We did it!

The 2010 Marine Corps Marathon weekend is one for the record books! I am still amazed that I actually completed a MARATHON and it is all thanks to you! This accomplishment was not done alone, and it is an experience I will never forget.  Let me tell you all about this weekend.

Friday night I got home from cross country practice, took care of the doggies and hopped in Josh's MINI to head to the Marine Corps Marathon Expo. We have been to soooo many expos together, but this one was different.  This time I wasn't there to support him in his marathon endeavor (he's run 14 to date), but it was MY turn to pick up my race big and bag o' swag!  I also went crazy in the Brooks running apparel section, purchasing a red running hat and black Marine Corps Marathon track jacket... well at least I thought I was going crazy until Josh skipped over to me all giddy with marathon excitement!  "I love this expo! I am so PUMPED! I think I'm going to run tomorrow!"

You see... Josh bought a race bib from a co-worker a month or two ago, thinking he'd run with me to support me through my first marathon.  Then he went and landed on a sharp rock wearing his minimalist running shoes and injured his foot... so he wasn't sure his foot would be healed in time.  Well, I guess the marathon spirit pushed any pain out of his mind and he all of a sudden decided he wanted to run with me.

This worked out really well because on race morning after walking the long walk before dawn from the Pentagon metro station to the start, and after getting on the long porta potty line, I lost my running partner Laura.  The crowd was just too big to find her, even with her neon green visor.  Luckily for me, I still had Josh to run with, and boy did he come in handy during the race!  Without his encouragement and his support (he carried Gatorade for me) the race definitely would have been much slower going.

Some other race day shoutouts: My parents Joan and Chris Tehan drove all the way down form Shelter Island to watch me in the race.  I caught sight of them just after mile 8 as we were entering Georgetown, and I stopped for some photo ops (see pic on the right) as well as sweaty hugs before moving on to tackle the remainder of the race.  They also caught sight of me at mile 19, but the crowd was so loud at that point and I was so focused on the upcoming bridge that I didn't see them!  My friend Robyn linked up with them, too, and she got to see me out on the course which I'm really happy about.  She has had to sacrifice spending time with her best friend as I have logged the long hours after work and on weekends to prepare for this race.  Bonnie who is pictured above running with me from miles 18-19.  She was not only full of pep which I needed some of at that point, but she actually had Aleve pills in her bag.  She suggested I pop one, which I have to say really helped alleviate the achey feeling that was encroaching on all of my muscles and was bound to get worse from that point in the race.  Kristi, Pauline, Ellen and Marian your cheers and amazing cowbell skills meant so much to me out on the course.  I really appreciate you being out there and looking for you among the crowds really helped take my mind off of the soreness my body was feeling as the miles got longer.

I also must thank all of you who could not be in the race course physically, but for all of you who were there in the back of my mind helping me put one foot in front of the other more than 5,000 times during the race.  To my donors and supporters, I could not have done any of this without YOU.  Your kindness and giving spirit fueled me through this race.  I cannot express to you all how much easier you made this race for me.  Yes, my body was in pain at times but knowing you all were rooting for me really got me through the entire thing... especially the last two miles of the race... and steep uphill the last .2 miles of the race that climb up to the foot of the Iwo Jima Memorial in Arlington, VA.  Thank you all so much from the bottom of my heart.

Last, but certainly not least, I need to thank my brother Christopher James Tehan who is the person who has gotten me to that Team in Training interest meeting to begin with even though he has been gone from this life for 14 years now.  Losing him to Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma when he was just 13 and I was 14 was very difficult for me and for the rest of my extended family as well.  We all hated to see him suffer.  I know I definitely felt helpless.  This training and this race and gathering support for a worthy cause like the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society helped me get rid of part of that feeling of helplessness that I felt while my brother was fighting for his life.  I truly believe that the money we have raised together will go for all good things.  Our donations will go towards better and more effective cancer treaments, as well as to benefit families who are struggling financially with the care of a sick family member.

Losing Chris taught me how to be a fighter and to not take anything or anyone for granted.  Training with Team in Training for the marathon taught me that together we can make a bigger difference than we could alone.  Thank you for helping me raise money for LLS this season and for being there with me in spirit on many miles of training runs and the final 26.2 miles of the most amazing race of my life so far, the Marine Corps Marathon.

Thank you all from the bottom of my heart.