Amazing End to an Epic Journey

It's the next day, and I still can't believe it's over. We worked so long for this: 4 days a week (barring sickness or injury) every week since December. The early Saturday morning long runs with Team became something we looked forward to, and we were disappointed if we had to miss (only once for each of us). We met so many amazing, inspiring people: from the coaches, to our wonderful mentor Jenn, to the staff members, to all the other runners we became good friends with over the last 4.5 months. I think we'll be going through withdrawal now, but I'm sure we'll be back doing another event with Team in Training soon.

But I digress. I'm supposed to be writing my account of the Illinois Half-Marathon yesterday. To sum up, it went almost exactly how I imagined it would, only better in many ways, and worse in one.

To begin with, we were exquisitely prepared for this race, not only through the training by Steve and Monica, but also by the excellent work of Kelly Darnell, the Team in Training coordinator for the race. In addition to responding promptly and patiently to my panicked emails when I wasn't sure our race registration had gone through, she made sure we had reservations in the right hotel, so we could meet the Team in the lobby at 6:15am and walk to the race together. Just having that confidence that someone was making sure you got to the starting line with everything you needed took a huge load off our minds.

The morning of the race was exactly what we had been preparing for since we'd been monitoring the weather forecasts for the last two weeks. 35 degrees and sunny, getting warmer throughout the day. As cold as it sounds, it was actually perfect. Sure, we were a little chilly before the gun went off, but hell, we'd trained in sub-zero temps. I wore my new Illinois Marathon long-sleeve tech shirt under my purple Team singlet, shorts, and sunglasses. Halfway through the race I was pushing my sleeves up to my elbows, but I never got too warm. I also had my iPod and Nike+ chip, but I really only wanted it to monitor the time, and so I could figure out what my splits were. I only had one earbud in most of the time - the last thing I wanted to do was zone out and miss the experience of my first Half-Marathon.

So anyway - back to the starting line. After making sure Lynette and Jenn found each other, I made my way towards the 4 hr. marathon pace captain. Steve had highly recommended using them, since they're experienced marathon runners who are making sure to keep a consistent pace. My goal was 2hrs, based on the pace I had been able to maintain on training runs. To be honest, I knew my knee was going to hurt, and as a consequence I had been resting for most of the last two weeks when I should have been tapering. I was going to try and keep up with the pace team for as long as possible, but I was not optimistic about hitting 2hrs. Another coach I ran with last Saturday said I should have three goals: one for if everything goes perfectly, and then two slower for less than ideal conditions or circumstances. My ideal was under 2hrs, then 2:10 and 2:15 were times I would be happy with, since I knew I would be in pain.

So finally, the gun goes off (did it? I don't actually remember hearing it), and we started shuffling forward. I've been in a few much smaller races before, but the amount of people running in this was was staggering to me (over 8000). By the time I stepped on the start mat, people had spread out enough to where I could actually jog. Steve's words from two weeks ago were echoing in my head. "Don't be too aggressive at the start. You can waste a lot of energy trying to weave through people." He was talking to the whole team, but he was looking at me. So I listened. The pace captains were holding up signs, so they were easy to keep track of. As long as I could still see my pace sign, I didn't worry. I started to recognize other people in the same pace group, and let their presence silently keep me in check whenever I felt like charging forward. I don't think I ever got more than half a block behind the sign.

Immediately, my knee started hurting, as I knew it would. Since I had done two long runs of 10 and 6.5 miles with the pain, I knew I could power through it. Probably not the advice a doctor would give, but there was no way I was going to let this spoil my day. It hurt with every step, but most of the time I wasn't thinking about it. I just concentrated on keeping my pace. This turned out to be easier than I thought. Most of the time it felt like I was just out for a nice, easy run.

At every mile marker, I pressed the button on my iPod to A) make sure I was on a good pace, and B) have a record of my split times to look at later. The iPod lost about .05 miles for ever mile, but it was still a good way to reassure me that I was on track for the two hour goal, especially after I passed the pace captain at about mile 5 or so. At that point, everyone got funneled onto a narrow path through a park right after a water stop. I can't remember if I passed him because of the water stop or the funneling effect, but pass I did.

I should note here my hydration technique for this race. I learned early on that I did not do well trying to drink out of cups during a run, so I wore my fuel belt. I had 10oz. of water on my right hip, 10oz. of gatorade on my left, and two espresso Hammer Gels in the front pocket. I passed the first water stop (couldn't have been more than 2 miles in) without drinking anything. At the second, I decided to drink some of my Gatorade, but while I usually slow down and walk to drink during training, I didn't slow down at all. I want to say this was because my knee hurt more when I slowed down, but I think I would have done the same with a healthy knee. It just doesn't make sense to me to slow down or stop during a race.

Going through the park was nice, and there was a brass ensemble on the side of the path at one point. I cheered for them, just like I tried to acknowledge everyone who cheered for Team in Training, or was obviously making a special effort. I really, really enjoyed this race, and I think a big part of the reason was that there was hardly an inch of road that wasn't occupied by spectators. I high-fived every person who offered a hand, including Elvis.

I took my first gel at probably mile 6.5 or 7. I drained about half my water with it. If I remember correctly, this was just before a water stop where they were handing out gels, and I tossed my empty gel pack to the side with all the rest of them. Again, I didn't slow down at all.

At this point, things are kind of a blur. I was ahead of the pace captain, but there was a decent size group of runners that I was with most of the time. I like to run alone, so I wasn't about to strike up a conversation with anyone, but seeing familiar faces (or backs of heads) is always nice. I saw my family cheering me on for the second time around mile 8, and I think my Mom was running along side me for a while. It was really nice having them there.

Around mile 10 I started to wonder where the Half-Marathon would split off, since I remember the guy at the pace team table saying I could run with them for ten miles. I wasn't really worried, and I had to keep my mind from running away with itself, since that would really make the race drag out (I know because I took the wrong path in Chicago a few weeks back). Sure enough, around mile 11 there was an extremely well marked split, along with a volunteer with a bullhorn making sure you knew where to go. Even though I didn't feel like I needed it, I took my second gel at this point, and finished my water. I knew that I had less than a 5k left, and I was still feeling great. The pack had thinned out even more once we split off, and I feel like I was both passing people and being passed pretty consistently.

At some point (probably a water stop) I finished my gatorade, still not slowing down. When we hit mile 12, I think Memorial Stadium was already in sight. My knee was really starting to bother me at this point, and I'm sure my face showed it. I was probably being passed a lot more than I was passing people now, but the end was near, and I knew I would finish (and if my iPod wasn't lying, I knew I would be very close to my goal).

The final stretch of road went past the entrance to the stadium, then doubled back before entering. When I hit the hairpin turn to double back, my knee almost gave out, and I had to take a couple hops. The guy next to me patted me on the back and said "Almost done - you can make it!" Just thinking about this now makes me all emotional again. My body was completely drained, and I'm sure that had something to do with it, but for the last few miles and especially as I entered the stadium I was completely overcome with emotion. I was running this not just to prove I could do it, but in memory and in honor of all our family members who have been affected by blood cancers. The grandeur of running into a crowded stadium and down the middle of the field while being displayed on the jumbotron heightened everything to a ridiculous degree.

As I entered, I heard the announcer saying "One fifty-seven (something)!" and I knew I had a chance to beat two hours. I wasn't thinking about gun time vs. chip time, nor should anyone at a moment like that. The turf felt great under my feet, and as I turned at the end-zone for the dash to the 50 yard line, I put every last ounce of energy I had into it. My face was probably twisted into a horrible grimace, as I'm sure the picture will show (we'll post it as soon as we get it), but I crossed the finish line in 1:58:57 (gun time, 1:56:07 chip time). I accepted the medal offered by a race worker, and started staggering around, looking for my family. I didn't know if they'd be there or not, but I didn't want to miss them if they were. They weren't there, and if they were, I would have collapsed, sobbing, into someone's arms (as I later did once Lynette finished). I don't know why I tell people that part of the story. I think it's because I don't really do emotion, and this was a completely sincere and reasonable response to what I just experienced.

As you probably guessed, the one way this race went worse than I imagined was my knee. Afterwards, I was in intense pain, and could barely hobble over to meet Lynette after she crossed the finish line. I'm hoping a few days of icing followed by a couple weeks of rest will be enough so I can start training for our next race.

After we got out of the stadium, breakfast was handled wonderfully by the Team in Training staff, then we lounged at Annie's with Katie, Kyra, and Aunt Mary for a while before heading out for a steak dinner.

I give the inaugural Illinois Marathon an A- (the minus is for the poorly positioned and unmarked bag check before the start), and Team in Training a huge A+. I fully intend to do another event with them, whether it's another half, a full, or a triathlon.



My Splits:
8:52
8:52
8:58
9:00(estimated)
9:00(estimated)
9:00(estimated)
8:35
8:44
8:36
8:48
9:06
9:18(estimated)
9:18(estimated)

The End

We got to Champaign around 2:00 on Friday and checked into our hotel room - which was AWESOME! We had our own kitchen with a sink, fridge, and microwave. It was super handy for all of our race preparations! We then went over to the ARC at University of Illinois to gather our race packets. We followed the little footprints to the Expo and picked up our packets, checked our chips to make sure they were working, got info at the pace group table, and picked up our goody bags and t-shirts. We never waited in line. Then, I couldn't find the body glide, and they had a pro shop there, and a nice, blue zip-up sweater caught my eye. Matt let me get it as a souvenir (yay!) so I'll be showing off my Illini Marathon gear soon!

We walked around a little, but there was nothing really of interest there. As we were walking towards the exit, Matt said, "hey, there's Andy!" who is our Team in Training staff member. I immediately said, "Andy!" and did this excited little wave. It was pretty funny that I was so excited to see him!

We walked around campus while Matt showed me the dorms he had stayed in, then we drove around campus a bit. That was cool, because he was only at U of I for one year, and he doesn't talk about it much. It was as if I was finally getting a peek into Matt's mysterious past!

Then, we called his sister, Annie, who lives in Champaign (but only for the next few weeks, then they move up here - yay!) We chilled out at her house, played with our niece Ellie, and chatted with Mom and Dad (who were there to cheer for us) for about an hour and a half. By then it was time to go back to the hotel to prepare for our Pasta Party.

The Pasta Party was hosted by Team in Training in the hotel, and we knew it was in the conference center. As we walked down the hallway, we heard this huge racket - we walked around the corner, and all the Team in Training coaches, staff, and mentors were lined up outside the doors with little clappers and cowbells and other noise makers to cheer for all of the TNT participants as they walked in. It was a little embarrassing, but it also made me feel pretty good!


We sat with some of the other Chicago West team members and enjoyed our spagetti, salad, greens, etc. There was a slide show of past runs and practices, and then we had two speakers - one whose sister has been battling lymphoma for SIX years (it's come back twice) and someone whose father passed away in October from lymphoma. I was crying through both speeches, they were so moving. Then, with a hearty GO TEAM! we gathered for a team picture, and we also took a Chicago West team picture.

Andy, Matt, Lynette Kate, Jordan, someone I don't know, Bijona

By that time, it was about 8:00, so we went upstairs to finish laying out our clothes, food, and water bottles for the morning. We tumbled into bed at 9:30, and I was asleep almost immediately.

I woke up without my alarm feeling fantastic! I was ready to go! I looked at the clock ... 10:30. The same happened at 2, 4:30, and 5. At 5:15, both of us were awake. We chatted about our inability to sleep (Matt was up several times during the night, too) until our alarms went off at 5:30.

We hadn't been sure what to wear, and Matt finally decided on putting his new Illini shirt under his singlet. My singlet was a bit short, so I put on one of the tank tops I've been running in all season under it, and it worked out perfectly. We both decided to wear shorts. It was going to warm up, but standing around in the chilly morning was less than ideal, so they had suggested bringing black garbage bags (to keep off any rain and keep us warm - we didn't need them) and "throw-away clothes." I wore an old zip-up sweater that no longer zips and some ripped gloves.



When we left the room, we found that someone from Team in Training had put some signs on the floor in front of our hotel room, along with some chocolate. It was pretty cool!




We met the team down in the breakfast nook at 6:15. Someone was handing out TNT tattoos, so Kate and I each grabbed one.

We finished our breakfasts, and then walked over to the starting line with everyone at 7. I told Matt that the entire day felt like we were getting ready for Slet or something. I was pretty comfortable, and that after my worries that I'd be nervous. It took a while to find the bag check, but we finally found it.

The weather couldn't have been better. It was EXACTLY what I would have wanted for race day. I'd rather be a little too cold than too warm! I think it must have been about 40 or 45 with a slight breeze.

By that time, the race was ready to begin, and I was a bit worried because I hadn't seen our mentor, Jenn, anywhere. We were supposed to run together, but I figured I'd be fine on my own. When she arrived, I felt a bit relieved!

The race started at promptly 8 am, and it took us a while to get up
to the start line (our chips, however, only activate when we cross.)
After the first mile, I got warm, so I tossed my sweater to the side
of the road, where it joined countless other sweaters. After the
second mile, my fingers warmed up, so I tossed my gloves to the
other side of the road (someone in front of us didn't take his gloves
off until mile 10, and the whole way we passed discarded clothing.)


Jenn and I did the first two miles in about 9:40 and 10:00, but I felt like we were going SOOO slow. It was very difficult to hold back!

I must have gotten to Dad, Mom, Annie, Geoff and Ellie around mile 3 or 3.5. They were yelling and waving signs, which they later placed in Annie's living room windows to welcome us home from the race.

I was still going at a good pace, but I just HAD to run over and hug them all. They kept yelling, "keep running!" but I was just so grateful that they came out to support us that I had to hug them!

All along the route we saw TNT supporters. As soon as they saw us, they would start waving their signs like crazy and screaming "GO TEAM IN TRAINING!" It was so cool! Jenn and I both had our names on the front of our singlets, so every once in a while people would shout, "Go Jenn! Go Lynette! You can do it!" and things like that. It was really cool! I felt like I had so many friends!

I really wanted to make the effort to walk every 10 minutes once we got about 2 miles in, and we missed a few of those opportunities because we were talking and waving to people. I'm glad I decided to take those forced breaks, because without them, I would have burned out a lot faster than I did.

We saw the Gilberts again around mile 8. This time I just waved and kept going.

When we got to about mile 10, I saw Aunt Mary and Katie and Kyra on the side of the road - Diana's mother- and sister-in-law. I was so happy to see them, and I was so proud that I was running this race for their branch of the family, so of course, I had to run and give them a hug. Again, they said "keep running!" but I just had to show them my appreciation for coming down to support us. I burst into tears, and as I left them I couldn't catch my breath again. I resolved to try not to cry after that, and I had anticipated the night before that I'd be crying the last few miles. I just couldn't afford it!

By the time we got to mile 11, I'd just about had it. My body was HURTING. I picked up a blister somewhere around mile 5, which had NEVER happened before, the back of my right ankle hurt, I was beginning to cramp in my calves, everything was starting to ache, my face felt like it was on fire, and every time I tried to drink water I felt like I was going to throw up. I was afraid that I was getting some kind of heat exhaustion, so I kept forcing small amounts of water into me and pouring water on my face because I didn't want to be one of those people who end up getting taken away by the med carts!!! But I wasn't doing great. This was expected, though, as my 12-mile run was SO hard. When we got to where the course split (half marathoners turned while marathoners went straight) I actually didn't think I was going to make it to mile 12.

We walked for the last time at mile 12, which was a scheduled walk (I didn't do any unscheduled walks!) Someone was cheering for us - "Go Team in Training! Go Lynette! You can do it, don't stop!" and my Nike+ voice told me the time, which meant it was time to walk for a minute. I stopped to walk right in front of the lady who was cheering, and she said something like, "or, you can walk!"

By this point, I was doing REALLY poorly. I think we did the last two miles at almost a 12-mile pace. It was kind of pathetic, but my legs didn't want to run! I had to will my legs to pick up my feet and keep going. Jenn kept saying encouraging things like, "this is what you've been training for, right here, this is just one moment, it's all mental, it's all willpower," etc. I was grumbling and really not thinking I could do it. I have a really bad attitude when I want to. But I just couldn't imagine that my body could go on. She kept saying, "the stadium is right there! Come on, you can do it!" We could hear people cheering in the stadium, but the Negative Nancy that I am, I knew that we had to pass the stadium and then turn back, and frankly, I was dreading it. You can see the struggle in my face in the photo below (courtesy of Kelly Darnell, Team in Training.) That's Jenn!

We got up to the stadium and started down the last stretch before that horrible u-turn ... and heard the WHOOP WHOOP WHOOP of an emergency vehicle. Jenn said, "oh, that's the lead guy!" At first I was confused because ... lead guy? "The marathon winner!" OH! It was the police escort! He was FLYING down the last stretch and disappeared into the stadium before we even turned the corner! I never saw the runner, but the motorcycle was just ahead of him, and I couldn't believe how fast he was going. So he ran twice as fast as me - unbelievable!

We turned the corner and doubled back, and I started to think maybe I could actually finish this. We ran down the ramp into the stadium, and immediately it was like something out of a movie. We ran all the way down to the other end of the field, then turned to run to the 50-yard line. I had SUCH energy during that run! Being on the turf really helped, too. I usually try to end my runs with a 100-yard sprint, so I started sprinting the last 50 yards. The Jumbotron camera was trained on that last turn, but I was too far away to see myself!!

Then I realized that since Jenn was the one who got me to that point, I didn't want to leave her at the end (I swear, during this whole race I had exercise-induced ADD) and turned around to make sure she was following me. I didn't want to cross the finish line without her, so I slowed, and when she caught up I continued. At least, I think that's what happened. My mind wasn't exactly functioning at that point. She and I crossed at about the same time. There were people holding out medals right after the finish line, so we each grabbed our medal and got out of the way of the other runners.

Then I heard, "LYNETTE! LYNETTE!" I turned and Matt was limping - no - hobbling, no - hopping like a mad rabbit over to me. It reminded me of Best in Show, except instead of like how Cookie's right leg was wobbling, Matt's leg was stuck out to the side ...


I immediately thought that he'd really hurt his knee and hadn't finished, that he'd been picked up by one of the carts. I mean, someone who could barely walk certainly hadn't run! But then I saw his medal, and I was SOOOO relieved! We hugged, got water, said goodbye to Jenn (I gave her a big hug and thanked her - I wouldn't have finished the way I did without her encouragement) and headed off to the stands.

We sat down, and Matt burst into tears. It really alarmed me, because I've never seen him cry - ever. I was so concerned that it was his leg. But then he said it was just emotion, and as he recounted his run, he kept dissolving into tears. I was so proud of him! My husband runs really, really fast!!!!



Matt's stats: Bib - 7165; Time - 1:56:07; Pace - 8:52; Overall Place - 999 of 3582 ; Division Place - 111th of 276; Gender Place - 686th of 1571.

Lynette's stats: Bib - 7164; Time - 2:22:18; Pace - 10:52; Overall Place - 2572 of 3582 ; Division Place - 277th of 416; Gender Place - 1250 of 2000.

You know I had brain melt after 13.1
miles because I thought for a second
that was our Yaris behind the tent!

We stumbled out of the stands and found the bag check, which again, had no line. We got outside and hobbled over to the Team in Training tent, checked in, received our 13.1 pins, put our warm clothes on, and had something to eat. I didn't want to eat because I still felt nauseous, but I did have some chocolate milk and I did eat one sausage. Matt thoroughly enjoyed his pancakes and sausages!



After recovering for a few minutes, I went off to pick up the car alone because I didn't want Matt to try to walk that far. I had to walk all the way back to the hotel, and let me tell you, that was EXHAUSTING!!! It was about a half mile, and boy, did I feel every step!



I got back, and by that time, our other two West team members who were doing the run/walk were finished. We had wanted to wait around for Bijona, who was doing the walk/run, but we really wanted to get to Annie's to just get warm and relax.

Matt, Lynette, Jordan, Kate

I have to tell you, at that point, the idea of any future exercise seemed so nutty ... I woke up that morning with the thought that I would go to boot camp next Friday, since I don't have to run next Saturday. But sitting there at the tent, when for some reason the thought of boot camp popped into my head, all I could think was, "I must be crazy! I'll never have enough energy to ever exercise again!!"

It took us almost an hour to get to Annie's. All the streets were blocked off due to the marathon section of the run, and she lived just about in the middle of the course. At one point, I wanted to cross the street between runners and there were volunteers controlling traffic. One volunteer was standing in front of the cone (I later learned) so that I didn't know we could go across. When it was clear, he motioned for me to move forward (he did NOT motion for me to turn left!) As I crossed the street, he yelled "HEY!" at us - and I saw the cone. Then I saw that the street was blocked off because the marathon course continued a few blocks away. We managed to get out of there, but I felt horrible. I didn't do it on purpose! And besides, what if I lived on that street? Huh? We'll just pretend that I lived on that block ...

We finally got to Annie's and just about collapsed. We told our stories, rested, played with Ellie, chatted with Aunt Mary and Katie, oohed and aahed over Kyra (this was our first time meeting the newest member of the Gilbert clan!) and snacked. After Aunt Mary and Katie left, we went out for our "Easter" dinner. It was fabulous ... and I still had my TNT tattoo on my face, but I wore it proudly!

Ellie, Annie, Kyra, Mom Gilbert

After that, we went back to Annie's and said goodbye. The drive home was tough - we sang Beatles songs all the way home to stay alert.

The dogs were SO happy to see us (my wonderful mom had spent Friday night at our house so we didn't have to go pick them up anywhere) and now we are just chilling. Tomorrow will be a very long day of doing nothing but reading and watching TV and movies. I don't know what we're going to eat, but we're not going anywhere for Easter. I think we'll probably pick up a frozen pizza or something from Dominick's.

The plan is: rest for a few weeks, then training for the Downers Grove Park District's 10 miler, which will be no picnic, either.

Thanks to everyone who supported us, either by cheering for us, wishing us well, or donating. And a HUGE THANK YOU to Steve, Monica, Jenn, Joanne (my running partner on training days!) Kelly, and Andy - We couldn't have done this without you!

- Lynette

One Week to Go!!

Today was our last training (sniff.) We were at the Lakefront Path again today, but we only had to do 60 minutes. I ran most of the way with Jennifer, the mentor. She's also doing the half in Champaign, and she said that we should run together the first half (she's planning on picking up the pace for the second six miles - I wish her luck and better her than me!)

It was a lovely day, and we had a great run. When my group got to the three mile mark, I couldn't believe it. I kept saying, "are you SURE that this is three miles?" It did NOT feel like it! What a great feeling!

This week is a taper week, so we can't really do too much exercise so that we don't wear ourselves out or get injured. Our running is light this week, too. And the coaches said, "this week is NO TIME to diet!"

These last few days are also very important for us to focus ourselves mentally - to picture ourselves having a great run (even though the forecast is 40 and rain!) The coaches said last week that people will be cheering us on when they see our purple shirts; they want us to write our names across the front because they said that spectators often like to cheer for us by name. Wow, that is going to be emotional! And also, I'll probably get distracted trying to figure out if they are people I know or not!

I'll also be writing the names of our honorees on the back of my shirt - Diana, Grandma, Serena, Tom, and Tim (survivor.) How sad that I don't have enough room and will have to write the last four names in a smaller size ... I shouldn't know this many people who suffered from blood cancers. That's why we're running, of course. I want to write Diana's name larger than the others, since she is the one who inspired us to do this, and I want to make sure that her name is the most visible.

Okay, I'd better stop writing now before I start crying.

- Lynette