Runspiration

Saturday, June 9, 2012

Spectating at the Utah Valley Marathon

Today was my first Saturday run with my running group. Last Saturday I was dirty dashing and missed the change to run with these awesome ladies. Yesterday we wrapped up week 2 of the Couch to 5k program.  We have 10 girls in the group and average 4 or 5 runners at each run. There is a group that goes in the morning on Tues/Thurs and one that goes in the afternoon. On Saturdays, the idea is that we all run together. However, I am pretty sure the idea of sleeping in often wins out at 8:00am. This morning we had 4 girls show up and we rocked the run. When we were done (because Saturday is a special day), we went to the Provo Bakery for donuts and then walked down to the finish line of the Utah Valley Marathon! 

We stood and cheered on the back of the pack half marathon runners and the front of the pack marathon runners. It was incredible! I loved watching people cross the finish line with intense looks of determination on their faces. Everything they had just accomplished in the last 26.2 or 13.1 miles was written on their face. Many people had family members join them for the last stretch of the race. I am not kidding when I tell you that I teared up more than once. One of the reasons I wanted my running group to see the end of the race is that I always think it is surprising to see the kinds of people who run endurance races. They are not all professional athletes. What they ARE is determined. Short people, tall people, large people, skinny people, old people, and young people - you see them all. You make up your mind, and you don't stop. You are capable of anything. This has been the greatest lesson I have learned from running and this is why I wanted to start this a group. I wanted to share that awesome feeling of  realizing that you are capable of so much more than you ever thought you were. 

Because I am running the Ragnar next week I had to get in a couple more miles before the end of the day. My fabulous new roomie came out with me and we actually ran back down to the UVM finish line. We got there just in time to see the last marathon runners cross the finish line. This is when I really got emotional. Those people had been out running for 6 1/2 hours. You make up your mind, and you don't stop. I love it. 

Quick shout out to my running group: The girls I run with are fantastic. They are dedicated, enthusiastic and so. much. fun. They are progressing quickly and are already kicking my trash. It's going to be tough to keep up with them! We are training for the Pioneer Classic 5k on July 21st. The race is sponsored by Magleby's and ends with french toast. Say what!??! Yeah, it's gonna be great. If you are in the area, you should come run with us! 
Visualizing the finish of our race in just 41 days! These girls are amazing!



1 comment:

  1. Jennica the life changer. Two weeks in and she's got me believing I am a runner. Didn't think it could be done!

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