I can see for miles and miles....

and miles and miles!! that Who song was on my playlist Saturday while running the Phoenix marathon. that makes my third marathon and Jason's second! you can read about my first and second marathons here and here. we actually signed up a couple weeks after the Phoenix marathon last year even though I had said I didn't want to run another marathon for a while. the early bird pricing was much cheaper and we figured we could always drop to the half later and still would have paid less. 

we started training in late November and I felt really good during my runs up until my knee started hurting. I had never had any knee issues so it was a major annoyance that I was starting to have them during training. during one of my early long runs I had to cut it short because I was having shooting pain in my knee and I didn't want to injure it further. I started focusing on stretching my knee more everyday and using a foam roller to work out tight areas and it seemed to help with healing. I also began using kinesiology tape and a small brace on my knee and would have to stretch my knee out every few miles. 

we started our long runs at Tempe Town lake again but this time after running around the lake we would continue through the greenbelts in Scottsdale. it was nice to have a change of scenery and run somewhere I never had before. my training went pretty well even though my times were way slower than normal from all the times I had to stop to stretch out my knee. I had planned on training up to 20 miles but we went to Texas that week so I trained up to 18 the week before while Jason made it to 20.

I was very nervous that I wouldn't be able to finish the marathon because of my knee issues. I had almost dropped down to the half but I know that I would be disappointed in myself if I did especially since I had run more than that in training. I was also nervous because the weeks leading up to the race were 10-15 degrees hotter than normal and the race day would be hot and sunny. I had fully expected to either not finish or end up getting my worst race time ever. 

the day of the race we woke up bright and early at 3:30 to get to the buses on time at 5 am. the bus dropped us off in the desert and I spent most of my stretching time waiting in line to use the port a potty. by the time I had finished I had less than 5 minutes before the race started. I got some quick stretches in and then Jason and I made our way over to the starting line where the race had already started.

we ended up being one of the last people starting which was nice because we didn't have to deal with zig-zagging around as many people. I was a little disappointed though that I missed the excitement that happens at the start with so many people taking off running. the first few miles are downhill and I was feeling great! those first few miles are always my favorite part because the temp is cooler, you have a ton of adrenaline, and it's beautiful being in the desert with the sun rising. Jason ran with me until about mile 6 when it was uphill for a few miles. he is much better than me with hills and while I am slowing down he speeds up. once the sun came up it was bright with no clouds for the rest of the race. the race started in the 50's and ended in the high 70's. the bright sun made running more difficult and I had to drink a lot more water than usual. I always try to do little mind games to keep my mind off running like counting how many dogs I saw on the side which in the end was 22. for some reason doing things like that helped keep me going strong. 

I hit 13 miles in about 2:04 and was feeling strong and energetic. it was some kind of miracle that my knee that was giving me trouble all through training was feeling great. the only time it hurt was when I stopped once to stretch and then once I got running a mile it felt fine again. along with the water stations I had my camelbak and I kept fueled with gel packs every 4 miles. the vanilla GU gel is my favorite and it actually tastes a lot like frosting. I ran out of water at mile 18 and that when I started to wear down. I hit 20 miles and the sun was so bright and hot I was afraid I would pass out from heat exhaustion. I started pouring water on myself at every drink station which helped cool me down. they also had misters you could run through in the end miles which I took advantage of.

at about mile 21 I see Jason running ahead of me. at the mile 22 water station he stops to stretch and I keep on running. I kept expecting him to pass me up again but he never did. the last few miles were extremely rough and it took all I had to keep on running. I tried to keep running until I got to the water stations that were every mile at the end but I didn't always make it. I told myself that the more I ran the sooner I would be done and could rest and be out of the heat. before I knew it I hit 26 miles and those last .2 miles are killer! I see my family near the end cheering me on and I cross the finish line with my arms in the arm with a #3 for my third race. it felt so great to be finished and I couldn't believe that I beat Jason! he beat me last year and has been faster than me all through training. my time ended up being 4:29 which was faster than last year but slower than my first marathon. I felt great about that time because I didn't even know if I was going to finish and if I did I thought it would be around 4:50. once I crossed the finish line there is someone there to help you walk and make sure you are OK. I got my medal and then waited for Jason who finished around 4:35. 

afterwards we found our families who came out to cheer us on. we ate some delicious french toast from Flancers and sat down to rest. they always have a ton of great free food afterwards but the french toast was all I was able to eat. I was so exhausted but it felt so great to be finished. 

my mom and sister Brin and her family were my cheering squad again! I always appreciate them coming out to support me running! they made a sign and had balloons for me. Brin tracked me running from my running app and was keeping my family updated about where I was. Steve was there too and he brought Jason an QT drink again near the end of the race! their kids always have fun running in the short kids run afterwards!  

Jason's brother Larry ran the full too and his brother in law Ben ran the half. his other brother that runs the most marathons (he's already ran 3 this year!) got the flu and wasn't able to run.

I noticed there was something reddish all over the front of my shoe but I thought something must have spilled on it or something. when I got home I took off my shoe and I had three black toenails and blood blisters by my big toenail. I realized then that one of the blisters had popped and that it was blood on my shoe. my toes started to hurt at the end of the race but I didn't realize they were that bad! it shows how exhausted and numb you feel at the end of a marathon that I didn't even notice the extent of it. I will probably lose at least 2 toenails. I lost a toenail last marathon but I have never had this much damage. 

overall the marathon went great and it is always an incredible experience. it is hard to explain what it is like to someone who has never tackled the distance before. you definitely push your body to it's limit but you learn that you have much more inside you than you ever thought. during the last few miles of the race I started to wonder why I was putting myself through it again but I am so glad I pushed through to the end. the pain doesn't end at the finish line though because then you have to deal with the sore muscles and other damage you caused to your body. I'm crazy enough though to start thinking about running another marathon though. I would really like my next marathon to be one out of state like the LA or New York marathon. the New York marathon would be much more expensive but it is my goal to run it someday!