Flatlanders Inaguaral Marathon...for Lilly

What a weekend! I drove down to Boone, North Carolina on Saturday (about a 7 hour drive from my house) to run the Inaugural Flatlanders Marathon. An old friend of mine, Steve, (also a runner) decided to drive out to support my efforts. It was the best way to start out my weekend adventure. We got to hang out, go to dinner and scout out where the race course was located the night before.

With Steve the night before

In my opinion the best races are put on by runners themselves, people who's interest is in providing an event out of love for the road/trails and not focused on just the money. Flatlanders was exactly that. Race director Matt Jenkins is a marathon junkie himself. As a matter of fact he is getting ready for his own crazy journey later this summer as he plans to run solo across the entire state of North Carolina. He will travel 760 miles barefoot, carrying his own supplies, to help raise funds for Western Youth Network and several other non profit groups in his state. I urge you to check out his website and donate! 

 Try that course!

This is what I've been talking about! People taking that step, making the choice to use their talents, their loves, the things they live for, in a way that will make a positive impact for others. And it's not just in the physical sense. But being willing to step out, willing to go the distance because you know it will make the world a better place in the end. In the back of your mind there's something triggered. There's a part in all of us that desires to fly. I'm not talking about jumping off a building or out of a plane. But it's that inner voice that leaves you wondering what you should do. It's all about having the strength and faith to push for what you know you need to do. You only get one life to live. How are you going to live it? What will the footprint of your life leave behind?

Which path will you take?

Matt put on this small marathon (limited to 35 runners) for free, even offering runners a place to stay to sleep the night before at a gym for no cost. It was a simple bare bones event that counted as an official marathon for Marathon Maniac's and 50 Staters and I loved it. I've never run a marathon like it.

 View from one of the bridges

Packet pickup was at the gym and if you were able to find the place without giving Matt a call, hats off to you! It was up a twisty road that looked like a dead end. As far as packets go, we got to pick our own race numbers. Matt provided pins and gels for us to use race day. The only cost was if you wanted a tee shirt. I knew this was going to be a fun race when I read over the waiver:

I acknowledge that participating in BMS (Boone Marathon Series) events is foolish and make this choice on my own freewill. I understand that marathon running imposes harm to the body and will not hold the race director (Matt Jenkins) responsible for any injuries or deaths that I may sustain during this event. I agree that the only course of action I will take if I have a problem with the race will be to write scathing reviews, but I will not sue, seek damages, or pursue any legal action against anyone involved in the organization of this race. I further acknowledge that running an out and back course seven times may be extremely boring and in the event I choose to listen to NPR podcasts during the event, I will not hold the race director responsible for any pledges I make to the station during my lowered mental capacity while running 26.2 miles (or more).

Being held the day after Grandfathers Marathon (also in Boone, NC), several runners were doing both races to double up for the weekend. If you run marathons and really want to challenge yourself,  give a double a try! To help accommodate runners, Matt gave us the option to start whenever we wanted, times were recorded on the honor system. I thought that was totally cool! I always have a hard time sleeping the night before my races, over fear that I'm going to oversleep (I've done it before). I generally wake up a handfull of times a night just to check my clock. I had a time in mind that I planned to start running, but knowing that even if I didn't roll out of bed right away, or if my alarm somehow didn't go off, I'd still have no problem was awesome. Giving that it's the middle of July, and with the forecast of 85 degrees for the race day day's high, I planned to get started quite early. It would mean cooler temps, and knowing I would have the long drive back, it just made the most sense all around. Still, I hate getting up at 4:30am.

I got out to the course a little after 5am while it was still dark out. Not always so good with my pre-planning, I had to pick up a cheap headlamp from the local Kmart the night before to use on my first lap. Matt was at the start area to give course directions. He told me he came out to the course at midnight to set up some coolers with water at a couple points along the way and to run a few laps himself.

 Bridge #1

 

As the waiver stated we ran an out and back laps of 3.75 miles 7 times to complete the entire 26.2 distance. If you have a hard time with running repeating loops then this is not the race for you. There were 3 different bridges on the course and with all the out and back's and simple math meant 42 bridge crossings. As the name implies, the course was mostly flat and paved.

 Bridge #2

In some ways I liked having the race broken down into 7 segments. Matt had set up a board at the start/finish area and as we completed a segment we'd mark it off. We also had access to real bathrooms located at the start area which was a huge plus. Even with it being such a small race, you were never out running by yourself for long stretches. Several times during the day Matt came out and ran a segment. I've never seen a race director out on the course with the runners before. I realize with a huge race it wouldn't be an option, but the fact that Matt could and did was great.

Bridge #3

It seemed like almost everyone running was a Marathon Maniac and I was glad I went with my yellow tank for the race so I somewhat fit in. Everyone was very encouraging on the course and I had the pleasure of running my first 3 laps with Joyce who had driven with her friend Lynne from Florida for the marathon. Getting to talk with people, sharing stories and miles has been one of the highlights of this year. If your focus isn't on the clock and you can really enjoy the area you're running and the company around it makes for an awesome day. I also ran a lap with Rick, a dentist from Canada who was running Flatlanders as his 231st marathon! No, that is not a typo! He started running marathons in 1978 and has been logging daily miles for over 30 years, never missing a day! Amazingly this was his first time running a double (as he did Grandfathers Marathon the day before). Most appropriately he wore bib #231. His wife took up cheering duty with noise makers and kept us encouraged as we approached the start area to cross off another completed lap.

With Joyce after my 3rd lap, almost halfway done!

I got to talk with several other runners on the course at various points and with it being such a small running group it felt like a family out there on the course. Everyone was uplifting and supportive. Several people spoke words of encouragement to me personally about my journey and I thank you for that!   

Aid Station - need I say more!

Pain-wise I felt pretty good until the last couple laps. My left hip started acting up around the half way point, and in the later miles my ever annoying knee did as well. By that point I was feeling general fatigue anyhow. The coolness of the morning had warn off and with the sun directly overhead I felt myself slow down more and more. All the same I didn't come to run this course for my time, I came to run for Lilly. She is orphaned and lives in Lover's Twist, South Africa. She lives in a very poor area located in the Eastern Cape and like many of the children I've run for, has lost her parents to the tragic Aids epidemic in the area. This is a child, like yours or mine, but she was born into severe poverty. She didn't choose this life, but it's the life she must live. With your help, we can give her and the other children that 25:40 supports a new beginning! This journey of mine is all about beginnings, 52 to be exact. I will cross the start/finish line 52 times, but more importantly it means a new beginning for these kids. Lilly is one of my 52 reasons to push myself this year. Even when I'm tired and dealing with injury, all I have to do is think about what these children live though and like a slap in the face, I realize I have nothing to complain about, absolutely nothing.

The water was looking awful good as the temps got warmer

I finished my marathon in 5:08 and was quite happy to put my final mark on the board. Instead of medals we were given personalized dog tags which I thought was a great idea, and was super generous for a free marathon.

With my shirt and dog tag at home and ready for more coffee!

Flatlanders was a unique experience and one I will treasure for a long time to come!