Hi Trippers!

At least my thumb was working.

So yesterday I ran the San Diego Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon and I think one of my running friends said it best when she described it as a “challenge” race for me.

In the past I’ve typically run 6 half/full marathons in an entire year. I’ve equalled that amount in just the first 5 months of 2014. And before this year I’d never run more than 2 full marathons in one year. I’ve now done 3 full marathons in less than 90 days (85 days to be precise)

I’ve been pushing my body really hard since October and while I’ve been thrilled with the results, I guess it was bound to catch up with me a some point. Perhaps I was due for a “less than ideal” race.

This was not a race where I excelled. Nope, this was a race where I survived.

I could feel early on in the marathon that my legs were a bit tired. On a run of a lesser distance, that wouldn’t have been a problem. But magnified over 26.2 miles, the cumulative effect just keep adding up.

In past marathons, I didn’t catch the first signs of fatigue until around mile 17 or so. Yesterday I started seeing signs at mile 11.

And it was also around this point that the clouds parted and the forecast of “partly sunny” quickly transformed into basically “not a cloud in the sky.” Time to cook.

At mile 16 I had a marathon first as my left leg started cramping. And working through the cramp didn’t help as it changed my gait, leading to a nasty blister on my left foot (another marathon first) and a slightly pulled hamstring. Yay!

At this point Houston, we definitely had a problem.

And with that, my game plan went right out the window… bye bye, PR. So long doing under 5-hours. I was in survival mode, determined to just get from point A to point B.

I ended up walking a lot more than I planned, doing my best to keep from tightening up completely.

Yup, I am indeed a maniac.

I did manage to push out some speed during the last half mile (photographers and crowds do tend to help you find that little bit of reserve) and at least finished strong.

The best part of the race did come at the end, as I was greeted with a hug and kiss from my girlfriend Lindy who then handed me a small envelope with a little sign inside that read “I just qualified for the Marathon Maniacs.”

My biggest motivation for running the full yesterday, as opposed to the half, was to qualify for the Marathon Maniacs (more on that later). So my main goal was achieved.

I held the sign up while smiling (doing my best to hide the pain) as she snapped a photo.

And then we caught a cab back to the hotel for a much-needed shower, some well-deserved In ‘n’ Out burgers and the trek back to LA.

Not my best race, but a really good weekend.

Here’s the skinny:

SD Rock ‘n’ Roll Results

And this morning I’m relaxing my sore hammy and ready for a few days of well earned rest.

Run on!