Marathon
The rain had stopped some time over night and the road was almost dry as we hit the start line, and as soon as the gun shot, it sprinkled. It sprinkled for the entire 26.2 miles. Wet pavement, wet clothes, wet socks inside a soggy boot. I blame the rain for the extra 10 minutes it took me. I finished in about 2 hours 10 minutes. My goal was a) to finish and 2) not die. They coincide, I know this. I did the Saint Paul Inline 2 years ago and I swear the same thing happened the first 3 miles. I'd hear breathing, glance behind me - and behold! Some random old man is drafting off me. Technically, co-ed drafting is a no-no in the open (slower people) category, but I utilized that technique later in the race to save my legs from utter extinction. So, I'm working my butt off, trying to keep a good pace, and this guy is tail-gating, using about 1/3 my efforts. Oh well, more power to him, I would have raced that hard whether he was free-loading or not.
There was a turnaround at about mile 20, and two people jumped behind me to pace. Two minutes later, there were about 6 people drafting off me. I was praying hard at this point for God to help give me the extra strength to ignore the fatigue in my legs and finish as strong as I could. I asked God to send my guardian angle to help out, skated for about another half mile and these two men come along side me (and the other 6 skaters behind me) and one of them goes, "The rock! You're doing great, let me pull you a bit" I jumped behind him, and a second later realized that God had answered my prayers. I paced with those two guys the next 6 miles each of us taking turns leading. "The rock" was written on the back of my shirt with a picture of a cross on top of a hill. It sparked conversation from a couple skaters. :) Ahhhh, good times.
There was a turnaround at about mile 20, and two people jumped behind me to pace. Two minutes later, there were about 6 people drafting off me. I was praying hard at this point for God to help give me the extra strength to ignore the fatigue in my legs and finish as strong as I could. I asked God to send my guardian angle to help out, skated for about another half mile and these two men come along side me (and the other 6 skaters behind me) and one of them goes, "The rock! You're doing great, let me pull you a bit" I jumped behind him, and a second later realized that God had answered my prayers. I paced with those two guys the next 6 miles each of us taking turns leading. "The rock" was written on the back of my shirt with a picture of a cross on top of a hill. It sparked conversation from a couple skaters. :) Ahhhh, good times.