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| Reid Coolsaet ran by me so fast I could a) feel his wind, and b) all his pictures were blurry. Hubby at 10K, Me holding Hailey's sign. Wheelchair athlete. |
- Lou Reed died this morning. I didn't learn this news until I was on my way to pick Julien up from my girlfriend Elin's house (she graciously babysat him for us this morning/afternoon)! It was sad news for me. Lou Reed is one of those artists that makes me think of someone. He makes me think of Elin. Elin is an infinitely important part of my life. We talked about Lou Reed this afternoon. She said the only person whose death affected her more greatly was John Candy's. RIP Lou Reed.
- I woke up today at 5 am. I tossed and turned in bed for about 30 minutes until I finally gave in and got myself up. Why was I up so early? Nerves, that's why. You would have thought that I was running my first half marathon today. All I had to do was show up and look pretty! During the entire time I was in turmoil, my husband was fast asleep upstairs.
- We got ourselves out of the house by 8am, dropped Julien off at Elin's at 8:15am, then hit the road for Fort Erie. The finish line was in Niagara Falls, but the start line was in Fort Erie, 7K from the border. Gun time was 10am and I dropped hubby off for 9:30. He had to walk a couple of kilometers to the start line.
- I drove to about the 8K mark and waited to see my hubby, and more importantly Olympian Reid Coolsaet run by. Reid ran by a mere 24 minutes into the race. Honest to God he was a blur. I couldn't get a photo of him that was not blurry and I could feel his wind. I swear I never saw his feet touch the ground either. I screamed encouragement like a love sick school girl and he never heard a word of it I'm sure. Reid won the race with a time of 1:03:11. Hubby ran by at around 58 minutes into the race, about 5 minutes before Reid finished. Awesome!!!
- I met a couple of lovely ladies at the 8K mark. We cheered on runners and I was loud. Surprise, surprise! I'm a little hoarse right now. Awwwwwww, how cute would it be if I was a Shetland Pony? Sadly I am not. But my voice is scratchy. I high fived runners, screamed my lungs out, clapped until my hands were sore and held up one of Hailey's signs for her. She had several. Tons of fun.
- The wheelchair athletes were amazing to see. I'll think of them the next time I'm bitching and complaining about having to run in the cold.
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| Left: Hubby coming in for the big finish. Top centre: Me at mile 26!! I'm a marathoner...not! Top right: Hubby coming out of the corral. Bottom centre: Check out the new half marathoner! Bottom right: A selfie in front of the Niagara River. |
- The winner of the marathon came in at 2:22:41. Almost 6 minutes faster than my hubby ran his half. I was standing by a woman at the finish line who insisted that we wouldn't see any marathoners for another 2 hours. I told her that the elites would be rolling in any time after 2:15. I knew there weren't any huge names running the full, so no records would be compromised. A Toronto boy won. His pace was 3:24 per kilometer. That is amazing. She was shocked.
- When I saw my husband approach the finish line, I got a little verklempt. I remember how emotional it was for me when I ran my first half. I actually got teary when I saw the finish line. I was soaked, cold and my feet hurt like the devil. It's such a huge accomplishment and I was so proud of him. I knew he did not feel the same though. He felt happy to be done, but no big emotions for him.
- The first thing he said to me after he was done was, "I want to run a full". I knew it!!!!
- While I was waiting for hubby to finish, a young man came to stand beside me to cheer on runners. He had run the half and was offering support to other runners. I asked how he did, he said he didn't PB, but was still happy with his time. He finished in 1:26 and some micro-seconds. Damn!
- It was an emotional experience watching runners cross the finish line. You could see the emotion in their faces and it choked me up. Some were so happy to be there, some were just happy to be done, some were struggling. Didn't matter, they all completed an awesome feat. Running 21.1K is not a walk in the park. It requires a lot of training and dedication.
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| Yeah, we went to the Mandarin for hubby's celebratory brunch! He was hungry! Hubby's newest bling! |
- Just in case you're wondering, hubby's finishing time was a respectable 2:29:16. He ran an under 2:30 half. Good job!
- Hubby's hobbling around like a little old lady now. He has sore shins and a sore knee. It's expected. I was sore for days after running my first half. I also wore my medal at work the next day. Hey! I earned it!!!! Hubby's medal is on my dresser up stairs. He'll never wear it again, but he should!
- I don't know why it's happening, but my weight has gone down another pound. I weighed in this morning at 162. I didn't get a picture because I forgot my camera, was naked, and refused to go traipsing through the house nude just to get my phone. You'll just have to believe me. Now, I weighed myself because I have noticed my pants fitting me differently. My size 8's are getting quite loose and I have a couple of pairs of size 9/10 pants that I can't wear without belts anymore. They fall down. I am sure I could squeeze into a 6, but they would not look good. You know, camel toe and everything. There is nothing sexy about camels. That is all.
- I desperately need to go grocery shopping. We have absolutely NO FOOD in the house!
- I really, really need to go to bed. It's after midnight and I've been up since 5am. Good night:)
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| My husband is going to KILL me for this, but I have to. I got a lovely man to take our photo. Hubby knew his photo was being taken and he stuffed his face with a protein bar. Really? He looks like Quagmire from Family Guy! |
