Cathy Christian's Seattle 1/2 Marathon Race Report

Unbelievable is the one word that describes my day. The skies were clear, blue, and sunny, the air was crisp and I was in the company of friends. What better Sunday?

I was prepared. Had my camelback secure, my abs in, my shoulderblades down, and my torso up! I ran with Angela for the the first half of the race, and that was really terrific for me. We didn't talk much, but it was nice traveling with her. I took Shaun's advice and just absorbed it all - the sights, the people, the views of Seattle I had never seen before. Amazing how wide the Danskin bike path to I-90 looked!

I had three miles to go when I heard a constant honking. I turned around to see a motorcycle cop flashing his lights. I thought someone must be hurt, so I moved a bit to the right. He passed me, and then someone brushed my left shoulder - and I watched the first marathoner (the guy who won, obviously) just breeze past me, his heels kicking to his butt. Boy, did his backside look good after running 23 miles! I briefly thought of my own feeble trot, but I just kept on going!

I had a great day. The bottoms of my feet hurt tremendously, and I think it is because this is the second season with these shoes, and they are worn out. I still don't think that I'm good enough to use up a pair of shoes, but I think I just did. I had a minor meltdown in the middle of the recovery hall, when I couldn't find food or my clothes and I was cold and I hadn't seen anyone I knew yet. So I just stood there and cried for about 30 seconds. I felt better and wandered outside and heard Shaun yell. She got my clothes for me.

And I got a really cool medal, too!

Thanks for thinking I could do this, Friends, when I sure didn't think I could!

What a helluva year for me! For all of us!!!