Seattle Marathon 2013

When I set the goal to do a marathon, I always set it months in advance. Not only does it give me time to train, but the entry fee is cheaper. It always seems like a great idea when I sign up, but the closer I get the more I wonder what I was thinking. Training for an event like this isn't easy, especially when the weather gets colder. There were many Sunday mornings when I would rather be at home drinking a hot cup of coffee then be bundled up outside running. If it wasn't for the fact that I am dedicated (some would say obsessed) to running, I probably would have quit back in October.

Lets get to race day. When I woke up, it was windy and it had just rained. Lets just say, it wasn't ideal running weather. If I wasn't regretting the race a month before, I was for sure regretting it now. As Chris was driving me to the start area, I kept saying "What did I get myself into?!" (He says I said the same thing last year too.) Despite the threat of stormy weather, the temperature felt warmer then last year. It was windy on parts of the course, but the rain held out till after the race. It really was a great day for a run.

I took this at the start line before the race started.

Another picture I took as I was getting onto I-90.

About to run across the I-90 floating bridge. This was the last picture I took while on the course because I had other things to do. 

Live long and prosper. It kind of looks like I'm dancing in this picture, and maybe I was. I was having that much fun. Yes, I said fun.

Smiling wile running. I think this was between mile 12 and 13. 

I got this!

Powering up a hill. 

Happy as can be and enjoying the beautiful arboretum. This was between mile 22 and 23.

In the middle of mile 25. The home stretch.

0.2 miles to go!

About to cross the finish. I am looking at the clock to see how I did.

Yay! I did it! (The time in the corner is for the half marathon.)

I earned my third marathon medal.

My official time was 5:19:14.

I actually had a lot of fun while running this race because I did not keep track of my time. I actually started doing this during my training a couple months ago. I found myself obsessed with making times, and I would get disappointed when I wouldn't make them. I realized that when I stopped looking at my watch, I actually ran faster. I still track my times during training via phone app, but I will not look at the time until the end of my run. 

My next race will be the St. Paddy's Half Marathon in Tacoma on March 15th, 2014. This will be my first half marathon and my goal is to finish in 2:20:00.