It was a long journey--both in miles and time--to my second full marathon. My friend, Steve, encouraged me to try this one, and I was eager to give it a try. It was particularly exciting to have both Steve and Supy--a couple of running role models for me--running it with me. I trained hard all summer, followed a Bart Yasso training plan, and was hoping to somehow crack the 4 hr mark. That would be a huge improvement over my first full marathon time of 4 hr 37 min. My training times seemed to be putting me just on the cusp of that. In the days leading up to the race, I was sure that I would be the third finisher out of the three of us. Supy would probably run 3:30 or faster. Steve would probably run around 3:50. I'd just be happy to get my 4:00 and get pictures with my great friends at the end. Well, something unbelievable happened. I finished first of the three! Supy had to sit it out, because he contracted the flu. And I somehow nudged Steve by about 30 second. My time? 3 hrs 55 min. I couldn't believe it! Now I'm so cocky as to think I can get a lot better still and maybe one day run in the Boston Marathon. How cool would that be for me--who was once a slow and fat kid and is now approaching "middle age"?
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