We did it!

Okay, not the hottest picture of the 3 of us but how great can we look after running 26.2 miles?! It was quite an experience, let me tell you! We drove down Saturday morning in our car decked out with "Run like a girl- Eugene 2010" on the back. We arrived in Eugene to collect our packets, numbers and shoe chips...along with 8,000 (seriously!) other people- it was crazy! Then off to the store..if you haven't been to Eugene, you should- just to people watch. We saw a man with a cat riding piggyback (no joke- everyone whipped out their phone and took a picture) and a man in a dress in the span of about 2 minutes...it's an odd place. We entertained ourselves on the ride down with Mad Libs~ if you haven't done them since you were little, do them again but they are WAY more fun if you make them kind of dirty:) Holly also read to us from Cosmo and we learned some VERY interesting things that I can't post here but email me if you want details:) We had dinner, watched a movie and then off to bed...and set the alarm for 5 am:(

Woke up, got ready and drove in...Hayley dropped us off and we got in the incredibly long lines for the Honeybuckets (why do they call them that? Nothing that goes on in there is sweet....). We patiently waited our turn and without going in to too much detail, let's just say everyone was nervous and just breathe through your mouth in line. We got our places, said a prayer...and we're off! I'm feeling good, my leg doesn't hurt, I'm hydrated, people are cheering...and that's mile 1. Mile 2 my pulled muscle starts to hurt but is quickly overrun by the pain everywhere else in my body. Miles 2-12 were fine- people cheering along the way- Hayley taking pics, my dad and Lorri around every bend....about mile 18 it started to hurt pretty bad in my feet and hips but we pressed on. Then we hit the dreaded mile 20 that everyone tells you about- at this point, this is the farthest I have ever run but I just kept telling myself- 6 more miles- that's nothing. Then mile 21 hit and until mile 25 that was the longest running I have ever done. It's hot at this point- you don't want to stop for any more gatorade b/c it means walking/slowing down and it feels almost physically impossible to start again. People who were running strong around you start walking and the temptation to stop, just for a minute, is so great- but we resisted! Then we saw 26....and then the tunnel of people and ran in- while they are announcing your name across the loudspeaker. It was a very surreal experience- by that point your brain is so fuzzy and I kept looking down at my legs amazed that they were still moving.

And then I got up today and realized that somewhere along the trail- not sure when- a truck must have hit me. I think I now know what it feels like to be 80 and I don't like it one bit! Alright...back to my couch...if I get up now I'll be there in about 20 minutes!!