Done . . . Goal Achieved!

I did it! 12 marathons in 2008. A marathon a month. It was a good goal . . . achievable, simple to state, understand and remember. And it sounds hard.

But when you get down to it, it's really not that bad. All it really takes is a desire to do it and a little luck on the injury front. Heck, a friend of mine, Doug Dawkins, just finished his goal . . . running across the US from Atlantic Beach, NC to Mission Beach, California. 122 days covering 2,700 miles. That's averaging over 22 miles a day and he didn't run every day . . . he took some days off!

So a marathon a month really isn't all that much. But considering work and everything it wasn't bad!

The only really hard part was deciding to still try for the goal after getting sick. On August 8th I got sick (night before James and Cheryl's wedding) and couldn't start running again until September 27th. 7 weeks is a long time and I lost a lot of fitness due to both the lack of running and the sickness. When I started back, 2 miles was a struggle . . . but I built back up and decided to attempt the OBX marathon November 9th and see how it would go. If I remember correctly, my long run was 15 miles in preparation.

While I did struggle, things when fairly well, so I started thinking about the goal again. The next weekend was the Richmond Marathon, and I decided to give it a shot. While I worried about "back-to-back" marathons, it really proved to not be a factor all. Did "back-to-back" marathons again December 6th and yesterday . . . again, not a problem at all.

So . . . where were they?

1. First Light Marathon – Mobile, AL January 12, 2008
2. Bi-Lo Myrtle Beach Marathon – Myrtle Beach, SC February 16, 2008
3. Rocky Mount Marathon – Rocky Mount, NC March 14, 2008
4. Ellerbe Springs Marathon – Ellerbe Springs, NC March 28, 2008
5. Country Music Marathon – Nashville, TN April 25, 2008
6. Capon Valley 50K – Yellow Spring, WV May 9, 2008
7. Boogie Marathon - Ellerbe Springs, NC June 14, 2008
8. Sweaty Butt 50k - Raleigh, NC July 5, 2008
9. OBX Marathon – Kitty Hawk, NC November 9, 2008
10. Richmond Marathon – Richmond, VA November 15, 2008
11. Medoc Trail Marathon Re-Run – Hollister, NC December 6, 2008
12. Thunder Road Marathon – Charlotte, NC December 13, 2008

My favotite? Hard to say. Loved Boogie, Capon Valley, Richmond, Medoc and surprisingly Charlotte. Looking at them, they either were a unique / different event (Boogie, Capon Valley and Medoc) or well done with an interesting course and good support.

My least favotite? Country Music by far. Though it was really neat running that race with James as his first marathon. Really surprising since this is one of the Rock 'n Roll events. Lot's of areas they should do MUCH better (parking, shirt, medal, finish area, and the second 1/2 of the course was terrible!)

Best medal / award? Guess I'm biased somewhat (!) but I think the Medoc medal is #1 followed by Charlotte. For me, this is a good place to show creativity and spend a little money.

Least favorite medal / award? Well, Capon Valley gave nothing at all! Nor did the Sweaty Butt 50k. But the Boogie marathon gave a ceramic coffee mug . . . with the race info scratched on the bottom! Totally worthless! I think a marathon deserves a medal. Period. No mugs, No glasses, no belt buckle. Medals. (Guess "fat ass" races like the Sweaty Butt get a hall pass here, since these are put on by one or two individuals and there is no entry fee.)

Best shirt? Capon Valley, Medoc Charlotte and Boogie were all really great designs. Just wish race directors would forget the technical shirts and go back to 100% cotton. And a fall marathon shirt needs to be long-sleeved cotton . . . no exception. But, Capon Valley wins! Very different and no ads!

Worst shirt? No competition here at all! This shirt was by far the WORST I've ever seen or heard of! Myrtle Beach . . take a bow as the race with the worst taste!

So, this goal is over. How about 2009? I need a goal. Been thinking about some . . . we'll see. Stay tuned.