The alarm went off at 3 am. I hurried to get ready and left within 20 minutes for the drive south to Oklahoma City. I drove through some nasty thunderstorms around the Kansas-Oklahoma border. I stopped just north of Oklahoma City and hobbled into a gas station to fill my camelback with water and ice. Inside someone said, looking at my shirt, "Free State?". I said, "Yeah, you were there?" Then we realized that we did recognize each other and had talked before. This guy (can't remember his name either) and 4 others all were doing a back to back Free State 40 miler and then the OKC marathon. That was very encouraging to me - I was not the only crazy one - in fact there 6 of us if I understood correctly!
Shortly before 6 am, I pulled into downtown OKC looking for a parking spot. I ended up parking like 8 blocks from the start line so I hobbled over to the start line finding the right spot to place my drop bag and then jumping the fence into the jam-packed corral. Oh yeah, Manny was with me and had picked up my packet the day before. He was pumped to run his first marathon. I was sore and thinking 26.2 more? Uh! Before the gun even went off to start the race with 19,000 at the start line, I was already sweating because it was so warm and muggy! The first two miles were awful as I ran to loosen up the legs (it probably looked a lot more like most people run the last 2 miles of a marathon or longer race). Then I finally fell into a groove and Manny and I ran the first 9 miles together, running 9 minute miles. Then there was a hill and I looked up and Manny was gone. He went on to finish in 3:51 something which is awesome. I had forgotten about my blisters, the only thing I really suffered from was just a deep fatigue in my legs - nothing out of the ordinairy for having run 40 miles the day before.
It was pretty hot and humid the whole way. At each aid station I grabbed 4 cups - poured two on my head and drank 2. I also carried my camelback and drained it twice drinking it in addition! Around mile 20 I asked a fire-fighter to spray me down and completely drench me with cold water from a hose. That really helped!
Well, there's nothing more to say than it was tough. But I must admit, for some reason, it was still really, really, really fun! The second half was much slower than the first but in the last 5 miles I really speed up and never looked back. I ran with the 4:30 pace team for the last 4 miles until the last mile when I sprinted the last 1.2 in sub 8 to finish in 4:27:44.
Race Results: http://www.onlineraceresults.com/race/view_race.php?race_id=10482#racetop (My bib number is 580)
Race photos: http://orders.racephotonetwork.com/QPPlus/SearchBibNumber.aspx?EventID=758029&_AccountNumber=1732&EventName=oklahoma (My bib number is 580)
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Free State Trail Ultras 09
Just after finishing the 40 Mile run at Free State on Saturday:
Saturday morning at Clinton Lake near Lawrence, KS I participated in the Free State Trail Ultras for the second year in the row. Last year I ran and finished the 100K but this year I opted for the 40 mile event since I had promised my friend (running his first marathon) that I would run it with him (the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon the next day, Sunday). The Clinton Lake trails were in good shape other than a little mud here and there which just makes it more fun. It was a warm, muggy day. I think I started sweating even before we started the race at 7:00 am. I had lots of fun on the course talking to all sort of runners, chatting about Leadville and other runs and everything from politics to garden planting!
I finished the first 20-mile loop in 4:00 and headed back out. I was loving my new camelback hydration bag that I purchased at the Great Plains Running Company. Never ran out of water the whole day! During the second loop I was running along in a train of 3 runners, a woman ahead of me and a guy behind me. I can’t believe I can’t remember their names – we ran together for hours! Anyway, all the sudden I started screaming in terrible fright and turned around and sprinted the opposite way, almost running into the guy behind me. “What!? What!? What is it?”, he said. “A-a-a-snnnake!” I stuttered and yelled and pointed ahead. It was just a harmless green snake about 18 inches long but I don’t care. It was awful. Once I turned around and convinced myself the snake was gone and it was okay to run again, I couldn’t help but sprint for some reason. We had a few sprinkles in the second loop – nothing too much – just threatening clouds and a little thunder. I finished with no problems, no major moments of discouragement or anything like that. I did realize only afterwards that I had a silver dollar-sized blood blister on the back of my right heel.
I ate some food and visited with other runners at the finish line and left to go home. 10 minutes to the West I hit rain and thunder and lightning and wind and I started to worry about the runners still on the course. Then the tornado sirens went off and I was listening to the radio reports of serious tornado threats. Anyway, come to find out later that the race was called off a couple hours after I was done running due to the tornado and everyone was sent home. Crazy day in Kansas. Meanwhile I drove home to Wichita, worked in the garden a little bit and went to sleep.
Next year I’m doing the 100K at Free State!
I finished the first 20-mile loop in 4:00 and headed back out. I was loving my new camelback hydration bag that I purchased at the Great Plains Running Company. Never ran out of water the whole day! During the second loop I was running along in a train of 3 runners, a woman ahead of me and a guy behind me. I can’t believe I can’t remember their names – we ran together for hours! Anyway, all the sudden I started screaming in terrible fright and turned around and sprinted the opposite way, almost running into the guy behind me. “What!? What!? What is it?”, he said. “A-a-a-snnnake!” I stuttered and yelled and pointed ahead. It was just a harmless green snake about 18 inches long but I don’t care. It was awful. Once I turned around and convinced myself the snake was gone and it was okay to run again, I couldn’t help but sprint for some reason. We had a few sprinkles in the second loop – nothing too much – just threatening clouds and a little thunder. I finished with no problems, no major moments of discouragement or anything like that. I did realize only afterwards that I had a silver dollar-sized blood blister on the back of my right heel.
I ate some food and visited with other runners at the finish line and left to go home. 10 minutes to the West I hit rain and thunder and lightning and wind and I started to worry about the runners still on the course. Then the tornado sirens went off and I was listening to the radio reports of serious tornado threats. Anyway, come to find out later that the race was called off a couple hours after I was done running due to the tornado and everyone was sent home. Crazy day in Kansas. Meanwhile I drove home to Wichita, worked in the garden a little bit and went to sleep.
Next year I’m doing the 100K at Free State!
Free State 08: http://adammonaghan.blogspot.com/2008/04/100k.html
Spring Photos: Crossroads Youth
In Josh and I's simulated game, we both pitched 3 innings and we both struck out 9! Go figure!
7th-10th Grade Crossroads Small Group that meets in Sedgwick on Wednesday nights
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Adversity is the School of Wisdom
We are inclined to call things by the wrong names. We call prosperity “happiness,” and adversity “misery” even though adversity is the school of wisdom and often the way to eternal happiness.
-William Penn
-William Penn
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Salt Lake City Marathon
Saturday, April 18 was the Salt Lake City Marathon. It was a great, mild, partly cloudy day in beautiful Salt Lake City with white-capped mountains everywhere you look.
It was fun to run with Jadon and Audrey Ross, currently from Kemmerer, Wyoming (Jadon is Pastor of the Evangelical Free Church there), who both completed their first marathon ever! See Jadon's perspective of the race: http://www.jadonross.blogspot.com/. I especially think it's cool that Jadon and I ran a pretty much even (and possibly even negative by 2 minutes if I figured right) split of the two halves of the marathon, which I think is especially a great accomplishment in his first marathon.
Jadon and I finished in exactly 4 hours and 28 minutes. Audrey finished about 18 minutes later, toughing out IT band/knee pain the whole way. She's tough! See her blog with great detail:
Oh yeah, one more funny/interesting thing. My phone apparently fell out of my drop bag before the beggining of the race. After I got back to my hotel room to take a shower after the race, I realized I couldn't find my phone. I figured I had either lost it on the train or somewhere between the hotel and startline drop bag drop off. At 2:30 pm after lunch, I went back to the starting line on the off chance that maybe, just maybe I could find it. I found a lost and found box full of lost car keys and cell phones and mine was one of them! I thought that was pretty cool, considering all the people there and all the places it could've been lost.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
LOVE: The Words and Inspiration of Mother Teresa (Book Review)
I just finished a mini-book that I've been reading for several months, a few pages at a time called "LOVE: The Words and Inspiration of Mother Teresa". Ever since I heard Bill Hybels give an excellent talk on the life and ministry leadership of Mother Teresa a few years back at the Summit, I have been a fan. I really enjoyed this short biography and then pages and pages of her quotes.The life, faith, and ministry of Mother Teresa of Calcutta continues to be an inspiration to me. My calling and specific passions don't have very much in common with Teresa but I have so, so much to learn from her zeal, faith, perseverance, compassion, obedience, humility and leadership. A few quotes from Teresa:
We learn humility through accepting humiliations cheerfully.
Never let anyone come to you without coming away better and happier.
Everybody should see kindness in your face, in you eyes, in you smile, in your warm greeting.
Monday, April 20, 2009
In Search of the Source: A First Encounter with God's Word (Book Review)
On Friday I finished "In Search of the Source: A First Encounter with God's Word" by Neil Anderson and Hyatt Moore. It was an excellent read and an incredible story of translating the bible into a language for a people group in Papua New Guinea, the Folopa, which had no recorded language. It's one thing to translate the bible into a language which has no bible. It's another thing altogether to translate it into a language that is spoken only! These Wycliffe Bible Translators had to first learn, then record into a written form, and then teach the people how to read in their own language and then translate the bible. What an incredible story of the eagerness and hunger to learn and understand God's words as recorded in the bible!
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Rockin' K 09 Pictures and Report part II
(NEW) 2009 'Official' Rockin' K Report: http://www.ksultrarunners.org/rkreport09.pdf
The marathon (loop #1) finish. He should've stopped there...
The water was cold, very cold...but it actually felt good!
Somewhere out there...
All smiles before it starts of course! If he only knew...A bunch of Rockin' K 2009 pictures from Gary Henry's blog and Ultrarunners News website: http://ultrastory.com/Rockin_K_09_photos.htm
The good news is that I did get credit for a marathon finish, I believe, but I won't really count it in my list of marathons because I did go 35 miles or so. I'll count it in my list of ultras (that I lost track of a while back) for now. Final results: http://www.ksultrarunners.org/rkresults09.htm.
Until next year...
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Camp Marathon: Run YOUR Race (2009 EFC-MAYM Camps at Camp Quaker Haven)
I am looking forward to Mid-America Friends Camps again this summer at Camp Quaker Haven maybe more than ever! Especially fun will be enjoying the new "Extreme Camp Makeover" renovations and facilities! With great anticipation and lots of work to do in planning, preparation, and promotion...!
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