Be Calm and Marath On

I was told only 1% of the population will ever complete what I did, now I know why... Oh the marathon... "At mile 20, I thought I was dead. At mile 22, I wished I was dead. At mile 24, I knew I was dead. At mile 26.2, I realized I had become too tough to kill." ~ Anonymous. A quote that rings so true.

On October 26, 2013 at 5:30 a.m., my day began. I woke up, took a shower, and straightened my hair. I then got dressed, grabbed a cup of coffee, and went to the car. Terrence got Easton ready and we set off for Jonas Ridge. (The girls were with my parents - warm in bed). I ate 3/4 a bowl of oatmeal -I wasn't very hungry - and the thought of choking down 4-5 peanut butter energy gels was messing with my mind. We arrived to Jonas Ridge at 7:20ish. The race was supposed to start at 8:00, and it was 22 degrees! Given the fact I was in a short running skirt and a thin, long-sleeved top I was scared to get out of the truck... but I did, at 7:40.  I ran into a gas station/general store to stay warm... during that time, I met several people who kept my spirits high. Some of them were the fastest, others were rookies, and some were experts.  At 7:55, Michelle, a nice lady from Indiana (who's daughter is a medical SLP) escorted me to the starting line. There I saw Christy, Bryan, and Cindy (three runners from Morganton) and we hugged.  Then the race seemed to start five seconds later - no prayer - no ready, set, go - just BOOM! So we started. About two minutes into the race, I heard "CARLY, is there a CARLY, a CARLY in a rainbow skirt?" I said "Yes!" and all of the sudden a man said "HERE!" and my friend Pam ran back grabbed my hand and took off. I told her to go on, mumbled something, and we parted. The first 5 miles or so, I made friends, found my pace, and ran. Pam passed me at a turn around and we "high-fived," she told me I would love the gravel ahead.  I did! At mile 6, I started a 9 mile descent down the mountain (although it seemed not so much like that). By down the mountain, I mean, through an area called "the Globe," it is an unpaved, remote, and rolling area of beauty. While running through the Globe, I met a nice looking fellow from Florida (who was dressed for a blizzard) and we ran together for 3 or 4 miles, chit chatting and what not. He told me that he and his wife vacation up here and enjoy camping in July, "it is so nice and cool," he claimed. Which gave me a good chuckle! When we parted, I enjoyed a mile or so of peace and solitude before meeting a man from Marion, NC and his friend from Cincinnati. I asked the man from Marion what our times were - he said we ran the first half in under 2 hours and 30 minutes; total personal record "PR" for me! At mile 14, my quads were killing me. A police officer came through the course at this time, in his car. I told him to pass, but he didn't, instead he followed me for 5-10 minutes. When he finally passed me, he got on his loud speaker and said "Looking strong pretty runner." So I imagine he was looking at my backside - I mean, c'mon, I wore a cute skirt - I stared at it for hours online! I digress, back to the marathon... Then, I turned out of the Globe and took off towards a town called Mortimer. At this point there was an aide station at mile 16. I could bore you with details of how I cried when I realized David D. (a friend's father and a former colleague's husband) gave me a cup of gatorade and encouraged me... but I won't. I love you David, forever, running makes me crazy. Then I hit the proverbial wall. It hurts and it is real. So real. I tried not to panic, I held back tears, and I cursed. I prayed a few times, begged for forgiveness, and told myself - get this done or your family will disown you, Jaime will fire you, Pam will defriend you, and Christy, Bryan, and Cindy will laugh at you. But as those negative thoughts sunk into my head, my guardian angel came around and made me positive again. A nice lady, her name escapes me, and her sister ran/walked with me for 4 miles or so. They were ultra runners (crazy-fanatics who run like 30-100 miles for fun). Thanks to these two ladies, their jokes, liberal minds, and beautiful out looks on life I managed to pull myself out of a dark-chasm. At mile 18 we turned onto Wilson's Creek road, and by mile 20 they left me. I struggled for a a few minutes finding the strength to run again. At this point, I knew I could finish, but I didn't think it would running. So I walked/ran until mile 22... when, I have determined, a pretzel rod saved my life. It made me run again - and love running again. I grabbed a pretzel at an aide station, stopped and talked for a minute to the helpers, and took off. I think I ran my personal best four miles ever (haha);  I seemed to be flying. At mile 23, I hallucinated momentarily, cursed again, and immediately begged for forgiveness - the 3 looked like a 5.  Anyhow, miles 22-25 were a blur. At mile 25, I tasted victory. Coming down Wilson's Creek road I smiled, I beamed, I laughed, and I danced like I usually do when I run (yes, I am a head bobber, running makes me giddy). Then I heard a car, a familiar car, it was that silly police officer again... this time he got on his loud speaker and said "There she is, my pretty runner! Looking good!" I laughed so hard, I nearly had to quit. But I kept running.

Then I smelled burgers, I don't eat burgers but I could smell them, I heard people laughing and I realized this was it, the END. I could taste 26.2. I wanted to kiss the ground.  I saw my Mom first, then my Dad, then Easton, Elle, Ava, and my sweet friends Wendy and Sherri. I greeted each of them separately, smiled, and said "is this it?" My Mom said "you have a little more," and I wanted to jump her.  Love you Mom! Then I saw Jaime, my dear friend and boss. Jaime was cheering me on, her girls Macey and Morgan wanted to run and kindly asked if they could finish with me, so I said "c'mon girls, let's do this!" And we did. Macey, Morgan, and Carly finished Peak to Creek Marathon. At the end was a  huge sign saying "Go Carly Go!",  a handsome man standing at the end to hug me (Terrence),  my darling friend Pam (who rocked this marathon out) ready to hug me, my mother-in-law smiling, my kids running to greet me, my parents cheering, and several of the folks I met along the way yelling for me. It was amazing! Then I looked for that medal. "Put it on my neck, STAT," I screamed in my head. I wasn't leaving without it. Saturday night, was likely the most awful night of my life, but I handled it with a smile. I was in so much pain - but I felt accomplished and swollen. Sunday was better... and today, Monday, I worked some and did a 1,000 yard swim. I feel okay. I am tired but okay. I hope to run on Thursday or Friday of this week. We shall see. I hope to feel normal again... in time, I imagine.


"If you want to win something, run 100 meters. If you want to experience something, run a marathon." -- Emil Zatopek