Saturday morning I set out for a marathon of a different sort. I traveled 4 hrs up through the Green Mountains with Darling Daughter jibberjabbering the whole way! I listened to the Disney Princess CD a 1/2 a dozen times and stopped for just as many potty breaks. When I finally arrived in Burlington it was all worth it. I took in the scenes of the town- The Church St Marketplace and the Vermont Brewery and Pub for a little carb loading :)! After lunch, I drove around the town finding the starting line for the race and the spectacular view of Lake Champlain. After a dinner on the lake it was back to the hotel for a restful night sleep after a long day of driving and sight seeing.
My running partner, John, and I decided that he would run the first leg of the marathon and I would tackle the second 1/2- the one with the big hill. So I got to sleep late and have a leisurely breakfast before heading over to the relay exchange location. Once I got to the exchange sight I was entertained by Maggie's dancing to the Umpa Loompa Band. I finished my bagel, drank some water, took some pictures and checked my watch. John said he would be about 2 hrs 20 min so I still had 15 min to spare so I thought so off I went for one more potty break. To my surprise I came out to find John holding the yellow bracelet (baton)!!! 2hr and 3 min!!! Go John!! Go Michelle!!! We took a picture and off I went.
The first mile was along the bike path along the lake. The second mile was the "HILL". At the bottom of the hill they had these drummers playing a steady beat to make you power up the hill. The next couple of miles were in and out of the neighborhoods and then down hill to the bike path to come back to the finish. While in the residential area I actually saw someone I knew from a previous lifetime sitting in her front lawn cheering on the runners. I threw her for a loop when I went running over and gave her a big hug. I knew she lived in Burlington but never thought I would "run" into her and definitely didn't realize she lived on the course. That gave me a burst of energy for the next couple miles and I was able to maintain a 9 min mile pace for the entire race.
I crossed the finish line at 2 hrs even and our overall relay time was 4 hr 7 min.
I love this race. The course is relatively flat, it has beautiful scenery and it is spectator friendly. I will be running again in the future.
http://www.vcm.org