13.1 Miles (well, a few more...)

This is continuation of the Race Weekend post.

40,000 people racing is outrageous. I realized this when I was at the starting line with all of them. Throughout the 19 miles of my half marathon I never stopped being amazed by the number of participants.

For those of you that are thinking, "wait a minute... since when are half marathons 19 miles?" Well, let me tell you.

Dressed and ready for the race!

Starting around 2 pm the Team Challenge participants began lining up for the shuttle to the start line. The strip was closed and traffic was a little crazy, so the three-mile trip to the starting area took nearly 45 minutes. While I was on the bus with Team Wisconsin Heather (of Team DC) sent me a photo of her with Sean.

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Look familiar?

Let me also add a little fun fact. Sean came to the event as the token celebrity for the CCFA Team Challenge half marathon. He forgot his running shoes and had to buy a pair Sunday morning. The Bachelor doesn't pick its contestants based on intelligence? Weird.

When I arrived at the start line I was nervous, jittery, excited and looking for Heather. And a bathroom. In my search for Heather I found the tent of wedding runners. There were at least a hundred couples that were running the half marathon to renew their vows or get married. They had ridiculous outfits and ran through officiants stationed along the course. Oh, Las Vegas, you are not my favorite place in the world for anything other than people watching.

I found myself an "in honor of" bib, filled it out, pinned it on, and headed for my corral. While I was waiting I received a text message from my mom saying that she and Ann had found a perfect viewing spot.

With 40,000 racers and a staggered start I didn't cross the start line until 45 minutes after the gun.

We ran about less than a mile before turning around and heading back up the strip, passing the start line. I frantically looked for Heather, but I couldn't find her. As I scanned the crowd and saw all of the runners in the orange tank tops I was completely overcome with emotion.

I couldn't believe that all of my training had led up to this moment. I couldn't believe that I had raised as much money as I had. I couldn't believe that six months had already passed from the time I first agreed to the race. I couldn't believe I wasn't running with Heather.

I kept on racing.

I was right on pace and proud of myself. The wind was brutal, but I felt great.

At around mile seven I started thinking about Heather and how badly I wanted to cross the finish line with her.

At around mile eight I started to think about how annoying the wind was and how much my knees were starting to bother me.

At mile nine I awkwardly retrieved my telephone from my SpiBelt and tried to call Heather. Her telephone was off. How would I find her?

At mile ten I saw Team Wisconsin people cheering us on. I told Becky, one of the WI coordinators, that I was going to turn around to find Heather in a little while, and if she saw Heather, to please tell her.

At this point in the race, the course was taking us back down the strip. There were thousands of people running in the opposite direction on the other side of the street. I ran down the course looking for Heather. I decided that if I didn't see her by the time I hit the 12-mile mark, I would just turn around, start walking back, and wait for her to catch up to me.

But at about 11.7 miles I saw her! I yelled her name and jumped across the median to hug her. I was ecstatic. I started walking with her and her friend.

"What are you doing?"
"I'm walking with you."
"What?"
"I want to finish the race with you, so I'm going to walk with you."
"Meaghan, how far were you? We have over seven miles left."
"That's fine. I don't care about my time, I just want to finish with you."

So the three of us walked.

I had a few moments when I thought I was going to die, or at the very least pass out, but we made it.

My coach found us at the 12- mile mark and was thrilled to see me.

"What happened to you? My wife was at home tracking you, she told me you were doing well, and then your chip wasn't registering any more times. I couldn't find you!"
"Yeah, I decided to find Heather."
"I thought that might happen."

As Heather and I crossed the finish line I wanted to cry, fall down, throw up, and go to sleep. I didn't want to have my photo taken, but at the same time all I wanted was a photo of us.

We met our moms in the finishers' tent and had plenty of photos taken.

I announced my half-marathon retirement and we discussed our plans for the evening.

Heather and I went out, danced, gambled and drank a few well-deserved beers.

Heather won.

All in all, we had a fantastic weekend and went home with very sore bodies.

Two weeks later I heard from the group I volunteer with, the Jaycees. The president received the donation we were waiting for from working at BeerFest, and she had the check made out to CCFA. She told me the amount and I started shaking.

I called Heather.
I called my parents.
I called Matt.

I was speechless and amazed. I picked up the check the next day to submit to CCFA. I opened the envelope and was in complete shock all over again.

$4200 for CCFA

Thanks to everyone for the support. This was an absolutely amazing experience.

A fun fact about the donation: My parents met Heather's parents when they were in the Jaycees together in Annapolis. They became best friends and Heather and I were friends before we had any choice in the matter. Life is funny like that.

My One Year Anniversary

Can you believe it? It has been a full year since I moved back to the USA. I don't know if it feels like I just moved back yesterday, or if it feels as though I have been back in the States for years.

In one year my sister was accepted to Alvin Ailey (her audition was on 12/12), moved to New York City, got her learner's permit, transferred to Joffrey Ballet School and moved into a dorm room (without parental supervision) in Greenwich Village.

In one year my brother graduated from college, got an awesome job, moved to Wyoming and somehow became a grown-up.

My other brother, in one year, worked his tail off, spent his 13th summer at camp as a counselor and started going back to school.

My father moved to Abu Dhabi.

My mother has cleaned out the basement and the attic, replaced the roof, visited her three children in new homes and I'm sure I'm missing things...

Wilbur lost 7 pounds.

Tupper started eating a new brand of dog food.

As for me, I have lived in NYC, Saratoga Springs, and Madison. I worked in an amazing bakery and as a cabbie for models in Manhattan. I dabbled in online dating and snagged myself a fantastic boyfriend. Yes, friends I have boyfriend. I have a wonderful job that I am enjoying more and more every single day. I ran two half-marathons, raised a lot of money for Crohn's and Colitis Foundation, turned 25 and got bangs.

As I mentioned earlier, on one hand I think oh my gosh, has it already been one year? But on the other hand I can't help but think, all of this stuff... it's only been one year?

Happy 12/12/12!

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Happy Aaron Rodgers Day!

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Happy Hump Day!

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Happy Anniversary!

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Whatever you are celebrating, happy day to you!

 

Me? I'm celebrating wonderful memories from abroad, great opportunities in the US, and fantastic friends all over the world.

Less than a week!

My race is on Sunday! My race is on Sunday! My race is on Sunday!

Only six days from now I will be running a half marathon down the Las Vegas strip surrounded by tens of thousands of people including one of my very best friends, Heather.

We are still in the process of planning our matching outfits for the race, so maybe this photo will give us some inspiration.

Through the end of the year I will continue to raise money for CCFA.

Huge news on the fundraising front: Ellie was kind enough to donate a quilt for me to raffle off for CCFA!

 

You can purchase one ticket for $5 or five tickets for $20! Simply go to my fundraising website, make a donation for the tickets and write "Amazing Quilt Raffle" in the comment section.

I will draw the winner on Sunday, December 2, the day of the race, and ship the quilt to you next week!

 

As of this minute I have sold a total of six raffle tickets, so the odds are looking pretty good.



**I will post the exact measurements of the quilt later this evening.**

Training: Week Seven

I have invested in a foam roller. After speaking with my running coach and my yoga teacher, we narrowed down the nagging knee pain to a potential IT band issue. Sure enough, the foam roller has done wonders.

On Sunday I ran 9 miles in 90 minutes! Consistent ten-minute miles? I'll take it!

Sunday morning was freezing cold and windy, but I dragged myself out of bed and laced up my runners. After working 14-hour days all last week and another 6 hours on Saturday, the last thing in the world I wanted to do was wake up early on Sunday. But I did it. And gosh, I felt pretty great when I finished.

Heather is one week post-surgery, and according to her facebook posts and tweets she is slowly but surely recovering. She has yet to stay up past 8 pm and chat with me on the telephone, but I'm hoping she will call me soon.

Donate to CCFA! I am $2,415 short of my goal.

Anyone have any fundraising ideas? I need some help!

I don't even know where to begin...

Training: Week Six

Yesterday I ran 8.5 miles and then complained about the nagging pain in my knee.

Today Heather underwent surgery for a disease she has been dealing with for 9 years.

That puts things in perspective, no?

Donate to CCFA!

I have 14 days to raise $1,715.

Please send your thoughts and prayers Heather's way for a quick and easy recovery!

Training: Week Five

9 miles on Sunday

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(I didn't have as much fun as Phoebe)

Irritating pain in my left knee around mile 7

A very well-deserved shower

And another throwback photo

Flashlights up the nose? Classic.

I'm still training for my half-marathon, and still raising money for Crohn's and Colitis Foundation. I'm hoping to raise $2,700 by October 15 and $3,700 by December 2. Help a sister out?

Click here.

Training: Week Three

I have nearly finished with three weeks of half marathon training! 

Last Sunday I went on a 6 1/2 mile run followed by a trip to Movin' Shoes for new Mizunos. 

The woman at the store asked me about running, my experience with Mizunos, and watched me walk. She brought out Adidas, Aasics, New Balances and Mizunos. I tried on all four pairs, jogged around the store and left with Mizunos. They are just too wonderful to get away from!

Not too shabby, right? {source}

Thursday evening I went out for three miles in my new sneaks, and it turned my entire day around. The shoes are amazing, and they make running better.

So far I have only converted my mother to the world of Mizuno, but the more the merrier!

Here is this week's half marathon throwback photo:

Me, Heather, Garvey and Katie from back in the day

 

Don't forget to check out my half marathon website and donate to CCFA! Thanks for everyone that has supported so far. I have raised over $700 already! I have to recommit on October 15, and my goal is to have $2500 by that date. Any little bit helps! $2 per mile? Only $26.20!

Later this weekend I will be giving you updates about more OKCupid dates. There have been three so far, and each has its own quirks and shenanigans. Stay tuned... 

Half Marathon

One thing on my list of 25 things to accomplish before I turned 25 was running a half marathon.  Well, I did it.  I didn't do it well, and I did it a month after I turned 25, but I did it.  Before I turned 25, however, I committed to running a second half marathon.  This December I will be running a half marathon in Las Vegas.

One of my very best friends, Heather Palmer, asked me to run the race with her.  The half marathon is part of the Rock n Roll series and will raise money to support Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America, a cause very near and dear to Heather's heart, and now mine.

Heather and I were best friends before we even had a choice!

In 2003 Heather was diagnosed with Crohn's disease.  At the time I knew nothing about the disease.  Over the years I have seen Heather endure flare up after flare up and her medications become stronger and stronger.  Just this afternoon she told me that it is official, she will be undergoing surgery for the disease next month.

Last month her younger sister Cici was also diagnosed with Crohn's disease.

When I agreed to run this race and raise money I was doing it to help a good cause.  I know how much the organization means to Heather and I wanted to be there to support her.  In just three months since I agreed to run, the race means so much more to me now.

Last week I started training for the race with the Madison team.  I wish I was able to train with Heather and her team, but texting her after my runs will have to suffice.  Together we will run in Las Vegas rocking matching outfits, as we have done for as long as we can remember.

Denim dresses: one of our matching outfits over the years.  We'll be bringing back the trend for the race.

If you feel so inclined, visit my fundraising page and donate to CCFA.  All donations will be greatly appreciated.

Last November in Thailand.

An orchid garden in Thailand