The Stone Rabbit

Memories of My First Marathon

 A few months ago the idea of doing a marathon first nudged its way into my mind.  It started to grow as I was going longer distances with Verna, a running friend, who was preparing to do a marathon.

She had done several such races over the years. . .as well as longer distances.  She is my running idol who eagerly shares her knowledge and expertise about the sport.   

And she's patient.  

I struggled on more than one of the long runs we had done.  My elderly body rebelled now and then.  She didn't give up on me.  We just kept at it.  And as time went by and the distances grew and the encouragement from Verna was never failing, well...I finally started believing that "maybe" I was capable of going the 26.2 miles.  

Then the reality check would hit.  I was going to be 69 when I did a marathon.   I'm an old woman...what was I thinking about?    What was wrong with me?  Why wasn't I thinking more about knitting or making pies? I'm a GRANDMA for goodness sake!!  

Then I'd find myself out on the trail on a really hot day with her, and often times other running friends,  and it just seemed to becoming a reality.  I was going for longer distances and they weren't always so hard. . .don't get me wrong, they were still often times hard, but they weren't "as" hard.

I came to the decision that the Kansas City Marathon would be the one I'd run in October 2016.  It was there, in 2010, that I did my first 5K and then again my first half marathon in 2013. 

 

I knew it was not an easy course. . .

but I signed up for it anyway.  

 

 

 

After months of slowly building up my distance ability I found myself at the expo with these running buddies the day before the race.   They had both signed up for the half.  We are pictured with Steve of BODIES RUNNING.

He has been a steadfast running support for us over the last year.  He'd started a speed workout group where, once a week,  he gives us a plan  . .and then we meet at a local trail and attempt it!  :)  Steve is the first person that made me realize that if I wanted to run faster....I needed to practice running faster.  He introduced us to  tempo runs and fartleks and pyramids.  All of these were foreign until Steve became a part of our running experiences.

L to R:  Brenda, me, Steve, Karen

 

 

 Karen was another big cheerleader for me over this marathon journey.  She insisted that she was going to pick me up the morning we did our races  and she would be there when I finished my distance.

I knew it was gonna take me twice as long to complete my run as it was going to take her to do hers and  I really didn't want her to have to hang around for me all that extra time.  However, she was not going to have anything to do with my argument.  She won.   She picked me up bright and early on the morning of the event.  We arrived at the parking lot near the race start well before daylight..... giving us premium parking and ample time to find restrooms!   haha

 

 

We also located the spot near Crown Center where lots of folks meet up before the race to get their group pictures.

 We know several of the folks pictured here  as we  belong to a local running group called the RUNbelieveables.   Many of them are amazingly fast.  Several of them were pacing the half or the full marathons that day (you can see the pacer sticks they are holding).  At that point I was still undecided as to exactly where in the corral I would start my run.....which pacing stick I would try to follow and keep up with as I made my way along the 26.2 miles of the marathon.

 

 

Brenda, Karen and I , plus a few others, run together once or twice a week.  On this day, we probably wouldn't be side by side on the course, but we certainly would hold each other in our thoughts as the race went by for us.  On this morning one of Brenda's daughters was also running the marathon.  She's on the left in the photo below.  

For this race we supported TEAM WORLD VISION, a great organization that helps provide clean water to Africia.   We arrived at their tent around  6:30 a.m. for a little "inspiration" and pep rally......

 

 

 

 and a group picture!!

 

 

The next photo shows us packed in with thousands of other runners waiting for the start of the race. . .scheduled for a little after 7:00 a.m.. 

I don't know how my other buddies felt during the time we spent waiting . . .I just recall feeling a little jittery. . .praying I was really prepared to go that distance of 26.2 miles.   I was pretty sure I could made the distance physically, but it was the mental challenge that scared me. . . knowing I'd be alone most of the way after about the 8th mile.  I'd be on the slow end of the runners and the fast folks would be long gone.  I hadn't trained to do more than 5 miles alone.   The picture of me plodding along, alone for many miles, was one that kept popping into my mind.

Also, I was  worried about being able to finish before the 6 hour cut off.  I didn't practice "speed", but rather keeping a slower, steady pace as I got my body used to going such a long distance.   I had to be realistic that just finishing was more the goal I needed to chase.....but I REALLY wanted to finish before the 6 hr. cut off! :)

 

 

Besides my running buddies, my son was there.  He was also doing the marathon!!

I just grin every time I look at this picture.  I could have never dreamed that in 2010 whenI ran my first race ever, a 5K here at the KC Marathon event with this guy  by my side, that in 2016 we'd both be doing the marathon!!   He had done a few others, but this was my first.  I think the look on my face kinda speaks volumes.  :)  This part was pretty danged neat!

 

 

Looking north on Grand, the old Western Auto sign, a KC landmark,  was barely visible in the dark sky. 

The weather that morning was predicted to be warm for mid October.  I don't do well in heat, so I cut the sleeves out of a lightweight running shirt to make things a bit cooler!  However, the weather did hold out for us!!  It was pretty overcast most of the race and we had a good breeze.

 

 

 

As the moments ticked by, waiting for the "start", we could see four drones in the sky!  If you look carefully there are 3 dots of light......they would be drones! 

You can tell by the 2:40 pacer stick that I decided to line up there.  Why?  Because Brenda wanted to hang with that time group to finish her half. . .sound decision for me, too, right?  haha

I just knew MY JOB was to go slow. . .no matter where I started.

 

 

In past races, I've taken a gob of pictures along the course.  I didn't this time.  I think that just shows how focused I was on actually completeing the course upright and not too exhausted.   However, this picture does show us heading south on Oak....going up part of the challenging Hospital Hill !!  It's definitely well known in the KC area!

 

 

At the 2 mile mark, we were going up another hill, headed to the World War I Memorial / aka Liberty Memorial.

 

 

Here's the Liberty Memorial....it doesn't lean in real life!  haha

See those glorious clouds?  Yay.  No sun! 

 

 

 Around the 6 mile point we had reached The Plaza Shopping District.  It's full of fountains.....with this one being one of the most popular!

 

 

My first goal was to "start out and keep a slow pace", but still make it to this point....the COURSE SPLIT.  It was here that the half marathon people went left and the marathon folks went south.  And if we (the marathoners) weren't on a certain time pace by the time we hit this split, then we  would not be allowed to continue the marathon course because that meant we were too slow to make the 6 hour cut off time limit of completing the distance.

HOWEVER.... I was in good shape at that point.  Yay!!!  Happy dance, big smiles, this was fun.....I happily made a right turn and headed south.....

and that's when it got reallllll lonely!!

Most of the runners had signed up for the half.  I think there were only 1500 that were doing the marathon.  I was one of them......and I was not fast....and I promptly found myself pretty much on my own.  

 

 

By this point, there were tons of  runners ahead of me. . . .and many folks behind me. . . but not many to actually chit chat with as I ticked off the miles.

We'd already dealt with several challenging hills on this part of the course.  I walked them, saving my "strength" to run 3 min. and walk a min. intervals on the flat stretches.  Cheering support groups seemed slim on the second part of the course, but they still maintained great water stations and porta potties about every two miles.  Each one was like a little oasis for me!  :)  Water, smiles and good wishes from the volunteers and the oportunity to use the potty if necessary. 

Porta potties are huge on long runs....especially for me.  I drink lots of water and, well, that means I need to make pit stops sometimes.  On that day, I remember, around mile 10 or so that I thought I should use one of those facilities at the next water station, but when I got there, there was a line for it....so I figured I'd be OK to make it to the next one.  Funny, though...the feelling went away and never came back.  I actually made it the entire race without needing to use one!!  That was probably right up there on my list of : big accomplishments for the the entire race for me personally!

 

 

Fatique was setting in.  Around miles 17 or 18, I had to start using some mind distractions to keep me moving as best as I could.  I had a prayer list that I'd already gone through . I had a gratitude list, too.  

I was  feeling pretty emotional along with the tireness that was creeping in and my cramping calves  ( a new experience).   That's when I started thinking about some of the moments that prepared me for this day. . .and all of the good running buddies, in all sorts of weather experiences and distances!!!  

From freezing at the Battle of the Bean 5K in January, to......

 

 

weekly speed work sessions in the dark and the cold. . . 

 

long runs on the weekend also in the cold and later in the blistering heat. . .

 

to 10 miles in the cold and rain. . .

 

 

speedwork in the heat of summer.  

 

 

Countless runs with so many supportive, like-minded friends had brought me to this point!!  Yes, I was very emotional and so very thankful that, at my age, I was completing my very first marathon!!

Somewhere prior to this photo being taken, I received a text from Verna.   She was out of town, but had been "tracking" me on a race app and knew that I was slowing down a bit.  Simply she said:  "RELENTLESS. FORWARD. MOTION!! You've got this!"

I no longer felt "alone" on that course. . . and I puddled up for a bit.

Verna was the reason I did the marathon in the first place.  She lit the fire, she encouraged me, she taught me. . .and I will be forever grateful.

 

 

As I said, I  did have issues with my upper calves cramping. . .something that had never happened before.  In turn my right knee started hurting on the outer side.  I don't know if it was related to the cramping.   All I know was by the time I reached the last couple of miles, my plan had been to totally run them and not do the 3 min. running and 1 min. walking intervals I'd used up until that point.  However, my knee wasn't wanting me to do that, so I adjusted my plan.  I could run 1 1/2 min. before it started twinging.  When it did, I stopped and took a few rapid steps, then ran til it hurt and walked a little.  The 1 1/2 min. time was what my knee wanted and that's what I did until I reached the final stretch of the marathon.

This is the last hill of the course. . .the "finish line" is in the distance. Yes, it was UP HILL!

I  recall turning the corner and seeing the hill and thinking how tired I was feeling and how far away the finish looked to be.

 

 

It took every ounce of energy I had to make that final push!!

I was tired, I was happy, I was tearing up and THEN, as I was near the finish line, three of the cutest little grand kids in the entire world. . .

 

 

came out to help me cross the finish line!

I had no idea they would be there.

Words can't express how full my heart was in those moments!

 

 

 

 

Also waiting at the finish were my son (who had finished his marathon quite a bit ahead of me!!  ). . .

 

 

and my good buddy Karen!!!

This day was a big one for each of us with our own individual goals  met!!

My daughter in law was at the finish line taking photos, as was my husband. 

I was a lucky woman!!

AND I had not only finished, but I did it under the 6 hr. cutoff with an offical time of 5 hrs. 55 minutes and 23 seconds.  Not speedy, but a time I was very happy with.

 

 

 

My blogging buddy and Facebook friend, Nancy, made this fun sign for me!!

 

 

 

Fellow runner and friend, Jacqui, got Jon Bon Jovi in the action for me, too!

WOW!! 

 

The next day one of my friends sent me a sweet text and asked if I was going to do another marathon.  Uh..."not today", I replied!!

THE STONE RABBIT is so proud of my accomplishment.  He knew I could do it all along, too.  

In fact, he's so taken with the idea of longer distances that he's been using my GPS watch to train for a possible race in the future!!

 

 

I hope you weren't too bored with this race recap.   Reliving that time through writing this post makes me think that perhaps another marathon "might" be in my future one day!  As in most goals we set, it's really the journey that's probably the most important part.   Celebrating the steps along the way. . .embracing new friendships. . .cherishing the old ones. . .and just being grateful for the oportunity to take on new and fulfilling challenges.

Please visit Beverly's blog HOW SWEET THE SOUND!  There you will find a long list of others who are ready with their Pink Saturday shares!!

HAPPY PINK SATURDAY!

DANA

 

I Am a Marathoner

 

Yesterday I did something I never never never EVER thought I could possibly do.......I completed a MARATHON!!

YES....this olden lady covered 26.2 miles on the streets of Kansas City...by foot!!

 I still can't believe I did it, even though I spent a lot of time building up my ability to handle a longer distance than what I'm used to.  I will be honest, I felt a bit defeated more than once during the experience....but I kept pushing forward, chugging along and praying! 

My time wasn't speedy...but I finished under the 6 hr. cutoff.  I was fearful they'd open the streets to traffic and I'd have to finish my race on sidewalks and deal with stop lights....but that didn't happen!  

Anyway, brace yourself for my next post cuz it will have several photos and a detailed recap (as best as I can remember some of the details from yesterday...I was a tad spacey during the later part of the run!  :)  Right now, I'm still in "flying high" mode and can't seem to focus on anything for too long. :)

I did want to show you how many steps I took yesterday!!  The distance I covered while wearing that watch included walking before and after the run...about 3 miles extra.  Anyway...it's no wonder my tootsies were stinging by the time I stepped on the finish line!!

 

THE STONE RABBIT really likes the awesome hoodie we all  received for doing the half and full marathons this year (maybe the 5K people got it, too, I don't know...I hope they did cuz it's swell!)

He was also impressed with the huge medal!!!  I think I will have to frame it!!  I also included the course map in the photo....I definitely will frame that!! 

Orange was "the" color this  year!  I even wore shoes to match!!  (That was not because of the color scheme for the Mara...it was for a charity I supported called Team World Vision.  The shirt I was planning on wearing in the race , with the charity logo on it,  had lots of orange on it....but I ended up going with a different shirt as the orange one was too hot to wear this year).  We were supposed to have temps in the low 80s....mercifully they got that wrong!!  We were in the low to mid 60s at the start , then low 70s as the hours went by.  Plus it was  cloudy and windy!  Outstanding weather, actually.  Well....it could have been cooler and I would have been happier, but we were so lucky as it turned hot today!!

 

 

I hope you pay a visit to Beverly's blog, HOW SWEET THE SOUND!  There you will find lots of other bloggers with their Pink Saturday weekly share!!

DANA

 

KANSAS CITY HALF-MARATHON 2015. . .we did it!!!

 

WARNING....WARNING.....WARNING....this is a picture heavy post . 

I am being selfish here, but I wanted to document our big day ,last Saturday, when we ran the Kansas City Half-Marathon.   I hope my running friends will enjoy this and my non-running friends will tolerate it!  :)

Karen and I worked hard all summer to prepare for the last half we did in September and then this one.  We have one more lined up in November.....then that's that for 2015.  That's plenty.  :)

We ended our training for the KC Half by meeting up early the morning before for a short run.   The trail was dark at 5:30 a.m., so the headlamps were necessary!

 

 

Later on Friday, Mary and I attended the "packet pickup" for the run.  This great sign was outside the entrance to the expo.

 

 

We studied the course map that showed the routes for all of the events to be held the next morning:  the 5k, the half and the marathon!  It was the same route as the one we ran the year before. . .killer hills in the first three miles.  :) 

 

 

We went to the "pacer booth" to pick up "pace bracelets" to wear during the run so we could monitor the progress (time wise) we would be making along the way.  The picture shows some of the "pacer sticks" that are carried by  amazing runners.    

The first year we did the half we sorta "fell" into the 2:50 group (two hours and 50 minutes, meaning if we stayed with them we would most likely finish the run in that amount of time).  We actually did just that.  Last year, Karen and I just wanted to do as well as the previous year. . .so we stuck again with the 2:50 pacing group AND we came in right at that time.  This year, we still planned on using intervals of run/walking, but we had been training all summer to use 1 min. walking rather than 2 min., but still keep the runing intervals at 3 minutes.  

I spoke at great length with Vita, who also paced the half we had done in Sept.. . . we were able to stay with her group.   For this run, she was pacing the 2:45. . .so I picked up bracelets for the 2:45 AND (being real hopeful) the 2:40 times.

 

 

While I've loved this run each time I've done it, this year was truly a bit more special because my son and daughter ran it, too (yes, they ran it a lot faster)!  Here we are not too long before we got in the corral to start the run.  We had hoped to meet up with a few others for a group picture, but that didn't happen.  It's pretty crazy at these huge runs. . . and it's hard to actually "find" folks some times.  

 

 

We ended up being almost as far back in the crowd as you can go by the time we lined up.  Looking north, in the direction we would soon be running, I couldn't even see the 2:40 or 2:45 pacers, but that was OK, cuz I figured we'd catch them at some point along the route.

 

 

And wouldn't you know it. . . .two of the folks we had hoped to take a pre-run photo with actually FOUND us in that pack of people!!

This was the first half for three in this photo. . .so that really added to the excitement of that moment. I had my son take our picture.  Left to Right: Julie, Sue, Bridget (all about to run their first half marathon) Mary, Karen and I'm in the middle front.  We are all in a running group that meets once a week on the local trail!

 

 

One of the things that makes this half so special is that it takes us through so many of the great "spots" of Kansas City.  The first mile goes by the SPRINT CENTER. . .that's quiet a feeling to run by that enormous structure.

 

 

 Mile two goes up the VERY CHALLENGING "hospital hill" (really more than one hill), then in  another mile we are at the  LIBERTY MEMORIAL/WWI MUSEUM.  This is one of the best parts of the run to me as we are heading toward that awesome monument. 

 

 

 

We are so lucky to have photographers (provided by the event!) who take our pictures along the way. (AND the photos are FREE on line later).

I have fianlly learned to be on alert for them, because I have been captured with the most horrible looks on my face during various runs.  Mercifully, I saw this one in time to wave and smile.  It was also still early in the distance.....10.1 miles to go!   

 

 

After we left Liberty Memorial, we had the last awful hill, then made our way through the mid-town area, then over through another neat part of town that's full of fun shops and restaurants : WESTPORT.  I didn't take a bunch of photos there as we starting to "feel" the run.  I'm thinking that was round miles 5 - 6....I may be off.  Anyway, we headed South on Roanoke which is residential.  That's where we were when we saw this puppy handing our hi-fives.   

 

 

 

Next, we found ourselves in another pretty part of town, The Country Club Plaza.   The Plaza is full of fine shops,  dining venues, fountains and beautiful buildings.

 

 

ROYALS flags were waving in the breeze as with headed East through The Plaza.

 

 

 We were on the look out for this lovely lady...Fritzi!!   She was the course monitor for the spot where the half marathoners turned left and the marathoners turned right!   This was right before mile 8!

 

 

Fritzi is known in our area as a great runner and supporter of the running community.   She's one of the first "real runners" I met when I started my own running journey five years ago.  I have so much admiration for her. 

 

 

I didn't take many photos from this point on......with 5 more miles left to go, I was just trying to "get this over with"!   I did manage to catch up with the 2:45 group at some point......I don't recall just when.   I know we ran north on the beautiful Harrison Parkway for quite awhile, then we turned right and got on Paseo Blvd. until we reached 18th street.

 

 

By this point a nice young man struck up a conversation with me (I think he thought I was nuts taking pictures of the mile markers).  Anyway, he wanted to know how long I'd been doing half-marathons. . .of couse I'm thinking "he figures  if that old lady can do it I know I can "......I answered this was "my third time to do this particular run and my third half for the year" and that I had one more "planned in a month".    He then said he thought "women did better at running long distances than men" ( was he thinking the old lady is able to do it because she's a she and not a he? ).....I said well, I didn't think that "was true" and yet while there were  usually more women running the halfs I'd done, that most of the marathoners seemed to be men.    With that, we had a nice chat for that looong last mile to where we turned and headed for the finish line.    I really appreciated that distration, because that last mile seems like forty.

 

 

The first time I crossed that finish line, in 2013, I cried.  It was such an accomplishment for me.  This year, I just felt great that I had actually crossed it and still felt pretty decent....that's definitely an improvement.   My time was 6 min. faster than the years before AND my son was waiting for me.  He'd crossed a long time before I did. . .with a great time....and he was cold and ready to go home!  :) 

 

 

One of the best parts of the "post race" festivities is taking advantage of the free cup of beer and the sandwich.  I never would have thought that a cold beer would taste so good as it does right after I'd just completed a half....but it's wonderful!   

 

 

We didn't stay too long after the run. . .we had our beer and food and checked our "official times"  and spent a bit of time just trying to catch up on how we were all feeling now that it was over.   We were tired and starting to get cold.  However, we had to take a few moments to get our "post run" picture in front of the fountains at Crown Center.   Once again, they are BLUE this year in honor of our hometown boys THE KANSAS CITY ROYALS who , we hope, will get to play in the World Series again this year!

L to R:  Karen, Pan, me, Mary

 

 

THE STONE RABBIT really loved our Half Marathon goodies!!  The finishers medal and the personalized race bibs were great. . and WOW, what an awesome  shirt!   Most of all, he loved seeing all of the pictures and hearing all about our experience.   He's such a supportive rabbit!

 

 

So that's it. . .you really are lucky cuz I do have lots more pictures. .. I held myself back!  haha

I hope you won't hold back about visiting Beverly's blog HOW SWEET THE SOUND because there will be a lot of other bloggers who are ready to share their posts with you, too!

Have a great PINK SATURDAY!

DANA

 

We are READY!!!

 

It's so hard to believe that a year has gone by since we ran the Half Marathon portion of the Kansas City Marathon!!  

In the photo below I believe we were around the 11 mi. mark. . .still feeling perky enough to smile for the pix!  haha  

Karen (on the right) and I have worked hard all year long to get to this point again.  We have met, on a regular basis to increase our long miles and to work on getting faster on our short runs.  We've made so many new running/walking friends this year through the various groups we've joined. . .it's just amazing!

 

 

Like last year, our KC ROYALS were ready to try to win a spot in the World Series!  The whole town was decked out in blue as were we!  This is a photo I took as we ran through the Plaza (a few miles before the photo above).

 

 

 

We had just finished the run in this picture!  Even the water fountain at Crown Center, where the race starts and finishes, was a gorgeous blue!!  I'm sure it is this year, too!!  

 

 

Yes, we, just like thousands of other runners and walkers, have worked hard for months to be ready for this weekend, whether they are participating in the Marathon, Half-Marathon or the 5K.  Starting in the freezing cold of the new year , right through the blazing heat of the summer months, ending in the fallish coolness this morning as we got in a short "headlamp" run . . .one last little run before the half tomorrow. . .WE ARE READY!  :)

Good luck to all of my family members and friends who will be participating in the various events tomorrow, too!  It will be so fun to see so many happy faces. . .and fast feet!!  :)

 

 

THE STONE RABBIT was pictured here last year with my new lucky shirt and an exciting headline from the KC STAR paper!!  Well, I'll be wearing that shirt tonight as we anxiously watch the first game of the ROYALS  against the BLUE JAYS in the ALCS!!  

 

 

Don't forget to visit Beverly's blog, HOW SWEET THE SOUND, for a long list of other bloggers who are ready with their weekly Pink Saturday shares!!

DANA

 

It's STILL Blue in KC!!!

 

As I type this, the KC ROYALS fans are still a happy bunch!!!  Our Boys in Blue will be playing their third game in the World Series tonight !!  On Tuesday, they lost the first game to the San Fransico Giants 7-1, HOWEVER, on Wednesday they bounced back (in typical Royals style) to capture that game 7-2!!

There is so much BLUE in this city right now that it's hard to think PINK!  :)  However, I hope I can still tie the theme of this post to PINK SATURDAY as we can also link seasonal items....and boy oh boy is this a seasonal topic!  The Play Offs and the World Series has definitely been a fall extravaganza for us!!  It's been 29 years since our ROYALS last played this far into October!

I have to say there was plenty of ROYAL-NESS and BLUE-NESS going on at the WADDELL-REED Marathon, 1/2 Marathon and 5K in KC last Saturday!!!

My daughter and I worked the Packet Pick-up the day before the event and we certainly saw lots and lots of race participants who showed up sporting their Royals attire!

This great balloon creation was one of two at the entrance of Packet Pickup.  It was made by Johnna and John Perry, local artists, who own UP UP and AWAY!  And would ya look at that....I was wearing PINK that day!  

 

 

 

 We were encouraged to wear BLUE during the run on Saturday, so I had a great excuse for buying one more running shirt!!   I purchased the ones Karen and I wore from the awesome booth of KC RUNNING CO!  They also host our Wednesday night running group!

 

 

The Marathon, 1/2 Marathon, and 5K all started in the area of Crown Center, a local shopping venue and home of Hallmark Cards.  They had turned their fountains Royal Blue!!  The photo was dark because it WAS dark!!  Karen and I arrived around 5:30 a.m.!!  However, it was still not quite day break when the race started a little after 7 a.m..

 

 

 

 My husband was getting ready to get a picture of Karen (on the right) and me in our new Blue KC Running Co. shirts. . .while my son was getting a kick out of photo-bombing us!!  :)

 

 

 Here we are with Mary. . .sporting her Blue jacket AND she also had on a BLUE KC Running Co shirt!  It was pretty nippy before the run started and a bit on the breezy side!  However, it was much warmer than last year.  I believe the temps were in the low 30s for the start of the run in 2013.  

 

 

 

The start time for the marathon and the 1/2 marathon was a little after 7:00 a.m.. This is a picture I took as we gathered with several thousand other runners/walkers, waiting for the "start".  The sky was starting to lighten a bit. . .it was going to be a beautiful BLUE sky as the morning went on!!

 

 

We had awesome supporters along the way of our run!  I loved this great supporter and her "RUN FOR THE ROYALS" sign!!  We had just hit the 3 mile mark which was located at the Liberty Memorial, home of The World War I Museum.  

Only 10.1 more miles to go!!!

 

 

 I took this photo near the 7 mile mark, in the beautiful  Country Club Plaza area. . . which had been festooned with great Royals flags!!

 

 

We were greeted by several groups of musicians along our route!   These guys were also in the Plaza area and several of them were sporting their Royals caps!!  

 

 

This is not a great picture. . .remember, I was running!!!  However, our city is known as the City of Fountains. . .and yep. . .many of them are running Blue right now!!!  This particular fountain is the JC Nichols Memorial Fountain, located on the East side of The Plaza, next to a great park with an awesome running trail!

 

 

See how beautiful that Royal Blue sky was that day?  We were at the 12 mile mark when I took this photo of the flag!  I can tell you we weren't thinking about the Royals at that point!  :)  We were pushing ourselves to keep on running cuz we were almost finished with the 2014 Waddell-Reed 1/2 Marathon. . . and we were getting a bit tired !!

1.1 mile to go!

 

 

Next week I will post more about our 1/2 marathon running experience and share other photos. . . but this week I wanted to focus on how our town is embracing  the Royals and all of the fun they have brought to us. . .including while we were traveling 13.1 miles by foot through this happy town that is filled with BLUE-NESS!!

 

 

THE STONE RABBIT has really hopped on the Boys in Blue Bandwagon, too!  Actually, he's always been a Royals fan. . .even when there wasn't a whole lot to cheer about!  Along with the rest of us, he's really enjoying this special time. . . there's so much to celebrate in KC right now!!   And as I said before, even if the Royals don't (gasp) win the Series, they've done something far greater. . .they've won the hearts of so many this year!!

We love the ROYALS!!  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Please visit Beverly's blog HOW SWEET THE SOUND!  She will have lots and lots of other bloggers who are ready to share their PINKS and SEASONALS with you this week!!

Happy Pink Saturday and GO ROYALS!!

DANA

 

 

 

Our BIG AUTUMNAL RUN.....Part 2

 

 

 This post comes with a warning:  Brace yourself. . .it's heavy with photos!!!  :)   However, before you leave, I'd love for you to give it a chance.  You see, this is my  attempt to document the culmination of a very important goal.   If you've read any of my posts since June, you've seen my running  group and I slowly build our running endurance from that of a 5K to that of a half marathon (and marathon distance for one of us).   

It's now been three weeks since we participated in the Waddell-Reed Kansas City Marathon.   I can't believe it's over!  However, by putting this second post together (about the run), I've had a chance to "relive" the event a bit and to be so very, very happy that we did it!!

Actually, the idea we had to run a half-marathon started almost a year ago when we had just completed a local "Turkey Trails" 5K.

I don't recall who actually said "let's do a half-marathon", but at that "high moment" of just having completed an event, it seemed like a great idea!!

As the months went on, two others "joined" in and then we were six!!  The youngest one (and she was in her mid-forties) decided to make doing a marathon distance as her goal.   The rest of us (one in her fifties and the rest of us in our mid sixties) were planning on doing the half.  It would be my first and also that of one other.

 

 

 

In Feb., I think, we had an official "meeting" to get to know each other and talk about "training plans" that would slowly build us up to the goal distances we'd decided on.

From time to time, some of us would get together to run. . .like this day in the end of February.   Mary and I met at a church parking lot because it had been plowed !   Our GPS watches indicated it was 1/4 of a mile if we ran the perimeter of the parking lot around the church!!  That day we completed 3.0 miles!

 

 

In June, we determined we would complete our goal runs by using the run/walk intervals approach. . .and we set up a schedule of how we would slowly add distance and vary our run/walk times over about 16 weeks.

Here we are on our first "real" training group run.  It was very early in the morning, but still daylight.  Over the next three months we changed our "meeting" time to arrive at the trail before daylight because, as we ran longer and longer distances, we needed to get started before sunrise due to the increasing summer heat.

 

 

On this morning in August, we were elated. . .we'd just hit the 10 mile mark!

 

On this day, just three weeks before the Kansas City Marathon, we ran/walked 13.1 miles!  It was quite an accomplishment for us!

(L to R:  Mary, me, Joan)

 

We were ready!

Early on the morning of October 19, 2013, we gathered with about 12,000 other folks to complete our goal!

It was pretty chilly in those pre-dawn hours, so we took refuge within the wonderfully warm Crown Center shopping area.

(R to L:  Me, Karen, Larry, Mary and Joan).

Karen, a great runner, decided to run the 5K event of the Kansas City Marathon this year because she just didn't have the opportunities to train for the half and because she had an injury. Larry, Mary's son, lives out of state but happened to be in town during the weekend of the Marathon, so he also signed up for the 5K.

 

 

 

We had arrived very early in order to get a parking spot, so there was a great deal of time to kill.  However, the hour and a half we had to wait before the "start" of our run seemed to fly by.

We were lucky to have the indoor bathrooms available to us. . .as those cold porta potties did not seem too appealing! 

One observation that day. . .the men's line was longer than the women's!!  :)

 

 

Here we are. . .just about ready to take our spots for our runs!!!  The marathon and half marathon starting times were slated for about 7:05 a.m. and the 5K started at 7:20 a.m.!

 

 

 

The day before the run, Mary and I volunteered at the packet pickup.  When we were finished, we walked around and looked at the various vendors.  We also found the "pacers" booth.  

The "pacers" are just amazing runners who help us complete a long distance run in certain amounts of time.  For example, the lady I spoke to that day was going to be a pacer for the half marathon...running the 3 hr. 10 min. completion time.

Joan and I run at about the same pace so we decided to complete the run together.   We had completed our training 13.1 run/walk in 3 hours.  However, that was on a mostly flat trail. . .and on crushed chat and not asphalt and concrete and HILLS  we'd be on during the 1/2 that day.   So, we thought the 3:10 pace would be a fit for us.

 

 

 

However, as the run started and we found our comfort level of run/walking, we discovered we were actually fitting very well into the 2 hour 50 minute pace group!  You can see our pacers were just ahead of us, wearing the neon yellow shirts with PACER on their backs and carrying the 2:50 pacer signs.  A BIG shout out to the awesome "pacers" in both the full and half marathons!

 

 

 

It was so chilly that morning that my poor old camera "froze up"!  I didn't know what was going on with it for quite awhile, but realized that if I just didn't mess with turning off it would go into battery saving mode and would snap back to life once I warmed it in my pocket.

Anyway, because of my non-working camera initially in the run, I didn't get to document the event like I'd wanted.

Here we are at about the 2 mile mark. . .I think!  My husband and daughter had been waiting at that corner for quite some time.   He got some really good photos of us.  I really appreciated them showing up for this. . .it felt so good seeing someone hanging out on a street corner that was waiting just for a glimpse of us!  He got some fun pictures of us, too! 

 

 

 

Can you tell how much fun we were having?  Well. . .we were!!  Look at those smiles!  However, it was early. . .we still had 11 more miles to go!!

 

 

The Liberty Memorial tower looked soooooo far away at this point!  We knew we had a huge hill to conquer before we actually were close to that landmark. . . 

 

 

  

 

This is our UNION STATION. . .which meant a REALLY BIG hill was very near. . . 

 

 

and here we are on that REALLY big hill!  OK. . .it doesn't look so bad to you, does it?  Well....it WAS!!! 

 

 

Whew!!  The big hill was behind us and the Liberty Memorial was straight ahead.  The National World War I Museum is housed at the Liberty Memorial!!

 

 

We also hit our 3 MILE mark on the flat stretch that led up to the memorial!  Wow!  Only 10 more miles to go!!

 

 

You just can't appreciate how steep this hill was either, but it was!

 

 

 

There were many great signs along the route!!  It was so awesome that these folks were there to add to the fun!!  A big shout out to those race supporters!!!

 

 

I missed the 4 MILE sign.  Now that I'm writing this post I think  I missed it because we saw my husband and daughter around that point!    Again, it was so fun to see them waiting for us.
 

 

 

My daughter was walking along side me a few steps!  It's amazing. . .after all of the years I spent watching her dance, do gymnastics, play soccer, volleyball and basketball, here she was supporting her elderly mom complete a half marathon!!   How awesome!!

Of course, when I totally ran my first 5K, my son was along my side every step of the way. . .and my husband was dashing from point to point to get pictures of that day, too!

A BIG shout out to my family!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

I did get the  5 MILE sign and. . .

 

 

"PINK" ribbons that had been tied to a beautiful little tree. . .

 

 

and these AMAZING volunteers who were manning the water stop in their PJs!!!  I believe they were with a girls running club. . .and I am sorry that I'm not certain on that!   I'll blame it on starting to get a little tired cuz we were around the 6 mile mark!!  However. . .I LOVED seeing them and here's a BIG shout out for those great folks!!!

 

 

 It was so neat to not only be running through the streets of downtown and mid town Kansas City, but to also go through some wonderful residential areas, too!

At this point we were almost half way through our run!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Loved these ladies and their sign!!!  I personally always carry tissues with me, but sometimes "snot rockets" are a part of run for some folks!! ha ha!!

 

 

Joan is just ahead on the left.  We were in one of the oldest and most gorgeous shopping districts. . THE COUNTRY CLUB PLAZA!!  In fact, just a few weeks prior, Mary, Joan and I ran the PLAZA 10K (6.2 miles) as part of our preparation for the half and we were on this very street then!!

 

 

There were awesome folks providing entertainment along the way, too!!!  A BIG shout out to them. . .it was great to have them there!!

 

 

Terrible picture. . .but somewhere close to where the "split" occurred (where the marathoners went south and the half marathoners headed north) we were on a stretch of street that was being prepared for resurfacing.  That added a bit of interest to the run!  ha ha!!

 

 

 

  And another terrible photo. . .also at the "split" area and rough street. . .and I was shooting right into the son. . .but these great folks were in Wizard of Oz outfits and holding signs for us!!  

 

 

Another water stop and the 8 MILE mark!!!  Only FIVE MORE MILES!!  

ugh.

 

 

Yes. . .we were!!!

 

 

I don't know at what point of the course my husband took this, but got a great photo of Mary!!!  It looks like she was having fun, too!!!

 

 

Four miles to go!!  My photo taking was slowing down. . . I was getting weary!!

 

 

Only the distance of a 5K left!!

omg.

 

 

 

 

I have to say I remember being pretty tired around this mark. . . I'm pretty sure my shoes had lost every bit of cushion they had left in them because I could feel every step and my feet were hurting.  However, somewhere around here, a fellow came out into his front yard, eating a bowl of cereal!  He asked us how long we'd been running. . .and I think one of us mumbled something like "over two hours" and he asked us how much longer did we have to run and one of us replied "two miles". . . . and it seemed soooo far away!

 

 

 

 

 

This DJ was playing for us. . .and so were some porta potties if we needed them!

 

 

OK. . .I think I was having a lot of trouble keeping my camera steady at MILE 12.  I don't recall if it was from exhaustion or excitement of what was just a little over a mile away!!

 

 

 

This great group greeted us at the 12.5 mile mark. . .tempting us with "free beer for quitters"!!  They were awesome. . .we needed the humor at that point!

Joan and I had pretty much maintained our 3/2 run/walk intervals during the whole distance.   The last half mile was definitely the hardest stretch. . .I was worn out!

 

 

However, once  that "finish line" is in sight, it seems a little easier to push through to the end.  

 

 

We are on the right. . .I'm under the "H" and Joan is under the "N". . . there's a lady in front of us.

 

It was over. . .we'd DONE IT!!

It was the funnest-hardest thing I've ever done!  Two hours and fifty minutes for our very first half-marathon!!

 

 

 

Our goal that day. . .besides to just "finish". . .was to have fun and I have to say we DID!!

 

 

Here is Mary . . .she made it, too!!

 

 

It seemed hard to believe that we arrived in the parking lot a little after 5:00 a.m. and just a few hours later, we'd all met our running goals!

 

 

A big thank you and shout out to my husband and daughter for also arriving early and darting all around the course, trying to get photos of us!!  I know it was a very long and cold morning for you. I love you both!!!

 

 THE STONE RABBIT loved hearing about our half marathon experience and was really impressed with my amazing finisher's medal!  Sadly, my bib number was still pinned on my shirt when I tossed it in the washer!  :(  That's OK. . . it still looks beautiful to me.  I will always look at it and remember with great fondness the day I wore it while I completed my FIRST half marathon!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Please visit our hostess Beverly at her blog HOW SWEET THE SOUND!  You will love the bloggers who are ready to share their PINKS or seasonal items with you this weekend!!

 

 Happy Pink Saturday!  

 

DANA

 

 

NOTE:  I hope to add photos of the other two ladies' in our running group, later.  They came to the race with other family members, so we didn't see each other until afterwards.