Counting down...

Where does 18 weeks go? I mean, seriously? It literally feels like yesterday that I started training for the Eugene Marathon and here it is... finally upon me. I started training officially on December 30, 2007 (or maybe it December 31, 2007) and now here it is... May 1st and I'm tapering.

Tomorrow at this time, I'll be at Chicago's O'Hare airport, awaiting my flight to Portland. Around 12:45 West Coast time, I'll be arriving in Portland.. getting in the rental car and heading down to Eugene. The forecast for Sunday is a partly cloudy high of 62 (which hopefully it wont hit while I'm actually running) and a low of 41. As long as it stays out of the 60s for the bulk of the race, I'm calling that perfect race weather.

This race is different for me. My first marathon.... it was all about finishing and doing it with April. It was our first and we made a pact to enjoy it, because we knew that every marathon after that first one, we would be concerned with beating our previous time and not enjoying it. In Memphis, I wasn't prepared... physically, emotionally, mentally, etc. And I paid for it. I hit the wall, puked my guts out and learned my lesson. This time... it's about achieving a goal. It's not about finishing, I know I can do that. It's about improving. This race is going to hurt. I'm prepared for that and I'm ready for the challenge.

So, after the race on Sunday (and after I inhale a big, fat greasy cheeseburger and milkshake)... my mom and I are headed to the coast for a couple of nights and then we're heading to Portland for a few nights and I won't get back to Nashville till next Friday. So, this will be my last post till next weekend. Since I know you will all be on the edge of your seats wondering how I did (ummm... okay, so I'm slightly delusional it seems... don't let that bother you), I'll have April post my finish time on Monday and then you'll just have to wait for my race report for when I get back.

The next time you hear from me, I'll be posting about setting a new marathon PR.