belt carrier.-leaving the family.

There were quite a few cameras from the marathon people snapping shots along the finishers collection area--I think I was happy to be done!

 The crowds throughout London were insane! We've been during busy times before, but this was unreal.

Toni and I--I have the best friends who will come and stand for hours just to watch little ol' me  for about 1 minute worth of 5 and a half hours of a race. :) Blessed to have these guys as family. 

Our Family in London

"Cheering on my my mom! She's running the 2013 London Marathon...If I am alone, call my dad!" Shirts that all the kids were wearing for some mom and dad peace of mind. :)

Not sure who was helping whom here...those stairs through out the underground were a killer!