This past October I ran the Baltimore Marathon with my good friend, Regan. It was an incredible accomplishment. I finished 5 minutes faster than my first marathon in Philly the previous year and with a much more challenging, hilly course.
The City of Baltimore knows how to hold a marathon. Although it may not have been the best for businesses or city-folk, it was really great for runners. The race closed down a lot of the city streets making it impossible to get from one side of the city to the other by car, public transit or even by foot.
The race began with just the marathon runners at Camden Yards where we had full access to the stadium parking lot, clean bathrooms instead of porta-johns, and lots of space to queue up and stretch out. The course wound through the city hitting all the parks and high-points like Druid Hill, Clifton Park, Patterson Park, and the Inner Harbor.
The half marathon race joined us at the Inner Harbor when we were halfway done. They kept us energized and motivated all the way until the end.
The best part of the race was the support along the way from the great people of Baltimore. There were very few, short segments of the race where there wasn’t a crowd of local spectators cheering us on and passing out food and drink. Residents came out in droves to blast music, dance and cheer for everyone. It was amazing.
I would certainly run the Baltimore Marathon again. I found it to be more challenging, but more rewarding than the Philly Marathon.
At first I was worried about traveling to Hawai’i during a time when I have to run 18 and 20-milers for my Baltimore Marathon training. I was really anxious about the heat and humidity, but excited about the scenery.
I had the pleasure of running my first 18-miler on the famous Ali’i Drive. Ali’i Drive is the official run finish of the Ironman Hawai’i. The heat and humidity did not overcome the beautiful coastline I ran along. I’m excited to run on it again for my two 6-mile runs later in the week.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ironman_Triathlon
http://www.hawaiiweb.com/Hawaii/html/sites/kailua_kona_town.html
On Sunday, November 23rd, I successfully ran my first marathon. Here’s the proof:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ckubitsky/sets/721576
The training was intense and long but it gave me the confidence to know that I *can* run 26.2 miles. I couldn’t have completed all the training or run the race if it wasn’t for the support of a few fantastic folks:
My husband, Dinko, gave me the daily encouragement I needed and took care of things around the house when I was running. He helped me to be a better runner by coaching me on food and speed. I now know that the hardest part of running and training for a marathon is simply the way you think about it. The physical part is so much easier.
My good friend, Regan, was the best running partner I could have ever hoped for. We ran the same pace and spent my long training runs together. We kept each other company, pushed each other to improve and pulled the other during rough patches. It really would have been a lonely 26.2 without her.
Thank you to everyone who came out and cheered the runners on during the race, and to all the friends that helped during training. This is my best accomplishment to date and I thank you for helping me get there.
My City Friends!!
I am running the Philadelphia Distance Run on Sunday. Race starts from Eakins Oval at the Art Museum at 7:45AM. We love it when folks are cheering for the runners, so if anyone is interested in coming out to cheer me on here is some information:
Where and when you might be able to see me…
- City Hall around 8:00AM or later
- Washington Sq around 8:10-8:15AM or later
- West River Drive around 8:30-8:45AM or later
- Boathouse Row around 9:50-10:10AM or later
Map of course
http://www.ingphiladelphiadistancerun.com/Assets/runphilly/images/pdr_08_coursemap_color.gif
Race information
http://www.ingphiladelphiadistancerun.com/race_info.html
I’m targeting a finish time of faster than 2h 15min which I hope I can do considering the stomach virus I’m just getting over. Good luck to everyone running :)
I’ve finally gotten around to planning out my training for the upcoming Philly Marathon. It will be my first marathon and I’m really excited to get started.
After much debate, I opted to work from a marathon training program developed by Bart Yasso. My husband just read his book, My Life on the Run, and found it very inspiring and the training plans in the back to be easy and sensible.
I really hope that my friends, Adrienne and Regan, will train and race with me. Here’s a look at the schedule.
