I rode up with my friend Lyndi~this was her first marathon and she did awesome! We picked up our race packets, signed up for the text messaging updates and then ate pasta. I normally don't do the race's pasta dinner, but since neither of us know Logan, we decided to stay.

I stayed with a friend and after chatting for a bit and checking the alarm for the third and fourth time, I was able to go to bed relatively early.  Does anyone really sleep very well the night before a race? I kept waking up: 11:30, 12:45, 1:15, 2:50 and at 3:19 I woke myself up from a dream that I had forgotten a vital piece of clothing and I couldn't find Lyndi to get my things out of her car...and the last bus was leaving...When my alarm finally went off, I got up and as soon as my feet hit the floor I heard a loud crash  of thunder and then the downpour of rain. The neighborhood had to hear my heart hit the ground. I am a fair weather runner, my friends. So, I geared myself up for the rainy conditions ahead.  On the bus ride up the canyon I could see the lightening and was getting rather anxious since we were heading straight for it. My worries were for naught, by the time we got to the top of the canyon the sky was clear. 

I made a final potty break then lined up at the starting line, the gun went off and away I went. I hadn't even run 3/4ths of a mile when I saw a group of people up ahead standing in the middle of the road. As I passed there was a guy who had totally turfed it, his face was bloody and he needed help getting up.  I felt bad, but I was grateful it wasn't me.

The miles seemed to be flying by, I even wondered if they had mapped them properly.  I was just enjoying the beauty of Blacksmith Fork Canyon.  The leaves were already changing, I love this time of year! 

At mile 7 I started to feel the beginnings of nausea, which normally doesn't happen until the later miles.  I ignored it and thought about how well I was doing, then to my dismay I realized my Imodium wasn't kicking in...UGH! No need to say anymore. I made the necessary stops and was still right on schedule for my 4:30 marathon.  

At mile 20 I was really needing to talk to someone, and I looked over and my friend George was there.  We ran together for a couple of miles and then the port a potty was calling my name.  By this time the nausea was in full force, but of course I kept going. It just took me longer than I had hoped.  I was so glad to finally reach the finish line and started getting weepy before I even got to the chute. George was there at the finish line and got all my tears. 

The post race venue was great. There was live music lots of water, "Gator juice" (as my Girly calls it), fruit, goldfish, ice cream sandwiches and chocolate milk. A bit too much sugar for my sensitive tummy, but it was well organized. It was a perfect day to run 26.2 miles. The weather was great, it was a bit warmer than I had expected, so the random rain sprinkles were very welcomed! 

9 down 1 more to go to meet my goal of 10 marathons completed before 2009! I will run St. George next weekend!  I am so excited. I saved the best marathon for last! 

Even these guys are affected by the crazy feeling of not being able to concentrate on ANYTHING, having nightmares that you got lost and didn't make it to your race on time, worrying that you will forget a crucial part of you racing gear, feeling like a hypochondriac, cleaning out every cupboard in your house because you have so much more time on your hands that you don't know what else to do...the list goes on and on.

Snow's Canyon is so beautiful in the early morning.  

The sun hits it just right.  It is simply spectacular!

When you can see the city, you know you are "almost there.

Just a few more miles!"

St. George is such a cute little town. Although it has grown a lot since 

I lived there, it is still my favorite place to run!