Pre-race:
The start of my weekend started when my girl and I flew in on Friday night. My cousin, Sara and I hit up Little Star, our favorite deep dish pizza place in San Fran. Had to wait about an hour plus, but man it was worth it. Had some delicious New Belgium Abbey to chase it down with.
The next morning, we hit up the expo which was moved from the Embarcadero to some warehouse/convention center in the city. It was pretty packed but since we had some time to kill, Sara and I took our time checking things out. I was registered for the full marathon and wanted to downgrade to a half due to my persistent foot issue that I've been having, but the 1st half was sold out so I said the hell with it. If it held up, I'd try to finish the full. If it became painful and felt like I'd do more harm than good, I'd call it a day at the half. Got some ART (Active Release Technique) and kinesio taping at an expo stand which helped a little, but pain was still very prevalent. 
We also ran into some blog buddies in Danica, Maritza and Tara which was cool because I'd never really had a chance to meet the latter two in person. After chatting it up a bit, we left the stuffy and crowded expo shortly thereafter for a bite to eat and then a meet up with my fellow friends and forumites from Runner's World for a carbo-load dinner. And by "carbo-load", I mean beer. And wine. Sprinkled in some food in there somewhere.
Yup, that's how we roll. What pre-race jitters?
The Race:
Ok. Bedtime? About 11:30pm. Wake-up time? 3:45am. Ouch.
My cousin Frank, his girlfriend Leslie, Sara (who wasn't running) and I all took turns getting ready before heading out the door a little before 5am. When we got there, there was mass congestion at wave 2 and so it took me after the 2nd group was let go before I finally made it out to the start. Almost immediately, I knew that my foot was not up to the task of pounding out 26.2 miles on a hilly course in San Francisco. Even had my doubts about running 13.1 miles. Thankfully, a little under a mile into it, I hear female voices calling out my name and I see my aforementioned blogging gals again, this time with Aron in tow. I am relieved to see them to take my mind off my foot and pretty soon, the 3 of us (Aron, Danica and I) are running together and would pretty much run the entire 13.1 miles together. It was great fun running at a relaxed pace all the while chatting it up and taking some pictures of each other along the way. Definitely took my mind off of my foot for the most part.
Some pics we took along the way:
The mis-matching twins.
Stride for stride, mugging.
Danica demonstrating the "rope-pull" technique of running up a hill.
Our buddy Ryan running with the 3:10 pace group...dressed as Harry Potter. Seriously.
A much welcomed (and rare) downhill portion.
The girls approaching the finish at Golden Gate Park.
Man, forgot how hilly that first half is. Ended up finishing in 2:02:01 (officially). My slowest time since...well, my first one probably. But no doubt the most fun I've had running a half, that's for sure. My thanks to the black + pink twins for the great company, Sara for the one gal crowd support, my RWOL peeps for the great pre/post-race festivities and my cousin Frank for letting us crash for the weekend and buying us that great post-race Korean BBQ. I leave you with a picture of a Sunday afternoon BBQ at Dolores Park to cap a near perfect weekend in SF...all race weekends should be like this! (thanks for putting it together Heather)
No running for me for awhile...need to rest my aching left foot. Talk soon peeps.
24 comments:
it was SO much fun to meet and run with you!!! seriously the best half running with you and danica - what could be better?? :) i hope we get to run together again someday soon!!
now rest up and get that foot healed!
Dude, sorry about the foot. But I have to say this: You Cali people sure know how to have fun. If I had that kind of fun/support during some of my races, I'd forget all about my pain. Hope you heal up soon so you can get back out there.
Peace, B.
Sounds like an awesome time despite the bum foot. Way to go Billy!
It looks like you guys had SUCH a blast. Hope your foot heals soon!
Sounds and looks like you had a great time. I think it is very cool that you and all the other bloggers were able to meet up.
Take care of your foot! Hope it starts to feel much better soon.
Very cool Billy! It looks like everyone had a great time. I suppose I need to put this one on my list of races to do.
I'm also glad that you took it easy on the foot. After knowing what Sara has gone through the last year, I would certainly be skittish about doing more harm than good. It's nice to see someone who can get pleasure out of the event and the company and not worry (too much) about the time.
And 2:02 while taking it easy - that still pretty respectable!
Looks like a blast, rest that foot now. Danica and Aron look like Liquorish Allsorts!
Sorry to hear that your foot hurt, but sounds like you had one blast of a run! Those were some fun photos.
Dang. Look at all those hills and inclines! I would be so intimidated....
Oh man, I didn't realize how bad your foot felt. You were smart to not finish the 26.2! I hope it gets better soon. Take it easy for a while, as you've planned. It was so great to see you and to meet Sara in person! The FE was seriously a blast... but that picture of me with the Manhattan is misleading!!! In retrospect, I wish I'd drank the whole thing instead of taking just a sip. ;) Take care of yourself!!!
Hope your foot gets better soon- I think it's amazing you finished the half! (Your time was still faster than my first half.) Sounds like a fun weekend!
Way to do it and have fun, Billy! Sounds like a great time - wish I was there.
i'm glad you had a fun time and found aron & danica to keep you company. stinks about your foot, but better that you didn't push the full. hope it starts feeling better soon - take it easy, don't be too hardcore!
Sounds like you had a blast. Heal up now! :)
sounds like a fun time, running with friends and taking pics...glad you got to enjoy it, and your foot held up....i'm curious about the kinesiotaping, if it really helps..
i wouldn't mind doing the san fran half again (did it in '07)! Great course and pictures (with the marathon maniac singlet to show!) bro! rest up, heal up and there's always another marathon. I was just going to ask you about the kinesio tape...you said a little....did it improve the soreness/pain and range of motion? inquiring minds wants to know ! ;)
@ Oz & Morrisey - jury's still out about the kinesio tape. It was applied after my ART session so it's hard to distinguish which did what (which wasn't that much). Also, think problem might now be more bone than tendon.
Hi Billy,
Sorry to hear about your foot, but at least you got a good half in. Next year the full for sure.
Came across your blog randomly, and I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw you pictured with Tara and Maritza. I came up at one point to say hi to them, and I guess that was you standing right there. Next time I'll introduce myself.
Hope your foot heals up and you can get some milleage in.
Take care,
Todd aka @thepixelsuite
I'm a lurker who reads your blog regularly. I was wondering whether you'd be running the full, but I knew you hadn't because I saw you not long after I had finished the first half also. I wanted to say hi, but it took me a second to realize it was you after you had walked past me.
It's always cool, but a little strange when you follow someone's blog and then you see them in person. You're the third blogger I've seen in person at a race...Glorybelle was one, and I once saw Maritza during an early morning run in Danville.
Anyhow, I'm glad you at least enjoyed the race. I hope you're foot heals quickly. If I see you at the Long Beach Half, I'll say hi this time.
It is all about having fun. None of us get paid to do it.
I hope you continue to heal up and keep on having fun.
Love the pics!
Rest up that foot!
I love just running races for fun without crazy time goals and pressure...they are...way more fun that way.
Billy,
I just started reading your blog, but I think I saw you as well at the SFM. If you were cheering loudly as the 3:40 pace group ran by the half marathoners, then yes it was you! I also wanted to ask. I am having some pain in my right foot since the race and am thinking it might be peroneal tendon issues. Did you ever get your foot looked at by a podiatrist? I thought it might have been a stress fracture, but it is so hard to pinpoint the source of the pain.
@ lindsey - yes, that was me! I was standing there feeling bad about the marathoners having to run by the 1st half finishers. I ran the full last year so I can sympathize. Were you chasing a BQ? Hope you got it!
Haven't seen a podiatrist yet because I can't really afford to get MRI right now. But if you can, go see one stat! I'm just going to try resting for a few weeks and if it comes back, then I'll just suck it up and go in.
@ Joy + Todd - yes, by all means do say "hello" next time. I promise I don't bite.
Most of the time.
I thought that was you! It is hard to miss the yellow tank top and your enthusiasm! That location was the best crowd support by far. It is so hard to hear at mile 14 or 15 your going to Boston, when all you can think is I still have another half to run. I did qualify thought!!! The hills were brutal, but living in Denver with high altitude and the ability to do lots of trail runs definitely helped.
I went to see the podiatrist (even though I really didn't want to) and I sprained the bone. I didn't know that was even possible. He said 3-4 week recovery so I should be able to start training again. I hope your foot gets better soon! Let me know if you end up going in to the doctor.
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