Marathon #2 Done!

Marathon #2 - The ATT Marathon happened this past Sunday. I don't plan to write a full recap similar to what I did after completing Marathon #1 last October. But I do want to mention some things.

This marathon was a very tough one for me. I had all sorts of stitches-cramping issue. The weather became really hot and I kept getting dehydrated easily which resulted in me consuming a lot of liquids which resulted in more than planned potty breaks - and each time I stopped, it was a pain getting back started!! I was shooting to better my DC time by 20 mins and finishing in 5.5 hours, but I actually ended up taking 10 mins more than DC to finish!

BUT despite all of this, I had a GREAT race - and this was mainly due to the wonderful folks from Team Asha and my own friends!! I've been more involved with Asha this year than I was last year, and have gotten to know the core members a little better. And I have to say that I have never met a group of people more dedicated, enthusiastic and committed to a cause as much as these folks! They were there for us through the training months - and there for us throughout the race - all the way to the finish line - and there for us after the race as well! It was very exciting to see the Asha cheer squads along the race course - and served as an instant energy boost! Asha also provided pacers for all the marathoners - and I had 2 very wonderful pacers who accompanied me at different points during the 2nd half of the race! One of the pacers was from Dallas and I really have to give him a big big gold star for not only pacing me, but also entertaining me all the way to the finish line! :)

Besides the Asha runners, Areille, who will always be my favourite running buddy, accompanied me on the last 5K of the race, and when she is around, even the toughest run feels like a piece of cake! Areille also made the whole day tension-free for me by waking up early in the morning to give me a ride to the race and then driving me back home!! I cannot thank her enough for all her support through these last few months!!! She's just awesome!! I also have to thank Prax and Aparna who showed at the finish line to cheer me on!! That was a really pleasant surprise!!

Thanks to all of you who wrote to me with your words of encouragement as well!! It really did mean a lot to me!!

So overall, I really did have a fabulous Marathon #2! I plan to hang up my laces for a while to focus on some other stuff, but do have some Tri plans for this fall - so I'm sure they won't stay hung up for too long! :)