Yakima Marathon

Pre-race photo...Ricky cooperating as usual

When I was in labor with Oscar and Poppy, Rick was loving and supportive, but always wears a face of confusion as to how exactly to make me more comfortable. He may attempt to squeeze my hand, or rub my back and yet, he really can't do anything to help me. Ultimately it is my pain to endure.
I hadn't really thought of this before, until yesterday. Yesterday marked a first for us as a married couple. It was the first marathon that we have not ran together. Thus far, it has been a joint effort and so we both have trained and pained in each others company.
Post race, we both sit around with stiff legs and let our bellies fill with much deserved food. Then we can chat and retrace each others foot steps of the race, and can visibly see each others perspective.
Yesterday, I was in the spectator seat. I couldn't help Ricky run, I couldn't help him recover at the finish, all I could do was give him a hug and let him walk it off. And then drive him home.
Having both given child birth (twice), and ran a marathon 3 times, I would say that they certainly have their similarities...months of training/pregnancy, culminating with a painful, joyous experience. And at the end of both, you come out a stronger person than you were before.
So, now that Rick is a marathon up on me, I will just calculate my 2 childbirths into the equation and that way I am one-up on him...;0)

Yesterday Ricky and I ventured to Ellensburg, for Ricky's marathon...so while he was doing this:

Blue monkey prep-pose...

Ricky set a new PR but missed the Boston qualifying time by 15 seconds! I know, you can gasp now. He was so close. He did a great job and was very fast. (Although, it may come down to the fact that his Garmin wasn't reading correctly, or the coarse was off a bit) I loved being able to see him in the finish. Typically he is always waiting around for my sorry, slow self to cross.(Doesn't he look angelic? Post-race glow?)

So, as he was doing his race...I was doing a bit of this: Notice the balloons? Those are my contribution to the race. Frozen finger, balloon tying. This is how I earned my post-race food...yeah...sounds rough huh?

Here are the guys trying to get the finish line up before the wheel chair racer came through.This is me with some of the funny finish line set-up crew. They really have it all down to a science. There are specific people who do the same job every year. It was really fun being able to help out at the finish. Although my post-balloon tying job consisted of keeping spectators out of the finish area, it was pretty fun to be in there with all of the awesome action.
I would say the other very cool part about being at the finish, was seeing the first woman come across, she was so fast. She came in at just over the 3hour mark. It makes me want to run sooooo bad!
I just have to keep telling myself that there is a time and if I let my hip heal now, then I can do better later.
After we got home, I did a measly 12mile bike ride and called it a day.
Fun stuff...