In my race tee
I gained a love for football, especially college football, at a very tender age. My father worked at the University of Washington and from the age of 7 on, he would take me to at least one UofW Husky football game every season. It was all about cheering, hot dogs, and marching bands until I got a little older. Being quite a patient man, he took the time to explain the details and eventually I learned the components of defense, offense, and the first down. Going to football games became one of my favorite things to do with my dad, and now living on the east coast, it's been many years since I've been able to go to a game with him. The Sunburst Marathon combined the college football feel with a marathon and for me it was mixing a lot of great childhood memories with my adult dreams.
Where we started the marathon
Some part of me felt that little sliver of home as I picked up my packet and I walked past a statue of Knute Rockne, who is considered to be college football's greatest head coach of all time. A graduate of Notre Dame, he was also their head coach from 1918-1930. Rockne set the greatest all time winning percentage of .881, a mark that even today is still at the top of both college and professional football. Having competed in football and track himself, Rockne was known as being innovate and charismatic in coaching his athletes.
Bronze Rockne (with medals around his neck that kids had placed after their race)
We were allowed to use the bathrooms inside the Hall of Fame before the race and although the exhibits were not open, there was still lots of cool football memorabilia to take pictures of. I'm so glad I drag this little camera along with me to these races!
Helmets lined every wall!
Paul Hornung's helmet (Notre Dame QB) - 1956
Archie Griffin's helmet (RB - Ohio State) 1974&1975
Tony Dorsett's helmet (RB-Pittsburgh) 1976
Nearing 6am, I headed out to the start line, feeling optimistic. Even though this race gave me a 6 day turn around, I felt like my body was responding rather positively to my recovery efforts. As we began I did my best to stay consistent with an easy pace. Somehow my Garmin watch hadn't charged properly and it wouldn't even turn on. I was running this one blind, which meant I was going to have to gauge the pace by feel alone.
This church we passed was build in 1888
The first few miles we ran out of town through several residential areas. I always carry my I pod (unless races restrict the use) and since I wasn't running with any friends, I was happy to have the music to motivate me. Early into the race a song called Airplanes (by the artist B.o. B) came on my playlist. The lyrics say:
"Can we pretend that airplanes in the night sky are like shooting stars? I could really use a wish right now, a wish right now, a wish right now."
I thought to myself how I could use a wish right now! I was wishing (perhaps praying is a better term) please let my body handle this day and these miles with resilience. Let this be a good day. I played the song over and over again. I will often find a song to identify with when I'm running, or one that I can get into the groove of the beat, and somewhat like a trance I use that to block out everything else. My feet strike the ground, my heart pumps, sweat runs down my arms, but I don't notice any of it. The clock stands still, the miles blend and on and on it goes. For whatever the reason I use a similar tactic when I write. I've ruined so many songs for my kids by having them on constant repeat when I'm at the computer writing. The song continues again and again, and like in my run, the music blocks everything else around me. My fingers hit the keys, the thoughts flow, and the world around me fades.
Breathtaking sun rising before us
At every race, music or no music, I make a point to think about the child I'm running for. I pick a mile and imagine their life, picturing what they are doing at that very moment. This week I was running for Ivy, who is 4 years old and orphaned. She lives in a village called Canzibe in the Ngqeleni District of the Eastern Cape of South Africa. She goes to preschool at the Canzibe Mission, which is supported by 25:40. Many of the children that attend the preschool get their only meal of the day at school.
Ivy
Ivy will be turning 5 years old next month and it made me think about how different a birthday is for these kids. My daughter Angelina will be celebrating her 7th birthday in less than 2 weeks and she's super excited. She already knows what kind of cake she wants and wouldn't hesitate to name what toys she'd like to have when asked. She knows her birthday is her special day. She's looking forward to the special party she gets to have at her grandmother's house. I don't think Ivy is excited. There is probably no party being planned for her. There will probably be no cake, no presents and in fact, a birthday for her is probably no different than any other day of the year. There is no celebration. The only difference between Angelina and Ivy is that Ivy has no parents and lives in poverty. She deserves to celebrate her birthday, just like my daughter does. She deserves to grow and learn and be a kid and all the great things that we wish for with our own children. Ivy and the other children I'm running for need hope. The money being raised is giving her hope, it's giving her a future! People often think that it's only big things that really make a difference in life, but the truth is, if everyone that reads this would just donate $5, imagine how much that would amount to! Imagine the impact that would have!
Eventually the course took us through parks right along the St. Joseph River. Running along water is always beautiful and peaceful. The best part was the fact that I wasn't having any major physical issues. I was still running with a bit of a gimpy gait, but it wasn't painful. The lack of pain meant I was able to enjoy the scenery that much more. When you're hurting it's really hard to focus on the external. You feel every step and it's almost impossible to not become hyper-focused on just getting to the next mile. But I barely noticed the mile markers and I didn't feel the need to take walking breaks until well into the second half of the race. It started to almost feel normal, the way a marathon should, the way I remember it feeling.
Green and serene
View of St. Joseph's River from the bridge we crossed
And funny enough my feet really were killing at this point!
Heading back on the path around mile 19
Unlike the past two weeks, this marathon didn't have a large amount of community support for the runners, but I was perfectly fine without huge cheering crowds. It was actually quite nice to just take in the sights and I found the areas we ran through to be peaceful and charming. The aid station volunteers were great and gave a very enthusiastic boost every time I stopped for water or GU gels. Before I knew it we were nearing toward the end, coming up onto the Notre Dame campus.
There were plenty of people to cheer us on as we neared the stadium. I rounded the corner to run through the big doors and I could hear cheering and band music coming through the big speakers. It was loud and as I entered the dark tunnel, seeing the field ahead, I felt like I was charging out for the big game. All of a sudden I stopped dead in my tracks. "Wait a minute, what am I doing?," I asked myself aloud as I stood there. "This might be the only time I ever have the chance to run through the tunnel at Notre Dame onto the field, I've got to take a picture of this." Yes, I really did say all of that aloud (thankfully I was the only one in the tunnel, so no one saw me talking to myself).
The writing on the wall says it all
It really was the light at the end of the tunnel
I'm glad I stopped and took the shots. I'm sure it cost me a few seconds on time clock, but it was worth it. I'm sure I lose several minutes at every race for all the times I stop to take pictures, but those images are priceless to me. It's been the best way to document this year and be able to look back on the different parts of this journey.
Finally getting my shots, I took off for the field, with the finish line dead ahead. I was thrilled to finish and even more thrilled with my time. I managed a 5:04 finish, almost a half hour faster than last week, and by far faster than I've run in quite awhile now. I was given my medal and I quickly snapped a few more pictures. It was starting to rain, and race staff was trying to move people off the field and into the stadium due to possible thundershowers. I was slightly disappointed because I wanted to have more time to take in that moment. All the same, I exited the field almost as fast as I arrived and boarded the shuttle bus back to the start line to get my car.
On the field!
By far the coolest finish line I've ever crossed!
"Build up your weaknesses until they become your strong points." - Knute Rockne
My medal
Race Results:
Final time - 5:04:03
613 out of 747 overall
205 out of 270 women
37 out of 51 in my age group (25-29)
Way to go, Dana! Your time improvement is incredible! I just had a birthday party for my twins, they turned 4 and had a big Pirate Party. Lot's of friends, pizza, presents and cake. Thank you for bringing more awareness to kids like Ivy, who do not have the same advantages as our children. Just a little bit makes a big difference in their lives.
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