Up & Down...and Up Again...

Self-Doubt, Beantown, Marathon Trials, Family, Training, Dunkin Donuts...

Last I left you I was wallowing in my own little world of despair...those fears have not completely subsided, however I feel that I'm beginning to put them back into perspective and even experienced a twinge in happiness with myself today!

We arrived in Boston yesterday and the marathon gods are shining on us, thus far...the weather is absolutely beautiful for running! We settled into our hotel (I splurged a little and am sooo glad that I did!) and I quickly began to take advantage of the amenities. I headed down to the fitness center and was surprised to find the pool was 45 feet. I was able to do some drills then for my main set I used a set of swim cords. I hadn't used them before and found them easy to adjust to which was nice because I felt like I hadn't wasted a day by not training. Then I headed back to the room and took a nice, long bath followed by a relaxing shower...oh yeah, I'm so getting my money's worth!! After the self-pampering, all my siblings and I went to dinner with my dad and just goofed around.



This morning was awesome because my dad and I headed out to the U.S. Women's Olympic Marathon Trials where favorite, Deena Kastor, came from an almost 2 min. deficit to win (2:28:35) and running icon, Joan Benoit Samuelson (50 yrs old) finished in 2:49:08, making her goal of finishing in under 2:50:00...Austin women Desiree Ficker and Chris Kimbrough were awesome and showed that Austin women can run! While neither made the team, each showed grit, determination, and strength until the finish! It was truly amazing to watch.

After the trials, we crossed the street to the expo where we picked up my dad's packet and goody bag. It was a bit overwhelming as the sheer number of people was incredible.

As we were walking back to the hotel I was thinking of something a man had said earlier. As we were watching the women, I over heard him asking another guy about the race and he asked how many would make the team. The other guy replied, "3" and the first guy said, "well, then why are all these other women still running?" And that made me think about why we do what we do, why we try, where would we be if we didn't get out there and make the best of an opportunity. These women, most of who were long-shots, at best, knew that they would have to run the race of a lifetime and still probably not make the team. Many of them knew going in that they had absolutely no chance, but they were honored to be there...they finished what they started...some may have even set PR's...they trained and on this day they gave it the best they had. They are all such great examples of they type of person I hope to someday become!

More pampering...I managed a nice nap and treadmill run with some stretching and strength work followed by another shower in our luxurious bathroom...ahhhhh...then a trip to the bar for a glass of wine & alone time before dinner with the family.

Now it's off to bed...the big show is tomorrow and I have to be rested to cheer on my dad!!