Yesterday I completed my ninth half marathon. Here’s a little recap of the event.
The Good
After nine months of being misdiagnosed with a stress fracture in my foot, and four months of intense physical therapy for the actual problem (multiple muscle knots in my leg), I was thrilled to finish walking the half in a time of 3:21:15. I know that probably seems like a long time, but in truth, the miles seemed to fly by. It was a perfect day for racing, sunny and very cool. We sure stood out in our bright yellow and black Gilda’s Gang gear. I was nervous at the start, afraid my leg would not be able to handle the stress of 13.1 miles. Turns out, that wasn’t what I needed to worry about (see The Ugly, below).
The Bad
A friend of mine came out to see me at a water stop between miles five and six. Turns out she missed me by a couple of minutes (I had a much faster first half of the race), but she hung around to make sure, and to see other members of the Gang go by. That’s when she overheard some young girls who were manning the water stop make some very crude, cruel, and immature comments about the body of one of my teammates. Loud enough, perhaps, for my teammate to hear. Fact: You can be any shape and size you want to be, and you have just as much right to be on a marathon course as anyone else, and to be out there without being ridiculed and mocked. Fact: None of our bodies are out there for your juvenile amusement. I’m going to write a letter to the race director today, asking him to please include training of this nature for his many volunteers. What a disgusting blemish on an otherwise beautiful day. A day, mind you, that my teammate had spent fifteen weeks working toward.
The Ugly
Ooh boy, you ought to see these blisters on my feet. I wore a different style of training shoe this go around, and that was a mistake. They are lighter and less cushioned than my normal sneakers. I had no problems with them all summer, even on my ten-mile training walk. But 13.1 was too much. I’m hobbling around pretty badly today, but plan on being all healed up for walking on the beaches in Maine by the end of the week.
If you’ve ever thought about walking a half marathon, I highly recommend it. It’s a test of your physical and (especially) mental endurance. It’s so rewarding to have that medal handed to you as you cross the finish line. You can do it – no matter your size or shape. Walk on!
