I did it! It wasn’t ideal or pretty, but I finished!
The Cape Cod Marathon is HARD. It’s not a secret that there are lots of hills on the course, but they are often described as “rolling hills.” To me, these rolling hills felt like mountains!
Husband and I got to the Cape about 2:30 on Saturday, picked up our race packets at the expo, and checked into our hotel, The Inn on the Square. As advertised, it was a mere three minute walk from the starting line. Better yet, they had a pool and we reserved early enough that we got a room with a jacuzzi tub en suite (something that I thought might be appreciated after running 26.2 miles). We did lots of relaxing on Saturday, had an early (and super yummy) pasta dinner, and walked around downtown a little bit. Downtown Falmouth a week before Halloween was super cute. Stores decorated scarecrows on the lamp posts outside and the store windows all had cool Halloween themes.
The race.
We got up early, had some breakfast and coffee and mentally prepared for the race (and went to the bathroom about a thousand times). We lined up about 15 minutes before the race and I went to get my music ready, only to realize that I left my mp3 player in the hotel room. So I made a quick run back to the hotel and when I returned, there was NO TIME to be nervous. The cannon went off a few minutes later and off we went. Knowing I run slow, I stayed close to the back of the pack, but was running about two minutes faster than my normal pace. But wanting to just get off the main road, I stuck with that pace. I slowed a bit when the pack started to thin out, but still had a good number of people around me. I kept about a 11 minute pace pace for the first 10 miles.
The course goes from downtown Falmouth to the shore and I was very familiar with the area at this point. When we stayed in Falmouth the previous summer, we frequented this route along the shore that took us from our hotel to my friend Michelle’s hotel. We passed the yummy fried clam restaurant where you eat at picnic tables on the roof, the Island Queen – the boat we took to Martha’s Vineyard, my friend’s hotel, and the beautiful beaches that led to our summer hotel in Falmouth.
The next few miles was through neighborhoods with families out cheering and a few well wishers who went the extra mile – such as the guy where played some Def Leopard and ran with me for a bit, telling me that I was “killing it.”
We crossed Route 28 and soon got to the Cranberry bogs and the hills. Oh, the hills. My husband later recounted that when he reached the first winding hill, a volunteer told him to push through it because the peak was at the bend and then it was more flat land. The volunteer totally lied. Not only did the hill not end at that bend, but the next 12 miles was a constant state of up and down hills.
This is where I started slowing my pace and started falling faller and faller behind. However, I had a little pack still running around me. There was a girl dressed as the Gorton’s Fisherman – a yellow rain hat, rain jacket, and shorts, and a full fake gray beard. It was fairly impressive. There was another woman who was doing the Chowderhead Challenge – Saturday’s half marathon and Sunday’s marathon. And a few others that I talked to on the way. I tried to keep running as much as possible but would take walk breaks, if needed.
Mentally I tried to focus on the beautiful scenery. Even though we were in a wooded area, the houses and decorations (for Halloween) were keeping me entertained. There were still spectators and plenty of volunteers on the course, cheering us on.
Eventually I made it to mile 20 and the race coordinator rode by and told us to keep going – we were still well within the time frame to be able to finish the race in under 6 hours. This was possibly the best and worst thing I ever heard. On one hand, I knew finishing was still completely achievable if I just kept running – if I just kept putting one foot in front of the other. But on the other hand, I knew that I had a very small window to be able to finish within the time limit. I HAD to keep moving. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t finish and all the training and all the running that day wouldn’t even earn me a medal. Would I have to do this ALL again to achieve my goal? NO F-ING WAY. Keep moving, Ellen.
So I did just that, I just kept moving. I kept putting one foot in front of the other. I left behind the people that had been close to me and pushed forward. I took energy and good thoughts from anyone cheering. If others passed me, I tried to keep up with them and listen to their advice. I saw miles 21, 22, 23, and 24 go by. I had 2.2 miles left to go and about 30 minutes to finish. I…CAN….DO….THIS. I can run 2.2 miles. I thought about my training and how running to the yellow factory and back (2.2 miles on my training route) would be a short run. Even if I walked it, I could probably walk it in 30 minutes. I walk my dog that route. My 7 year old can run that far. I…CAN…DO….THIS. Just keep moving.
And I did it! Eventually, I saw mile 25 and 26 and was back in the center of downtown, close to the finish line. I saw my husband waiting near the finish line cheering me on. I saw the time clock reading 5 hours and 56 minutes. I only had a few minutes left, but I finished.
When I ran at 10K in May, I was one of the last ones to finish and I was so disappointed in myself. I felt it was an awful race and I was supremely embarrassed to be quite possibly the last to finish. But for the marathon, I couldn’t be anything but proud. Growing up with asthma, I was always told I couldn’t be a runner. It was a story I repeated to myself every time I tried to run. But today, I know I can call myself a runner. And not only am I runner, but I’ve done something that only 1% of the world’s population is able to do – finish a marathon! 
