My guide Chris and I left for California on December 2nd....we were scheduled to arrive Sacramento at 4:40pm. Well, with all the cancellations, delays and mix ups we finally arrived in SAC at 11:40pm. We were not impressed! We missed a very important presentation. The Lions had made a couple of attempts to greet us at the airport, but due to so many delays and bedtime for most, Lion Jessica was there to pick us up and drive us to Mary Dignan & Andy Rostens home. We were welcomed with open arms and warm soup, buns and wine. Fantastic people they are!
MARATHON DAY!
Early rise at 4:15am, BLECH! I am usually a morning person but this was a little too early. Breakfast was oatmeal with raisons and walnuts made in the hotel coffee pot. Forced breakfast down, got ready and went downstairs to meet everyone - everyone was all chipper! Heidi (Richard Hunters' wife) picked us up and took us to the warming tent. Chris and I met all the VI runners and chatted while we wait for race start. We then went out and warmed up a little and headed towards the start line. We were both excited to start.
As the gun went off, we were on our way. We seemed to be running strong and enjoying the run. It was about 1/2 way point when i was feeling tired, Chris was still running strong. It was until mile 20 when things started to change. Chris was experiencing some pain and told me to continue on. I had a meltdown. I wanted to finish with him, he insisted i go ahead. Some thing tells me that i should do this, and i can do this. It was weird to run without him, I pushed myself on and did not want to disappoint him. DIG! I thought of Terry Fox, friends, family and continued to dig deep. Suddenly a man came up to me and said that my guide Chris is doing okay and asked if I need help with guiding. I said sure, I explained to him what Chris does to assist me during the run and he willingly listened and started to guide me. He was doing a good job guiding, i complimented to him how well he is doing. He even commented that he will look into guiding when he gets home. I was thrilled to hear that. I couldn't wait to tell Chris that possibly,there will be a new guide in the making. As we approached close to the finish line, Steve (North Carolina) directed me to turn left to the Womens finish line - we said our goodbyes, good luck and thank yous. I was elated to finish the marathon feeling strong. As soon as i crossed the line, a few Lions greeted me and took loads of pictures, then was interviewed for their local news, and we stood aside waiting for Chris. I was anxious, not knowing how he is doing, hoping he would be okay. Then Chris came running to me, we were reunited and happy that we were both safe and finished the marathon! Then Lions were so helpful, they got our gear bags, made sure we had water, walked us to the VIP tent - restaurant and then sat down to eat. The food was fabulous! Scrambled eggs, quiche, coissants and mimosa! That went down very nicely!
MORE TO COME...
