My Marathon

First Marathon:
My first marathon was held at Big Sur, California, almost exactly 1 year, April 29, 2001, from the date of my most recent marathon, April 28, 2002. You'd think I would have ran the California race as my second marathon instead of my first, because if you know anything about upstate Cali, it ain't exactly flat terrain. And as a first time marathoner, I probably should have picked a race that had very little hills. The flatter the better. But boy did this race have HILLS! Actually I'm not sure you'd classify them as hills, more like little MOUNTAINS!!

The first 10 miles of the race were easy, nothing actually! Obviously I hadn't encountered those mountainous hills up to that point. Then from mile 10 to mile 12, I had to run uphill with an intense incline. There were no reprieves to the incline, no dips or leveling off, just straight uphill! That really killed me. The race after that point was murderous, but I trekked on. As if I were Rocky, The Italian Stallion, beaten to a pulp by Apollo Creed I didn't relent. I couldn't relent. Even though my feet were burning up with intense pain, somehow I managed to muster a second wind at around mile 20. It was at around this point where I spied a woman named Diane. (I knew that that was her name because she had written it on the side of her arm with a grease pencil. Marathoners do this so spectators can cheer for them with their names.) Marathons probably consist of 60% physical, and the rest of pure mental. So I used Diane as a kind of mental motivator to get me through the rest of the race. I'd let her get ahead of me for about 50 yards, and then I'd reel her back in until I was 50 yards in front of her. I played this cat and mouse game, unbeknownst to her, until about a half mile to the finish line, where I took off and gave all that I had. I probably finished at least 100 yards ahead of Diane, who I never got to thank.

Second Marathon:
I ran my second marathon, the NJ Shore Marathon, and although it was much (much) flatter than last year's, it did have its own individual challenges. It was held April 28th, 2002. It started off to be a very typical cold and rainy April day. It was so miserable in the morning that I had to wear a garbage bag to keep the elements from my body. I must admit that it sounds ridiculous, but many other runners were doing the same and it actually helped tremendously. It actually felt good running in the pouring rain. Maybe it was due to all the hours of watching underdog inspirational movies like Rocky, but it made finishing the race seem more of an accomplishment, as if running 26.2 miles wasn't an accomplishment in of itself. The rain actually was a blessing in disguise since it helped cool me down while I ran. However, it also hindered my running too.

Like the last marathon, the first 10 or so miles went by pretty quickly but by the midway point, the muscles in my feet were cramping up from being wet and cold, all due to the rain. The last half of the race was quite unbearable because of that fact. Next time I'll know to bring an extra pair of socks to change into along the race. However, towards the end of the race, many hours later, the rain had subsided and I was able to shed my black glad bag exterior, thus I was able to have the above picture taken of me running the race bag-free.

The feelings after both races was amazing. I felt such a feeling of accomplishment. After a marathon, you don't mind how much your muscles are still sore because of that mental feeling. The after race recovery was actually much better this year. A few days after the race, my feet and knees were still a bit sore, but that was about it. Last year when I ran in California, I had obtained a big huge bloody blister on my big toe, and I was hurting for at least a month. Hopefully, I'll have a better finish-time and an even quicker recovery period for my next marathon. I figure I'll probably run at least 1 or 2 more races: The New York and another Marathon.

For my second marathon, I decided to run on behalf of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. So while I trained, I fundraised for the charity. I collected about $1,000. Some of that money came from donations from friends and family members, but the majority of the proceedings came from my main fundraiser, painting portraits for people. I figured that since I paint portraits for a living, I might as well donate my time to the charity. (You can view my portrait work on this page.)

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE LEUKEMIA & LYMPHOMA SOCIETY:
Northern New Jersey Chapter
45 Springfield Avenue
Springfield, New Jersey 07081
(973) 376-9559 - Fax: (973) 376-7072