My first marathon

On Sunday, May 17th, I ran my first marathon: the Denver Colfax Marathon. I’ve run the Colfax Half Marathon for three years in a row now, and I’m not getting any younger — so, it being the 20th anniversary of the Colfax Marathon, I figured now was my chance.

Training had been difficult but rewarding. I’ve learnt a lot from my run club, pushed myself much further than I thought I’d be able to, and spent a lot of time thinking about what to eat.

The race was harder than I could have imagined. The first half felt too easy — I was well ahead of my four-hour finish goal and feeling very good. That should have been the warning sign of what was to come. The second half got harder quickly, and by mile 24 I was out of pace, my legs cramping. I tried to run/walk the remainder, but each run segment got progressively shorter and slower. This was the infamous wall I’d heard so much about.

But I made it. I crossed the finish line at about 4:19. Not ideal, but also not bad for my first marathon… and what I thought would be my last… but now that my legs have started to recover, I’m not so sure about that… perhaps London is next?