RunVermont....Vermont City Marathon....for Steve

This past weekend my marathon journey took me to Burlington, Vermont for the KeyBank Vermont City Marathon and it was a great experience. My flight got in early on Saturday morning and race executive director, Peter Delaney, personally met me at the airport and drove me through Burlington, giving me a little tour of the city and the race course before we headed over to the expo. I spent a couple hours milling through the booths, and listening to several running seminars about nutrition, recovery and strength training. I generally don't have a lot of time at expos, so getting to stay and listen to the presentations was quite enjoyable. Not to mention, they had Green Mountain Coffee, Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream and Okios Greek Yogurt booths so I was totally stoked with that! 4 cups of joe later (they told me to have as much as I wanted - bad idea as you can see),  I got a ride from one of the volunteers to my hotel downtown.

 My coffee - yes it was heavenly!

After hearing about my 52 marathon quest, Peter very generously offered to help me with my hotel stay for the trip. I got into my room and there was a fruit and cheese plate waiting for me too! I had a chance to unwind and went to a few local shops before having my routine pre-race beer and pasta dinner downstairs at the hotel restaurant.

 In my hotel room

This past week I had a follow up appointment with the sports doc about my left leg. I had decided to get an MRI done to make sure I wasn't dealing with anything more than what I was aware of. The MRI gave me some good news. I don't have a stress fracture or even the beginnings of one. While there isn't any structural damage, my left knee has an insane amount of inflammation and a grade 1 strain on the inside of the knee. Painful yes, but nothing that will keep me from pushing through with my goal. At this point I am willing to do or try just about anything if it may possibly give some relief and help with recovery. I've done the standard RICE formula (Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation). I've done cortisone shots. I've done massage therapy, physical therapy and then the lovely Chinese cupping therapy (not going there again). This time around I'm tried a methyiprednisolone dose pack. It consists of a 6 day pill pack of anti-inflammatory steroids and after taking my last pill on Saturday I was hopeful and curious to see what effect it would have on my running. Something had to nip this in the bud!  Having limited my cardio workouts to the bike the past couple weeks, I didn't know what my body was going to do when I started out on Sunday morning.

 Getting ready race morning

Race morning I got down to the start line early. I had an interview with the local Fox station and then it was on to the normal race prep which means standing in a long line for the port-o-pottie. With over 8,000 runners competing in either the marathon, or marathon relay teams it was pretty packed. The weather was looking to be cooler than expected (which was a big plus) and the vibe in the air was total energy. One of the things I love about running these races is all the excitement that flows at the start line. Everyone is jazzed, smiling, laughing.

 Waiting to start

We started and I could immediately tell that the dose pack had made a difference. For the first 5 miles I was running better and faster than I had in weeks, maintaining a little over a 10 min mile pace. I can't begin to tell you how excited I was. Even with a slight limp, it seems like forever since I've been able to run anywhere near that pace and not need walking breaks for my leg. I was about to celebrate my recovery when mile 6 came. This time it wasn't my leg, but my lungs. I found myself having a hard time being able to get my air and had to slow down and walk to catch my breath. I've had moments while running when I've had shortness of breath, but never anything like this. As I learned later on, the breathing difficulties that I was dealing with could have been a side effect of the treatments I've taken. But as you can imagine, running a marathon is not when you want to have reduced lung capacity. The next couple miles were frustrating as I had to slow down and walk several times. The sun had come out and it was getting warmer, which also didn't help how I felt.

 Heading downtown Burlington

Burlington was a beautiful place to run and full of different environments. We got to run through the downtown which was lined with crowds cheering us on, residential neighborhoods that celebrated runners and the Memorial Day holiday and on a bike path along the waters of Lake Champlain, the worlds 6th largest freshwater lake.

 I got a kick out of this sign!

Lake Champlain

Vermont loves cows and evidence of that was everywhere. Huge artistic cow statues were placed all over the area which I got a real kick out of.

 COWS!

But what struck me the most was the sheer hospitality of the area. Everyone I encountered was genuinely friendly and encouraging. Lots of people came out of their homes to hose us down from the heat, or beat on drums, pans or anything else they could get a hold of. The best drumming was at mile 15. As we started up one of the largest hills on the course the Taiko Group beat a rhythmic and artistic display of energy like nothing I have ever seen on a course before. I stopped to take a picture, but I really just wanted to stay and watch them preform. In perfect unionism they hammered their drums, helping us push up that hill.

They were AMAZING!

Getting farther and farther along, I started feeling better, and moving better. While not at the pace I started out with, I finished the last 6 miles feeling better than I had at miles 6-10. Everything was overall fatigued, but my breathing issue had subsided and it was just a general lack of energy that plagued me. Knowing that the finish line was close made all the difference.

 The kind of sign you want to see!

Even though I don't think it was meant for me - I loved it!

We ran under Old Glory

I was running for Steve, who is 10 years old and orphaned. He lives with an older sister in the Ngqelenti district of the Eastern Cape of South Africa. In school he likes math. Math was always my least favorite subject in school, but I have to remind myself that for these kids,  just going to school is a privilege. Totally unlike the world we live in, children in the Ngqeleni district have very little change of academic success. With 51% of heads of households never having attended school and 21% of heads of households finishing school between grades 3 and 7, the chances of just getting an education are slim. Many of us are unsatisfied with our public school system and the lack of funding that means less programs for our kids. Still we are so incredibly blessed when you compare our options, our chances to learn, to what these kids are having to face. Of no fault of their own, they were simply born into poverty. But we can help change that! With 52 Beginnings I'm changing that! You're joining me in this journey is changing that! I still hate math, but knowing that we can change the outcome for so many children, giving them a chance at life, I'm excited about those numbers! The more money that I can raise this year, the farther the reach for these children. With over 40% of households living on what is the equivalent of just a little over $3 a day, it's not difficult to do the math and see what a significant impact each donation makes!

Steve

Coming up to the finish line, I sprinted for the last tenth of a mile, something I've not been able to do for the past couple weeks. I was extremely pleased to have finished in 5:31, several minutes faster than the previous week and on a much hillier course.

After crossing the finish line I saw Peter with a medal in his hand. He put it around my neck and congratulated me on my finish. I did a quick post race video for the Fox station again, grabbed some food and then Peter's wife gave me a ride back to the hotel. The kindness and hospitality that they showed to me, along with everyone I had encountered at the race (staff and volunteers) was well beyond my expectations. They did a top notch job with every aspect of the race and I was very glad to make Vermont a part of my 52 Beginnings journey and I will come back to run this one again.

 With Peter at the finish line

 

I love the race tee :)

"I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious." - Albert Einstein