Just Thinking Out Loud

I have wanted to run a marathon ever since I was in high school. Well, I finally did it! A big thanks to my sister, Karen, who gave me the push I needed to finally do it. She called me late last year after completing her third marathon, and told me that if I would commit to running Detroit this year, she would come up and run it with me. And she ran with me the entire race, keeping me focused on the finish.

I woke up on race day at 5:00 a.m., put on my race gear, and headed down to the Starbucks in the hotel lobby for coffee and a bagel. I sat there thinking about what I was about to do, and wondering how it would turn out. I met my sister and her husband at 6:20, and by 6:30 we began the 15 minute walk from our hotel to the starting line.

After a last-minute trip to the porta-john, we went to the starting line and waited for the official start. They did a wave start to thin out the field, so we didn’t start for several minutes. It was chilly (about 34 degrees), but it wasn’t bad. My ears were cold, but that’s about it. We finally started running, and I thought about how I was taking the first steps of a very long, very difficult and potentially life-changing experience.

The first two miles went by VERY fast. It was fun getting started, warming up, and feeling the excitement of all the other runners. There were quite a few spectators at the start cheering us on (at 7:30 in the morning!). My good friend Rick Sims drove downtown, and was at the 1.5 mile mark cheering for me. It was great to see him, and I’m thankful he came out. After the two mile point, we started up the Ambassador Bridge to cross into Canada. I loved the bridge! It’s quite a climb to get to the top, but well worth it. While on the bridge, we got to witness the sun coming up over the Detroit River. It was beautiful! Looking over and seeing the sunrise and my hometown of Detroit, I was tempted to just stop and take it all in (but I didn’t).

We came down off the bridge and began the Canadian stretch of the marathon. We saw our cousin Jim Dawson between miles 5 and 6. It was nice of him to brave the cold to come out and cheer us on. At mile 7, we entered the Detroit-Windsor tunnel to come back to Detroit. This was an interesting experience. The Detroit-Windsor tunnel runs under the Detroit River, and is almost 1 mile long. I’ve driven through it countless times, but running through it was very different. As you can imagine, with thousands of runners in there, it got a bit stuffy (and somewhat stinky). The climb out of the tunnel was challenging — more difficult than the climb up the bridge.

When we came out of the tunnel, we crossed the 8-mile mark, and I heard someone shouting my name. I looked up and there was my family holding a homemade sign that said, “Go Dad!” and cheering for me. I had to do a double-take, because our friend Tami was with them! She and her family had driven up from Ohio that morning to cheer me on! It was a nice surprise. It was great to see all of them, and it helped me run with a spring in my step for the next few miles.

Miles 9, 10 and 11 seemed to go by pretty quickly, and as the sun got higher in the sky, it warmed up a bit. I tossed my sweatshirt at the start, and got rid of my gloves in Canada. I still had on a long sleeved underarmor shirt and a lightweight shirt over that. So at mile 12, I stopped to take off the underarmor shirt. I felt much better.

Just before mile 13, my sister’s husband left us to head for the finish (he was running the half-marathon), and my sister and I continued on for the second half of our race. Just past the halfway point, we ran through Greektown. They had belly dancers dancing and cheering for us! The stretch between miles 13 and 16 was difficult. It’s a long, straight stretch out Lafayette Avenue, with very few spectators. The highlight of this stretch was the Martin Luther King Jr. High School Marching Band. They were great!

After mile 16, we entered the Indian Village neighborhood – probably the most beautiful neighborhood in the city of Detroit. It was a nice distraction to look at the incredible homes. There were a fair number of spectators here, some of whom were giving out free beer to the runners! Just after mile 18 we left Indian Village, and the most difficult part of the race (for me) began.

I guess the best way to put it is that somewhere between mile 18 and 19 the wheels came off. Up to that point, I was definitely tired, but I was doing OK. Not anymore! I was getting lightheaded and found it difficult to keep a steady pace. My sister was great — staying with me and encouraging me as I did my best to put one foot in front of the of the other.

We crossed the bridge on to Belle Isle (an island park in the Detroit River), and I was still feeling pretty bad. There was a DJ at the entrance to Belle Isle, playing music and encouraging the runners. He looked at my sister and said, “You’re looking strong!” But then he looked at me, chuckled, and said, “You’re not looking so good, my man!” I guess it was pretty obvious that I was struggling!

Just before mile 20, there was a fluid station. This was a welcome sight! I had some water and ate some Guu (if you don’t know what that is, Google it). I was starting to feel a bit better, but was still having a very difficult time. I struggled through miles 21, 22 and 23. By mile 24, I was able to maintain a more steady pace. At mile 25, we picked up the pace for the last 1.2 miles. I really enjoyed running through the heart of the city I love. As we closed in on the finish line, I saw lots of other runners who had already finished and had their finisher medals. They were loudly and enthusiastically cheering for us. That was very encouraging.

At mile 26, we turned on to Fort Street and saw the finish line just ahead. What a great sight! One runner who had just finished yelled, “Way to go! You’re a Marathoner now!” That was great to hear. Not far from the finish, my family was there cheering for me. I was just taking it all in.

Then I crossed the finish line.

It didn’t hit me right away that I had finished a marathon. A volunteer congratulated me and put a finisher’s medal around my neck. Someone else put one of those silver “space blankets” over my shoulders, and then it dawned on me that I had finished. It was over! My sister and I walked to the end of the recovery area, and met up with our family and friends. I got a hug and kiss from my wife and hugs from my kids.

We began walking away from the finish area when it all hit me — the weariness, the pain,the finish, all the hard work that got me here, the support from my family — everything. And I started crying. It was all I could do to hold it together and not start sobbing. I couldn’t talk, and I’m glad I was wearing sunglasses! After I pulled myself together, we all walked over to American Coney Island and had lunch. After lunch, we began what was — for me — a very difficult and painful half-mile walk back to the hotel.

Overall, it was an incredible experience — definitely one of the top 5 experiences of my life. The weather was perfect, the race volunteers were helpful, friendly, and supportive, the course was great, and my friends and family were awesome!

Will I ever do another one? I don’t know — that’s not a decision to be made right now. But I’m glad I did this one.

Thanks to my sister for pushing me to run the Marathon and for running with me. Thanks to my wife and kids for all their support and encouragement. Thanks to all my fiends and family who came out to cheer for me. Thanks to those of you who prayed for me before and during the race. Most of all, thanks to God who gave me the strength, good health and desire to run.