Preparation Begins

Tonight I'll be on a bus ride, making my way through the marathon course. I'll listen closely to insight from Coach Sisson and the race director...then onto the Rogue pep-rally at Ringers.

This is the week that it starts to sink in. The week when six months of training comes together.

I have not trained as well as I did two years ago. I've missed more runs than ever and don't think that I ran on my own once. I am, however, much stronger. Stronger than I have ever been. I am curious to see how these two factors come into play on race day.

I was talking with my running partners last week about why I was doing a second marathon. Of the three of us, we'd all done two or were about to do the second. I told them that I had decided I didn't want to be a person who just ran one marathon. I didn't want to just check it off my life list...I want to become a marathoner.

Next week, I will be on the course. Running. It might not be pretty, but it will be me. Laying it on the line. To become a marathoner.