LA Marathon 2010

Steve and I and our friend Jen left Orange County at the wee hour of 3 a.m. to arrive in Santa Monica early, to catch a shuttle over to the Dodger Stadium for the start of the Los Angeles Marathon. The kids were covered: Yumi spent the night, and Mama came over later in the morning to take the kids out for lunch and a treat. By 4:30 am we were at the stadium and got to rest our feet for a bit before the big race which started at 7:45 am.


On your mark... get set... go! 25,000 runners set off, and what a course it was. The "Stadium to the Sea" route showcased some of L.A.'s finest landmarks: City Hall, Walt Disney's Concert Hall, the Chinese Theater, Rodeo Drive, and finally the Santa Monica Pier.


The course was quite hilly at the beginning but we stayed motivated with bands and entertainment at almost every mile, plus with tons of fan support. The enthusiasum of the spectators was infectious, the screams of support, the multitude of posters... one sign that stood out said, "Pain is temporary, your time on the internet is forever." The weather stayed pretty cool and never went past the 70's.


Steve was in fine running form and ran non-stop, using the course support for fluids throughout. As you can see he had a very impressive time, his training truly paid off.


What a proud moment!


I finished an hour later than Steve. A leg cramp had me run/walking from mile 20 on. Still, I was determined to complete the 26.2 miles!


Wow, fortunately the last several miles was at a gradual decline, and with the cool ocean breezes, there was relief at crossing the finish line!


Despite the discomfort, I had a fun day! The photographers did a nice job, and we will be purchasing some of these photos!


We walked back to Mari and Rob's house, where we had parked our car. Here you can see the window sign that greeted us in the morning when we arrived. Thank you!


We were in an extra happy mood as it was Jen's first marathon! Yea, Jen! We were all smiles here but were feeling the pain for a few days later, limping around and favoring the sore legs. But as the sign said, the pain was temporary, and now we are looking forward to future races!