[The following is a detailed account of my race. I have an abbreviated version over on our blog]

It was a beautiful morning for a run. The starting gun went off at 7:30 (before sunrise) the temperature was 49° but surprisingly warm even with the strong wind. On top of that there were clouds throughout the morning which made for perfect running weather. While the spectators were bundled up, I was perfectly comfortable in shorts and my new florescent yellow short sleeve technical shirt.

Mile 1 started out surprisingly slow. Columbus had a great corral system that kept us from having to dodge walkers in the first few miles. Yet still, I was stuck at around a 9 minute pace for most of the first mile. I had a lofty goal to run an 8:06 pace for the race, but because everyone told me not to go out too fast, I wasn't too antsy when mile 1 finished in 8:50. At least I didn't go out too fast.

The pace picked up and it was easier to pass people in miles 2 and 3. I saw my faithful supporters for the first time here. Jen cheered loudly, the yellow shirt worked! When we hit the 3 mile mark we turned on to narrower roads and the pace dropped considerably. I think a lot of it may have been due to the mental affect of a narrower road, I also heard some around me talk about "that was a nice 5k time, too bad I can't keep that up". My pace however, only quickened the next 3 miles.

By mile six I was down to 7:52. I felt I should slow myself down so I made sure to walk through some water stops. (Or more accurately, grab my water, get out of the way and the walk). I stayed well under my 8:06 target through mile 11 at which I took a :30 port-a-potty break.

After training for a marathon, it is surprisingly easy to run 8, 10, 13 miles. I saw my fans twice in this time frame. Jen letting Pablo run along side of me, my father-in-law getting some great pictures and my mother and mother-in-law cheering wildly really helped push me along and stay positive. By the time the half-marathoners were turning off to their finish, I was at 1:46, dead on my target pace! However, I knew the second half wouldn't be as easy as the first.

I figured at this point it was safe to push it. Either it was going to help my time or hurt it, no way to know unless I tried. In fact my fastest mile, was number 17 with a 7:43. Maybe I pushed it too hard, but I doubt an extra 15 seconds was to blame for what would come 5 miles later.

At mile 19, I knew I was starting to slip: 8:35. Mile 21, I had never run this far before, 8:44. Mile 22: 9:33, eak. My legs were really starting to hurt now. Very strong pain in my calves and the top of my gluteus distracted me. My body was tired from doing the same motion over and over again. Searching for some relief, I stopped to stretch, tried picking my knees up higher, even running backwards just to give my legs a little break. The 8:35 pace team caught up to me, but even with their encouragement I couldn't mentally get back in control.

As I was running a 11:26, and 10:35 for miles 23 and 24, I almost lost some tears. I don't think I bonked. I had the energy to keep going just not the mental stamina to ignore my pain. Luckily, I was still making progress and around that time I was able to start smelling the finish line. My legs were so tired, they were tired of hurting and I knew I would be able finish strong.

At about that time Steph comes riding up on her bike. She cheers me on and then starts riding along side me. Not only did I have the pressure of someone I knew watching me, but also video taping my stride (darn you iPhones). I couldn't let up now.

As I got about a mile away I saw Jen and my mother-in-law. That was only half of my crowd, I knew the other two must be closer to the finish line. I wasn't going to leave anything on the course. I passed people left and right on the way to the finish. I didn't hear my mom cheer as I crossed the finish line, just a medical person ask if I was alright.

The next twenty minutes consisted of the worse leg pain I have ever felt, but I wasn't surprised because it was similar to my 20 mile training run 3 weekends earlier. You should have seen me try to walk to the massage area.

The soreness lasted in earnest through Tuesday. By Wednesday I felt a lot better. It was a great race and well organized. While I didn't hit my goal time, I am happy with my finishing time 3:42:11, a 8:29 pace. Pretty respectable for my first marathon. Will I do it again? I'm not sure, it was a great sense of accomplishment.

You can view my full interactive results at http://www.mtecresults.com/runner/show?rid=3556&race=512

One thing I can't omit was the great surprise my wife helped pull off. We were leaving Keeneland on Friday afternoon and Jen said that we needed to stop by the airport because a friend who had flown back from an international trip that week had miss placed a bag, it had now arrived. Sounded fine by me, I needed to use the restroom anyway. We pulled up to the curb. Jen ran in and quickly came out hauling a blue suit case, she was now going to stay with the car as I ran inside. I walk in the doors by the baggage claim and I see a familiar profile leading against the wall. "Mom?" I ask, "what are you doing here?" She asks the same question back at me. I go on to explain that we are picking a bag up for a friend. After I finish my detailed explanation I realize no one's bag got misplaced. Even more time passes before I realize she has flown in to watch me run my marathon. What an awesome surprise. The fact that my mom flew in to watch my first marathon was right along side the feeling of completing the marathon itself.