As I mentioned in my last post, I had to cancel my plans to complete the 2015 Chicago Marathon for various reasons, most acutely because of a family emergency. Since writing that post, things have stabilized and my mother is now in a rehab facility and is well on her way to recovery. As marathon weekend approached, I felt comfortable enough with her progress to head down to the city to watch my son participate. I drove down to meet him on Saturday afternoon and we went to the expo center to pick up our race packets. I figured I paid for it, I might as well pick it up.
We found a place to eat for the traditional pre-race carb-load. It was at dinner (and maybe after a glass or two of wine) that I decided, “hey, what the heck—I’m here. I’ll just do the darn race”. Um, what did I just say?
So literally with no training whatsoever, out of shape, out of breath, and out of my mind, I finished the 2015 Chicago Marathon! I know that sounds unbelievable, but I did it…and here’s proof. I even have a smile on my face! Trust me, that is not the face I wore throughout most of those grueling (and I do mean grueling) 26.2 miles. But a finish is a finish, and I am an OFFICIAL finisher! More on that in my next post…
Have you ever completed a race in the face of diversity? How did you feel going in…and coming out? Were you surprised you could still achieve your goal, given the circumstances that prevented you from training? Have you ever PRd in a race you didn’t train for?