13.1 Miles

I did it! It was freaking amazing. My watch time was 2 hours and 23 minutes. The official time will be a few more minutes because I had to use the "honey buckets" otherwise known as smelly disgusting porta-potties. I will post pictures later.
I ran the whole thing. I walked a couple times through the water stations. My goal was to run the whole thing. I didn't care how slow I went, as long I was running.
Here's the play by play. I had to use the bathroom before the race started. The lines were forever long. I ended up starting at 7:15. It was the PERFECT temperature. I started out slow. Just a leisurely run, right? At mile 1 I was at 10 min, 12 sec. My goal was to be right around an 11 minute mile. At each mile marker I was just under 11 minutes. It was a really nice run. It was fun. I didn't get bored. There were two hills but they were easy hills.
We started at the U, went down Foothill to 21st South. Down to Sugar House Park, up to Highland to Liberty Park. Then to State Street. When we were running through Liberty Park, we hit 10 miles. I have never run more than 10 miles. I did hit a mini wall then. I stressed for a couple minutes that I couldn't do it. I just figured it was an easy 3.1 miles. It was pretty easy. I was totally running on adrenaline. After 2 hours, the motorcycle cops started honking at us. Why? Oh, because the very first marathon runner was passing us. Yep, the guy who ran 13 more miles than me caught up. We rooted for him. It was probably around this time too that my toes started going numb. I think that means I'm going to have black toe nails or something. The last 2 miles were one of the uphills. I just kept on running and did it. The last mile was whatever Temple Street goes in front of Temple Square to the Gateway. This was pure endorphines. It kicked in and I ran my little heart out. I was kicking butt. I was passing all those runners up. I'm usually not like that. I am usually so exhausted and dragging the last part. Then we turned into the Gateway. There were people everywhere, cheering us on. I sprinted for the finish. All the while trying to look for my family. I saw my dad up high. I yelled to him but he saw me as I passed. Then I saw my sisters, my mom, and niece. I tried to put my hand out to them. They were all trying to take pictures though. Oops! I saw the big clock that tell the time. It said 2:44. That is the total running time from when the first person started. I wanted to be less than 2:45 and since I was 15 minutes late to start, I made it. And then I GRABBED that medal out of nice volunteers hand. Hey man! That is why I was there. It was amazing! I might be able to do it again. Maybe.
My body feels like crap the rest of the day. My toes are still very sore. I haven't decided if it's worth it. My niece gave me a mini massage.
It was an awesome experience. I felt bad making my parents come watch me. But now I'm glad that they did. I'm glad that they were able to see me accomplish something that was so huge for me. Not only did I train my behind off. That is big for me. It's also where I was at 2 years ago. Again, I'm grateful for all that I've been blessed with. I will admit that I prayed a lot this morning just hoping I would be able to finish this race.
I will tell you this too. There are all kinds of runners. All sizes, all ages, all kinds. The group with bright green too-toos, including a guy. The girl carrying her Coke bottle. Not even Diet Coke for crying out loud. Anyone can do it!