The day before the marathon Chelsea and I arrived in San Francisco- it was a bit hectic at the hotel, but I worked my hotel magic and got us our room quickly. We then headed to the expo, picked up our race packets and found our names on the Nike Town Wall. It was crazy to see at least 20,000 names on the wall and trying to find a specific name was a task.
Team In Training hosts an “Inspirational Dinner” the night before the race where runners “carbo-load” and listen to a few speakers. Olympian Joan Benoit Samuelson and Runner’s World columnist "The Penguin John Bingham" shared words of wisdom and encouragement. We also had the honor of hearing the story of SARAH, who had fought the battle of blood cancers with both parents. Then a few years later, she had to fight her own battle. SARAH reminded me why I was here… to help fight cancer one step at a time. But that wasn’t the only story she shared- she was running the race with us! Not only is she a Team In Training Honoree but a participate as well. Her story was incredible - had a few of us in tears- and her words were so perfect for our event.
We then headed back to the hotel and “dressed the chair”- meaning we had all our race gear ready to go. I actually slept pretty well considering I was going to run 26.2 miles the next morning. Alarm went off and we were up and ready for just another long run. Chelsea and I were pretty cute! We were matching with our black shorts, purple TNT shirts with bright green “billboards”, and our lovely custom made arm-socks and gloves.
We headed downstairs to meet our fellow TNTers and then walked over to Union Square. The gun went off at 7 a.m., however we didn’t get to the start line till almost 7:30!The scenery and views of this course were almost worth the hills! The first few miles by the Embarcadero, then up to Fort Mason where amidst the cypress trees, the views of the bay were incredible. You could see the Golden Gate Bridge (with little fog) and Alcatraz.
We ran through the Presidio, then by the Cliff House, and down to the Great Highway. There were so many people on the sidelines of the Great Highway cheering for everyone- it was amazing. Then we headed into Golden Gate Park- this was the “reality check”!
The Half Marathon runners were with us… until the split and that was my last chance to chicken out. But onward we went- I still had Chelsea and our friend Ilya running by my sides.
In the park volunteers held signs that had reasons why this was our race- “You nursed countless blisters”, “You gave up sleeping in on weekends”- were just a few and gave me a good chuckle along the course. It was just when the half met back up with the full (for a mere mile) that I started to get emotional- but I thought of my personal Honoree Kristin (who recently passed away after a tough fight with leukemia). Usually when I get bored or running gets hard, I start to count random numbers but during this run I repeated Kristin’s name and would spell it out one step at a time. I started to regain my composure and knew I could completed this marathon. Just as we headed out of the park, one teenager-volunteer was cheering and yelled, “You’re almost there… if you’re doing the half! If you’re doing the full… Good Luck”. I was laughing but ready to yell at him.
Back onto the Great Highway to Lake Mer-sucks, I mean Lake Merced. Just at about mile 17 my parents were there to cheer me on and my sister joined me. Little did she know she would be running the next seven miles with me! I was so thankful to have her there.The five-mile loop (miles 19-24) around Lake Merced is very boring and can bring out the worst in people (we ran this for our 18 mile run and it sucked then too). As I said, Lake Merced isn’t a very happy lake- I believe Chelsea started her emotional battle at about mile 20, and I started at about mile 22. I could not have been more thankful to have my sister by my side. She continued to encourage us and keep us moving. By mile 23 she was wearing both of our water belts and became our personal coach. We were also joined by sveral of our mentors during this terrible 4 mile loop. First it was Mike, then Simone who helped us relaie our pain is just temporary compred to our Honorees. We then saw Jen, Leah and Janine. Coach Kris greeted us at the end of the loop on her scooter!
Finally Lake Mer-sucks was done and I could (kinda) see the finish line. Chelsea and I were fighting our own battles of pain and emotions- we ended up separating at about mile 24. My brother joined my sister and I for about 200 yards (he’s not a runner!). Then I was joined by two of my coaches who ran with me for a bit.
At mile 25 I saw my whole family- complete will the "Go Emory!" billboard! What a nice treat!
My coaches went to go run with Chelsea and my sister gave me her final words of encouragement and support. I don’t know how, but that last mile I think I sprinted! This burst of energy came from my sister’s words and I made it across the finish line at 6 hours 33 minutes.
I received my Tiffany’s necklace, but can’t even seem to recall if the firefighter was hot or not! I remember seeing a running friend Brandy- we hugged each other and I just cried. It was such a surreal moment to think that I- Emory Fuqua- just finished a MARATHON!
I waited for Ilya (who we had split from and then found towards the end) and Chelsea to cross the finish line – we were each two minutes apart. My family was waiting for me at the Team In Training tent but it took me a while to hobble over to them. It was great to see how proud my nieces and nephew were of my race, and to be able to thank my sister for her “torture”/support. My entire family was so proud of me – the whole day was almost overwhelming.
I said my thank yous and goodbyes, and hobbled to the TNT bus. Once back at the hotel I discovered I only had two blisters!! - one was popped, the other was a alien on my foot! It was recovery time with an ice bath, vitamin water and a BBQ chicken pizza! Later that evening we attended the TNT Victory Party followed by a few more beverages out on the town- and surprisingly- I wasn’t in that much pain.
Again, thank you for all your love and support. Your donations will go to help fight blood cancers so one day there will be a cure and families like Kristin’s wont have to go through the tough times.
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