Editors Note:
Every now and then , you run across something or someone who deserves a shoutout. This week happens to be one of those times. This is a guest blog by my friend, Beth. I first met her in March in Ashville on the roads at Biltmore half. We instantly started chatting and got to know each other.As soon as she informed me she was doing this race, I was ALL IN to make sure anything she had questions about training or anything I was there to try to get her answers , or be support. This past weekend was the race... Without further ado, I will let her take over and tell the story :
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Since then, it’s been a long training road, lots of tears, stress, and just overall things happening in my life (I won’t bore you with details), but I had this goal that I was going to finish, and I made it happen. Enough about the background though. My boyfriend, Jacob, and I flew from South Carolina to D.C. I am such a lucky gal, I have an extremely supportive group of people in my life, and I feel so lucky that not only Jacob, but my parents (who flew in from Boston) were in D.C. last weekend to watch me and cheer me on.
We got to DC on Friday, Jacob, my mom, and I went to the expo while my dad napped. where My mother made sure she had a sign for me, and some cowbells, because my ski racing cowbells were at my apartment. We took photos (naturally), and walked around.
After the expo adventure, we met up with my dad for dinner, where we spent a lot of time laughing, and planning our Saturday. We landed on sleeping in, and then meeting up in D.C. for lunch, followed by dinner with my parents, and my dad’s fraternity brother X. Saturday we visited the White House, and the Holocaust Museum, napped, and had a great dinner. Jacob and I left early so I could get ready for bed, got everything organized, and I fell asleep while he watched football.
Sunday morning was early. I woke up before my alarm clock, made my oatmeal with the coffee maker, and headed out to meet my pre-scheduled Uber. Got to the start, and met up with some other RWB Eagles, and just let it all sink in. I stripped off my sweats with 5 minutes to the start, and then boom, 10-minute delay so a band could finish setting up and get out of the road. I shook if off like ski race delay, and just focused on the end goal. I took off, probably faster than I needed too, and promptly slowed because of an issue on the outside of my calf. At mile 8 or 9 things finally started to feel good, and I ran into my parents, Jacob, and X. I grabbed another packet of Honey Stinger gummies from them, and proceeded on.
Things were going, and then we got to the blue mile. This was something I knew was going to be emotional- I had submitted my friend’s name to honor him, (1LT Dimitri A. DelCastillo), and I started to sniffle as we got closer to the date he was killed in action. I had strangers hold my hands, and as I knelt to say hi to his photo, they rubbed my back, we picked up, continued, and were carried on through the cheers of those carrying the flags honoring the soldiers we have lost. In addition to honoring Del, I ran with my friend Taylor Allen Force’s name on my back, and on a bracelet on my wrist. Both are West Point graduates, and were taken from us too soon. Taylor was killed by a terrorist in Israel while on a trip with his MBA program, and Del was killed in action, while calling for more support for his soldiers.
The rest of the race went. My stomach soured, and I did my best to keep going. When I ran into my family again, Jacob could see that I was not doing well, and he ran (well walk/jog) across the bridge with me. He was a great support, and I dropped him back off with my parents and X at mile 23 or so, which I am sure he was happy about, as he really wasn’t in running clothes, and had just eaten a fried chicken sandwich with my dad before hopping on the course with me. That’s true love. I tried to not beat myself up about the time, as honestly, I wasn’t happy with it. My feet hurt, I could feel blisters on my feet getting bigger, and my stomach was angry. I finally got to the last little bit of the race- I met up with a coach from another team, and he was walking/running with me. He finally got me to understand that I shouldn’t beat myself up. For those of you who don’t know, I’m a recovering perfectionist, and I was upset about how things were going. He finally got me to realize that I balanced everything, and just helped me get to the finish line. I don’t even know his name, but he made it in a few of my photos (wearing a winter hat at 86 degrees out), so huge shout out to him. He carried me to where my family was, (you can see me looking over to them in the photo) who then pushed me up that last hill, where I got some sweet finish line air time, being announced that I was a finisher of the Marine Corps Marathon. Everything hurt. I was so happy, I cried- you can see tears in my eyes in some finish photos, and I slowly made my way to get my stuff. It’s honestly still a blur to me. I really don’t know how I did it all, and my body held up, because honestly two days after, I came down with a nasty case of strep throat, so thank you to my body for holding up long enough for me to finish.
Finishing with a work in progress behind me. Pretty much how I see myself as a runner- a work in progress. So that’s my story- I refuse to focus on my time because I met my original goal of finishing. I’m not sure what my next move is. I’m still waiting on finish photos with my family, but this will have to do for now. It was a blur, it was painful, it was emotional, and it was LONG. But I did it- and I’m just going to ride that feeling for a little bit longer.
Thanks to John for the support along the way, and letting me post a celeb post in his blog, Kara for the training plans, Jacob and my family for the love and support, and I’m going to thank myself, for realizing that what I did was enough for this first go around. It’s a great race for those wondering, and I’ll see what my next steps are!
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Editors Closing Thoughts:
Goodness gracious. Now if that don't inspire you , you need to go check to make sure your alive! Seriously, what a warrior this woman is ! Amazing Job!!!
Beth, I know I have said it before, and I'll say it again publicly : You are a ROCK.STAR! Anyone who can balance getting your PHD, Life, and the riggors of Marathon Training deserves all the regognition and glory ! I am so stinking proud of you! I knew the day I met you in Ashville, you were destined to join that marathon club. It's just something about people you could tell. I knew right off, this girl has the guts to do this. Thank you for letting me ride this rollercoaster with you . All those late night talks of getting out of your head worked! See what happens when you just go! You amaze yourself! I have never been prouder of you! I can't wait to see what the future holds ! One day, were gonna get to share the roads again, and I am almost willing to bet that when we do , chances are it will probably be 26.2 .
HOORAH! And MISSION. ACCOMPLISHED!
To my readers:
Thank you for taking time to stop by and check this out. A little out of the ordinary, but like I stated earlier, when I find someone or something that deserves a space to write , then by golly , I am gonna let them have their moment! Thank you all for your continued support.
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