So, the 18 miles...

Wow, that was an eye opener. I left the house at 730. I got back in my driveway at 10:12. Well, I say driveway but really, it was the circle in front of our house.
I got up at 6ish this morning. I couldn't sleep last night. Just too much on my mind. The mileage, my stomach issues, etc. So I finally pulled myself out of bed and headed downstairs to get some toast in me. I grabbed a bag of my Fruit Nuggets (yeah, Todd thinks it's a funny name, too but hey, they're pretty good!) and munched on those. I finally headed out at 730 because Dave was going to meet me at mile 12 at 9-9:15 ish. I couldn't make up my mind as to what I wanted to run. I didn't know if I wanted to go through my subdivision and then out Frontage Rd or run around the subdivision until I reached a point where I wouldn't *have* to run down Frontage Road.
I got started and ran down the main drag of the subdivision. I ran into Rob who was just starting his run, in the opposite direction. Part me of wanted to turn around and tag along but I thought better of it. I did 3 laps around the subdivision and then headed out to Harrison Bridge Rd. By this time, I was 6 miles into and who do I see heading home? Rob. Shit. He passes me and says..."You not done yet?" Gee THANKS, Rob!! I still had 12 miles to go at that point. At that point I thought it was a good idea to get some sport beans into me. I gulped those down and continued down Harrison Bridge towards the DMV where Todd and I always meet for my water break. I accidentally did .6 of a mile too much in the subdivision so I was running a bit behind getting to the DMV. I finally got there and had my much needed water break. I saw 2 women coming up Main St, running in my direction and I thought..."I do NOT want to be looking at their backsides for the next 2.5 miles into Ft Inn".

So I went ahead and took off, suddenly remembering that I didn't have to go all the way into Ft Inn because I overshot my mileage getting to the DMV. Woooohoooo!! What a good feeling! So I got into Ft Inn (2 miles) and then turned around. I got about a mile into the return run and passed the 2 women who were right behind me at the DMV, still heading towards Ft Inn. I thought that was a bit strange but I shrugged it off and kept going. I made it back to the DMV in time to meet Dave and Todd. Grabbed a much needed water break at the 12 mile mark and another bag of sport beans. Dave was in a great mood and I was a bit more subdued. Considering I just ran 12 miles, I really needed Dave and his upbeat self to pull me through the last 6 miles. We ran the first 1.8 and I don't even remember much of it. Well, aside from the fresh possum on the side of the road..ick. We hit the spot where we could turn around and head back towards my house (mile 14) and I just started feeling sick. My stomach started turning, my legs were hurting and I just felt like I was going to puke. I needed water, badly. We happened to be running past a Goodwill store and Dave suggested asking them if they had a water fountain. Thankfully, they did. Dave asked if I could use it and as I was walking back to the bathrooms the guy working there says..."You guys jogging or something?". Now, mind you, I'm not normally this bitchy but I was tired, I was sore and I was so damn thirsty. I just looked at the guy, gave him this..."What the hell does it LOOK like we've been doing?" look and groaned. Dave laughed and said yeah. He handles those things MUCH better than I do:)

So I popped back outside and we started up again. I felt so much better after the long gulp of water but not as good as I would have liked. We headed up Fairview Rd and of course, there's a hill. Shit again. I was NOT in the mood to run anymore. I wanted to walk a bit but I didn't, if that makes any sense. We got all the way down Fairview Rd to turn onto Harrison Bridge. I, again, misjudged the miles and had hoped that at that point I'd be at 2 miles to go...nerp. Nearly 3 miles to go..At this point Dave says, I think you'll have a bit further to go...LOL

Here we go down Harrison Bridge, right into the friggin' wind. CRAP! And another slow uphill climb..seriously, I was concentrating so hard at this point. I got the opening of the subdivision, saw Todd's car and thought "Oh, thank God, water!!!". I veered off and headed into the subdivision while Dave headed on back to the DMV to collect his car. I had hoped to be .5 mile from finishing at this point but I still had nearly 2 miles to go. I was so tired and it was hard seeing Todd, knowing I could just hop in his car and go home. I got some more water from him and pushed myself harder. He stuck with me through the subdivision, again giving me more water. I got .3 of a mile away from home and I asked Todd to go ahead and get the hose ready at home for my legs.

I came into the circle and made a lap around. Our house sits right in the center of the circle so I could see Todd and my beloved garden hose as soon as I got into the street. I didn't really notice but a new neighbor was standing outside, washing his car. I was coming up the street and my little Garmin beeped, telling me I'd finally hit the 18 mile mark. I stopped, put my hands on my hips and dropped the F bomb. I was sooooooo tired and as soon as I heard that beep I said.."Thank F*!%". Aforementioned new neighbor whipped his head around and said, "Boy you take this running stuff seriously!". I was so glad to be stopped, physically NOT moving that I had to laugh. He mentioned that he wouldn't be able to make it to the end of the street without falling flat on his face. He also said maybe a few years ago he could have run like that but not anymore. I said, just to be sure he understood the magnitude of what I just did and WHY I was so 'serious' about it, that I just finished 18 miles. This was the best part..He yells out "18 MILES!!!!" I love that. He was shocked and then said, keep up the great work. I was then headed into the garage for my leg soaking.

I have to say, I was so high from the run. I was so happy that I did the 18 miles and I felt so good about myself, nothing could tick me off. NOTHING. I wonder if THAT'S what they mean by 'runner's high'. I certainly don't get any kind of delirious joy while I'm running. I'm too busy moaning in my head about how many more miles I have to do. But when I'm done, it's almost like being drunk. It's a wonderful buzz. I love everything around me. The garage, the house, the truck in the garage, the garden hose, the empty dog food bag in the foyer, etc. Everything is just lovely and perfect:) Of course, that quickly dies down as the pain sets in LOL But for about 30-45 mins, I'm on my own little high.

So, lessons learned today? More water. Keep more water, get more water, request more water, etc. I only used one pack of sport beans and I'm not sure if that hurt me or not. I just couldn't being to think about cramming more of those salty things down my neck. Also, Dave is a lifesaver. I couldn't have finished it without his words of encouragement. He's a trooper and an awesome friend for being there for me when I needed him. So, Dave..you rock.

Also, of course, I have to thank Todd for dragging his ass out of bed this morning and helping me with the run. I could NOT have even gotten to mile 12 without his help.

This leaves me with thoughts of the next long run. The big 2-0 is coming up in 2 weeks and I'm really not pleased thinking about it just yet. Maybe next weekend when I'm only running 10 on Saturday..:)

So there's the long, drawn out and rather boring tale of my 18 miles. Might be a bit dramatic and obviously long winded but hey, I've never run 18 miles before. It's a big deal to me:)