We’d Run Twenty-six Point Two!

The alarm went off at 4:15 AM, but I was already awake. Before I could even turn off the alarm, Jeremy was also awake and getting up, setting a new personal record (PR) for the shortest amount of time it has ever taken him to get out of bed. So with one PR already in the books, I was optimistic about the race.

Since the race was a point to point course, we decided to park at the Finish Line, which meant taking a shuttle to the Start Line. The last shuttle leaving the Finish Line lots departed at 5:30 AM, so we were on the road and heading to Santa Monica by 4:45 AM. And by 6:00 AM, we had arrived safely at Dodger’s Stadium. Two hours to go until the race would begin…

It was cold. And dark. And the forecast called for rain. So we grabbed a seat under a tent and ate breakfast. Drank coconut water – lots of electrolytes and potassium. And stood in the line for the port-o-potties. I think we each went three times before the race started. (The third time was a charm for Jeremy!) We did a little warming up and stretching, and by 7:24 AM, when the elite women and wheelchair racers started, we were ready to go. We huddled in the corral and cheered with the 26,998 other runners as we counted down to our start.

Mile 1: Departing from LA Dodger’s Stadium, we enjoyed the typical hurry up and wait marathon start. We’d start running only to have to walk again because of the crowds. Did I mention this first part of the first mile was uphill? Well, that didn’t help thin the crowd. We finished Mile 1 in 11 minutes. But things picked up from there…

Miles 2-3: Downhill and fast! We entered Chinatown and then the rain started, a light drizzle. Winding through the streets of LA, we passed through Little Tokyo as well. Lots of fans holding posters for Japan. It turns out that approximately 100 Japanese runners flew to LA to run in the marathon, as a race they had planned to run in Japan had been cancelled because of the earthquake.

Miles 4-6: Passing through downtown LA, we conquered the only decent hill of the race. And even that hill would have been considered a flat in San Francisco. An impressive band of steel drummers played as we climbed, and before we knew it, we were crossing the 10K mark in under an hour.

Miles 7-10: The miles between Downtown LA and Hollywood through Silver Lake were rather forgettable, except for the two times we ran across The 101 and all of the cars on the highway were honking their horns at us. I have to admit, that was pretty sweet! The closer we got to Hollywood, the larger the crowds grew. That amazed us, because by now, the light drizzle had turned into a gusty downpour. Not going to lie, it was the most miserable running weather of my life. But the race prints everyone’s names on their race bibs, so we heard fans yell, GO JEREMY! GO NICOLE! And that really helps when you’re running past bars and cafes and could go for a warm coffee. Or a cold Bloody Mary…

Miles 11-13: Hooray for Hollywood! We could barely see the Hollywood sign through the downpour of rain. However, we did catch quite a few landmarks throughout this stretch of the course, including Capitol Records Tower, the intersection of Hollywood & Vine, the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the Chinese Theater, and the Kodak Theater. We also saw my very dear friend from UVA, CLM and her husband cheering us. Thanks, CLM and WM!

Miles 14-16: Out of Hollywood, through West Hollywood, and onto Beverly Hills… That’s where we want to be! Too bad with all the rain we didn't wear our iPods, as I had Weezer queued up for this part of the race!

Miles 17-19: The rain was pretty bad in Beverly Hills. But we still enjoyed the few short blocks of Rodeo Drive, where we hit Mile 17. Turning right back onto Wilshire Boulevard after this point of the race is where I started struggling. Physically, my legs felt good and I was breathing well; however, my stomach was aching for some reason. I felt really full although I probably should have eaten a Gu or two, I couldn’t get it down. Jeremy, who was looking and feeling really strong, tried to force feed me a Cliff Mojo bar, but I couldn’t do it. I started to slow down, and Jeremy, who I was supposed to coach across the Finish Line of his first marathon, became the coach! For the next few miles, Jeremy stayed by my side convincing me that I was strong enough to keep going.

Miles 20-23: Westwood and Brentwood were essentially two large puddles. Seriously. The water at some points hit our shins. Jumping over or around puddles was not an option. Mentally, I had hit the wall. I was cold, wet, and wishing the race would just end. Jeremy was doing so well, though, and I definitely feel horrible for holding him back. I told him to go ahead without me, but he said that wasn’t the point of this race – we were doing it together. So I kept going, walking from time to time, mostly through the water stations. Throughout the end of this stretch, everyone kept saying, “Two more miles! You can do it!” This was incredibly irritating, though, as I knew we had not yet passed the 24 mile marker. False advertising!

Miles 24-26.2: A lady on the sidelines cheered, “Welcome to Santa Monica! You made it! You are going to finish!” Upon hearing this woman cheer, something inside me kicked in. I gathered all of the strength I had left in me as I walked through this last water station, and then I started running. It was pouring! I was freezing! I have never been so miserable! But then someone else cheered that it was sunny at the beach, so I pushed a little harder. We rounded the corner onto Ocean Blvd / Pacific Coast Highway, and the beach was in sight - sort of. The rain was coming at us from all angles, and the wind was blowing so hard we almost lost our hats. It was NOT sunny at the beach! But Jeremy looked over at me and said, "Nicole, Let’s finish strong!” 

And that we did. We hauled ass those last two miles! Jeremy screamed, “This is CRAZY! I can’t feel my legs!” But he was smiling. And I have never seen Jeremy smile and run at the same time. So then I started smiling, because I have never felt so proud of him. And then I sucked it up and sprinted with him down the final stretch to the finish line. 

We made it! After only four hours, twenty-seven minutes, and a million drops of rain.