Help Meg Run

RACE DAY!!

I’ll start with a few details from Saturday night. After we got back from the Inspiration Dinner, my Team in Training chapter had a little team meeting in our hotel lobby. We decorated our jerseys and listened to our coaches deliver a last-minute pep talk. I then went back up to my room, admired the gorgeous roses that my dad sent to my hotel…

…and laid out everything for race day. My decorated jersey, bib, hat, watch, sunglasses, TNT tattoos, etc.

My mom was ready to go as well with her cheering signs.

I had a late night snack (two mini WW bagels with peanut butter) and went to sleep. Despite all the warnings I heard about not being able to sleep the night before my race, I actually slept wonderfully. Better than on Friday night, thankfully.

And then I was up bright and early Sunday morning! I woke up easily and ate my prerace breakfast: two pieces of whole wheat bread with peanut butter. I met my running girls in the lobby of our hotel…

…and we walked the one block to the start! We lined up on the correct street according to our pace group and proceeded to wait.

(Sorry for these blurry iPhone photos.) It was definitely a fun, excited atmosphere and finally the gun went off on time. It took us quite a while to cross the finish line, but soon we were on our way!

(All the following photos are ones my mom took while she was following the race.) It was fairly chilly when we started (60* and foggy) so I started out wearing an old long-sleeved shirt just over my arms. There was a donation station around mile two, and I was plenty warm by then so I tossed it.

It turned into an absolutely beautiful day! What perfect weather for a race…we were never hot.

We had lots of fun entertainment along the way, from people in kilts with bagpipes…

…to gospel church choirs!

You can see Alcatraz!

But oh my gosh the hills. We obviously knew there would be hills, but it was definitely worse than we expected. This picture below is just after the first small hill. It was a point-to-point course, so each uphill did unfortunately not have a corresponding downhill. Mile six was the worst, as the entire mile was uphill. And they were steep.

I felt pretty amazing the whole way, though, despite the hills. And then I saw the seven mile marker. This was my moment, when I knew without a doubt that I would finish. I was on such a high after that moment that most of the rest of the race flew by. I really tried to slow down, mentally and physically, and enjoy everything. The scenery was absolutely gorgeous—we tried to stare at the Golden Gate Bridge instead of the hills in front of us—and I was going through an amazing experience with a couple of very good friends.

And the finish? Well, you’re just going to have to check back.