Turns out it was perfect. December 5th in Las Vegas was the weekend after CSU's season finale and the Broncos were out of town. My Hold 'Em playing husband was all in: My first 26.2 would be the Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon.
Somewhere along the way, my husband decided he'd like to run the 1/2 Marathon. This coming from a man who never liked to run and sometimes mocks my rationale for loving the sport. I signed him up anyway, and told him he owed me the entry fee back if he bailed.
This was the Rock 'n' Roll folks first year taking over the Vegas Marathon. In 2008 the race had 11,000 entrants. This year there were 27,100!
Some interesting tidbits before I get into the race:
35% were running the full or 1/2 for the first time (including us)
59% registered were women (sweet!)
85% traveled from outside of Clark County where Vegas is located
175 Musicians made up 35 bands and used 325 guitar picks as course entertainment
250 High School Cheerleaders and 500 Pom Poms stayed upbeat from start to finish along the routes
The medical tents went through 75 one-pound jars of Vaseline (can you say friction?)
We flew in on Friday (the race was Sunday) and were invited to a VIP/Media party Friday night which was a lot of fun. I met Frank Shorter for the first time and a lot of the elite runners were there as well. I noticed they weren't eating and drinking like we were - very interesting.
Saturday was just a fun day in Vegas. Mike played poker and I went shopping with my brother and his wife at the Outlets. We went to bed at a good time and tried not to be nervous for Sunday morning.
The cold snap that hit Colorado this week went through Nevada first and while the temperatures weren't in the single digits, it was in the low 30's race morning with a little breeze. I brought full length tights but opted to wear my capri tights thinking I would get too warm. I was wrong.
The start was really cool. A Cher impostor sang the Star Bangled Banner and a fireworks display lasting about 15 minutes filled the sky. The first wave of 1,000 runners were off at 6:15am.
Each corral of 1,000 went about every minute. I expected mass chaos, but it was very organized and there wasn't any congestion after crossing under the start banner. We headed south down Las Vegas Blvd for less than a mile, then turned around and went north down the strip.
Both sides of the strip were closed (for the first time ever) and it was surreal to see all the runners in front, in back and eventually on both sides of the road. A local TV station was carrying the race and all the hotels had the broadcast going on their big screens which was really cool.
About 3 miles in, I noticed coverage was focused on the elite runners and I wondered where they were. Not a minute later I saw them running the other way down the strip. Now I knew why they weren't drinking wine and scarfing cream cheese and salmon crackers on Friday!
I stayed comfortable when running on the strip except for my fingers (thankfully I brought gloves). All the bodies and buildings helped create warmth. The problem came when the marathoners peeled away from the strip.
They sent us out west for a few miles and with nothing to block the elements, it got chillier and chillier. My left knee started to give me a hard time (I had tweaked something a few weeks before in a training run and it never healed) and the cold didn't help. People were starting to walk for extended periods of time including me.
I had been walking through aid stations from the get go, subscribing to the Jeff Galloway theory that I would be stronger in the final miles. But at Mile 19, I thought I was done running when a sharp pain jolted through my leg. I almost called my brother and told him to forget about waiting at the finish because I was going to be a while.
But, I was able to keep up a fast walk for probably a 1/2 mile and decided I'd try to run again. My knee/leg buckled in pain. OK, I'll just walk fast and try again in a few minutes. The next time I tried, it didn't hurt so I figured, keep this pace and just go. I somehow had won a mental and physical game with myself and got through the next couple miles with mostly running and a little walking.
At Mile 22, I had a wave of energy and euphoria sweep over me for some reason. I found a pace where nothing hurt and stuck with it. I never stopped the last 4.2 miles and was even able to kick it up a notch in Mile 26 when most people were walking.
I was smiling and singing when passing a DJ or band. I ran by a speaker blaring "Baby Got Back" and sang along. Then in the final 1/2 mile, a band was there singing Billy Idol's White Wedding and I crossed in front of them right at the end of the song when the lyrics go "More, more, more, more, more!!" I pumped my fist and screamed the words with them. I felt awesome.
The finish line was emotional. I was running hard because I wanted to get under 4 hours and knew I'd be really close. I stepped across the line, welled up with tears, grabbed my finisher medal and saw my time: 4:00:07. Seven seconds over 4 hours. I thought back to the times I walked, stopped to stretch or fiddled with the toiler paper on my one bathroom break.
But I couldn't be that disappointed. I finished, and at a couple points along the race, I didn't think I would. Mike wailed through his race in 2 hours and 32 minutes, about 20 minutes faster than he thought he would. The first-timers were a success in Sin City while my sister-in-law finished her 9th half-marathon in 1:53!
Now it's time to look for the next one. Perhaps Rock 'n' Roll Denver in October 2010... but only if I can talk CSU into a bye that weekend and get the Broncos on the road :)
