![\"Happily](\"http:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/11\/p_TimetoRelax.jpg\")
<\/a>Happily holding my first marathon medal<\/p><\/div>\n
I still however have a problem calling myself a marathoner, despite the fact that I have completed two. \u00a0Somehow doing just one, no matter how proud I was of myself, didn’t make me feel like I was truly part of that special group. \u00a0When my second fell apart due to nausea and dizziness – but I still crossed the finish line – I felt even less like a marathoner. \u00a0None of this makes any sense at all, and it even makes less sense that I somehow think a third marathon is necessary to change my mind. \u00a0Somehow though, in the last month or so, the thought of doing another marathon has taken over my running thoughts.<\/p>\n
I know I am a better runner than I was when I first tried the marathon distance. \u00a0I think, maybe, I am a smarter runner. \u00a0I have realized that slow runs do make me faster, the logic of which still confuses me but I know there is science there to back it up. \u00a0I also know I spent a rather remarkable amount of time running really, I mean really, slowly this summer and fall and yet I had several P.B’s at races. \u00a0I have even managed to train myself to take a brief walk at water tables during my half marathons and still finish faster than when I ran with no breaks at all. \u00a0Though don’t try to tell me to run 10 and ones for a half marathon or marathon, it does nothing more than frustrate me mentally and make me want to walk off the course.<\/p>\n
This urge to try again is why I have recently found myself reading everything about a race this weekend that I am not even in. \u00a0Tomorrow is the Philadelphia Marathon and I am reading everything I can about it, from the Facebook page to previous years’ reviews. \u00a0At the moment it is my number one choice for another attempt at 42.2 km.<\/p>\n
Why Philly? \u00a0The main reason would be the date. \u00a0I have no intention of ever running a spring marathon again. \u00a0Unlike many, the issue is not the winter training. \u00a0I had no difficulty training in last year’s “polar vortex” and I never once hit the treadmill. \u00a0The problem with spring is that there is just too much risk of a sudden heat wave. \u00a0I don’t like running in heat at the best of times, but if it comes suddenly with no time to adjust I am essentially doomed before I even hit the start line. \u00a0I can live with that risk for a half marathon; if a half falls apart because of heat I will just turn around and run another in two or three weeks to make up for it. \u00a0That is never, ever going to happen for a marathon!<\/p>\n
Philly is not the only marathon I have considered. \u00a0I have looked at the Niagara Falls International Marathon, but I am not sure I would enjoy the course. \u00a0The logistics also sound a little too complicated, what with starting in one country and finishing in another. \u00a0I’m sure the NYC Marathon would be a blast but I don’t feel like dealing with a lottery, it is crazy expensive and again there are the logistics of getting to the start line. \u00a0I found a couple of other small, low key marathons but at this point I think I still need the excitement of the crowds. \u00a0Mind you, I learned the hard way last spring way that when a race has gone south, those cheering, energetic spectators, no matter their good intentions, just make you feel worse. \u00a0I still feel guilty about the number of times I seriously wanted to tell a spectator where to go. \u00a0But for now I think I will avoid a marathon where there is a potential for me to run entirely alone.<\/p>\n
Of course there is the option of doing the Toronto Waterfront, my first marathon, again. \u00a0It is only just over 4 hours away, it is relatively cheap, the crowds and course were great and I would be able to compare times on the same course. \u00a0But the downside is it is a month earlier than Philadelphia. \u00a0Running Toronto means starting to train in the summer. \u00a0Summer is when I like to keep my runs short and fast. \u00a0Summer is also when I want to enjoy weekends at the cabin and not have the worry of fitting in a long run. \u00a0To be blunt, I am very happy being lazy in the summer. \u00a0I may love running, but when the choice is a long, lonely run in the heat along deserted, hilly Quebec roads, in an area in which I have never, ever seen another runner (though there is no shortage of shirtless older men smoking cigarettes and driving ATVs) or sitting on a dock reading a book and enjoying a cold beverage, well the running is going to lose. Every time.<\/p>\n
So I will be searching the internet for the next week, anxiously reading any Philadelphia Marathon reviews I can find, trying to decide if this will be the race that will make me officially feel like a marathoner.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The Philadelphia Marathon, photo from the race website.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It took me forever to call myself a runner. \u00a0I understand that that is not uncommon. \u00a0For a long time if someone asked if I was a runner my reply would be “I’m trying to be one.” \u00a0Now though I have no issue with the moniker. I still however have a problem calling myself a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1241","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-running"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3amQ2-k1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1241","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1241"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1241\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1245,"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1241\/revisions\/1245"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1241"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1241"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/raz-family.ca\/RunKristi\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1241"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}