I decided to go for it alright!

Berlin was the most amazing thing ever!!!  I told you about this the day after the race but today the two photos I ordered arrived so, lucky you, you get to hear the story….Again!

I trained pretty aggressively for Berlin.  To be honest, I think I went into this race over-trained and I paid.  It’s not the fault of my coach.  I should have told him I was toast.  I was determined to do every single mile.  Every single Tempo Run.  Every single step.  I refused to succumb to my age.  I knew better then and I know better now.  Will I do it again?  Probably.  HA!

The race in Berlin was amazing!  Even though it was a very difficult marathon, I had the time of my life!  Would I run Berlin again?  You bet I would….as soon as my charge cards recover.  🙂

I ran hard in Germany.  It was an off day.  No excuses. It was what it was.  MFH (My Favorite Husband) and I saw everything there was to see in Berlin and then some.  I ran the race. We had fun!  We celebrated 30 years of marriage.  Can’t top that!

Race day dawned chilly.  I was freezing waiting for the race to start.  As soon as we got moving, the sun came out and it warmed up fast.  I learned something around the 13.1 mark.  My new fueling strategy was a bust.  Back to Gels.  They have never failed me.  Live and learn….

At the mark for the last 5K of the race I saw MFH.  He cheered me on.  He lifted my spirits and I was set to fly through the last 5K.  I’m here to tell you, that was THE LONGEST 5K of my life!  So many turns.  Each turn you are looking for the beautiful sight of the Brandenburg Gate.  At each turn, you are disappointed.

Did they literally move that Gate while you were racing!?!

Finally, I see the Gate!  YAY!!!  My pace picks up and I figure I have 3 maybe 4 minutes of running left.  Woo-Hoo!!!

I run, with lots of other people from all over the world, through the columns of the Brandenburg Gate.  I see ahead, the last .20 of the race, the glorious finish line.  Boo-yah!  Let’s finish this thing!  All of a sudden:

This camera crew steps in front of me and starts an interview!  The clock is still ticking!  My finish time….this is not good.  But, I was polite and stopped running and chatted with the nice German man.  As the interview progresses, the light dawns and I realize that this camera crew has been waiting (for a very long time) for me to come through the gate so they could conduct this interview.

I think they detained me for 3 maybe 4 minutes.  The ending of the interview was the nice man congratulating MFH and I on 30 yrs of marriage and saying, “As you successfully complete the Berlin Marathon, this song’s for you and your husband.”

The sound system begins to blast the Wedding March. The crowd goes wild and they are all cheering…for ME!

AMAZING!!!

I ran for the finish line for all I was worth.  As I passed the crowds and other runners, people were offering their congratulations!  Wave upon wave of cheers.  I was stunned!  The genuine happiness of these people for my husband and myself…I was speechless!!!

The music continued until I crossed the finish line.

At the finish line, a nice person draped my finishers medal over my head and around my neck.

I’ve never experienced anything like this in my life.  It was completely overwhelming.  It was incredible!

It is impossible to put into words all the things I felt at that moment.  I DO know that this is and will be one of the most memorable and treasured things in my life!

Thanks for listening to my story…again.

Marine Corps Marathon is in 19 days!  Time to run again!  BOOM!