Jeff in Ottawa
New member
Hi everyone. I have two bits of great news to share. The first is that I successfully completed my first marathon a week ago today. I was hoping for a time under 4 hours but the race didn't quite go according to plan. Problem number 1 was that I developed a blister at the 7 km mark so I had to run almost 85% of the race with that. When I got home and checked it it was bigger than a quarter and 1/3 of an inch high. Awesome! The second problem was the my iPod died at the 25 km mark. It just couldn't handle the combination of sweat and vibration. It didn't come back after the race, either. By the time I got to the 28 km mark the breeze had completely stopped, the sun was out and the temperature was rising quickly. By the time I hit the wall just after the 30 km mark, I thought I was going to throw up from the heat. There was also virtually no shade from the 25 km mark to the end of the course. Despite all that, I still managed to set a half marathon personal best of 1:52:04 over the first half and finish the marathon in 4 hours, 8 minutes and 6 seconds. I'll take it!
Here are a few photos.
Getting up at 5:15 on a Sunday isn't easy, even if you are a morning person. The shirt, by the way, is as much a self-depricating joke as anything else.
This was around the 27 km mark. Watch out for spiders! By the way, the building is the National Art Gallery of Canada. We also ran past the National War Memorial, the War Museum, National Museum of History, the Royal Canadian Mint, the National Research Council, the Prime Minister's Residence, the Governor General's Residence, and about a dozen embassies.
"Will run for kisses!"
I was glad to have my dad (behind the camera), his girlfriend, and Allison there to cheer my on! I saw them three times through the race.
When I was done I was so exhausted that all I wanted to do was hug my wife. She was less keen on the idea.
The second piece of news might have been picked up if you were paying attention to some of the photos... :whistling: ... October 2...
Here are a few photos.
Getting up at 5:15 on a Sunday isn't easy, even if you are a morning person. The shirt, by the way, is as much a self-depricating joke as anything else.
This was around the 27 km mark. Watch out for spiders! By the way, the building is the National Art Gallery of Canada. We also ran past the National War Memorial, the War Museum, National Museum of History, the Royal Canadian Mint, the National Research Council, the Prime Minister's Residence, the Governor General's Residence, and about a dozen embassies.
"Will run for kisses!"
I was glad to have my dad (behind the camera), his girlfriend, and Allison there to cheer my on! I saw them three times through the race.
When I was done I was so exhausted that all I wanted to do was hug my wife. She was less keen on the idea.
The second piece of news might have been picked up if you were paying attention to some of the photos... :whistling: ... October 2...
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