Running Man

As was the case with all my long runs for every marathon I’ve trained for, Rebecca was there to help me with water and, if need be, snacks every couple of miles.
However, for the first time we failed to hook up at a meeting spot. In fact, after getting my second re-fill of water from Rebecca, Kyan and (my niece from Jersey) Nicole, it was an hour before I saw them again.
What happened?
Well, I ran a portion quicker than I anticipated when I gave my timing estimates and locations before I left. Rebecca missed a turn, had to make a u-turn, and in that time I ran past the designated spot. They waited there for a while, wondering if I had to slow down or walk, or stop for another reason, before back-tracking to see if they could find me.
When that failed, they headed to the next stop. But I was already past that one. With an ambulance or two whizzing by, the sun setting and my hydration suffering, I flagged down a car in a parking lot, explained my situation and asked if I could borrow a cell phone.
That’s when I got a, ‘'Sorry, my battery is dead’’ response. Disgusted, I looked for a pay phone, finally found one and made the call. It turned out Rebecca was about a mile away, waiting for me and wondering if I was ok. Everyone, thankfully, was fine, my fluids were quickly replenished and I was on my way again.
I finished about 9 p.m., feeling good and knowing, if this was the race, I could have gone another 8 miles. My legs were tired, but not overly sore. My belly was filled with fluid, giving it an airy feeling, I could have used a donut or chunk of bagel or something, but other than that, there were no problems.