Great Expectations

Mark took the above picture from the deck of our hotel room last weekend. If you are ever going to Newport, Oregon, it is the best place to stay in town. I always have anxiety when reserving a hotel room. Sometimes you show up and despite all of your research on hotels, you walk into your room and say, "YUCK!" Other times, you think you have a mediocre place, and you are pleasantly surprised by the cleanliness and layout of the room. This was one of those occasions where it was even better than I expected.

We drove to Newport Thursday night. When we stopped in McMinnville at Starbucks for some hot cocoa and high-carb treats for Mark, the barista asked us our favorite question, "Are you a runner? You look like runners." Great compliment. Just when I was ready to tip the guy, Mark was telling him that he was running the Newport marathon the following morning and the guy then asked our least favorite question, "How far is your marathon?" It is lucky I did not have my drink yet, because I honestly would have spit it out on him as I choked on his question. You probably remember this post. No tip for that guy, even though he told me I looked like a runner.

Friday morning I went for a short run over the bridge in Newport. We had breakfast and went to pick up Mark's race packet. We then went back to the hotel, where Mark wanted to stay and keep his feet up to save them for the race the following morning. I, however, was not going to sit in a hotel room and listen to and watch the ocean when I could actually be on the beach with my feet in the water. I sat out in my chair and read "Great Expectations." It is one Dickens book I have never made it around to reading. I am in love with it thus far, and wish I had more time to just sit down and tear through it.

Saturday morning Mark's race started at 7 AM. I needed to get in a run that morning as well, so when Mark got up at 4:30 to eat his pre-race breakfast, I also got up and put on my running gear. While I was out running, I got a lot of strange looks from people who couldn't figure out why I was wasting all of my energy before the race began. I had to explain that I wasn't racing that morning. My favorite part of this run (running along the coast is amazing) was running over the Yaquina Bay bridge and watching all the fishing boats heading out of the bay into the ocean. It was rush hour for boats, and it was so cool to watch.

Back at the hotel, I shuttled Mark to the starting line about 1/2 mile from the hotel, and showered and packed up our stuff while he started the race. Then I headed to the finish line with the camera to wait for him to arrive. It was a beautiful sight to see him come over the hill and down to the finish line.

Mark has recovered more quickly this time than either of his past 2 marathons last year. After Seattle last year, he couldn't get up out of a chair without help or pushing up on a table or desk for a week. After Vegas, it was several days before he could walk almost normally. But this time, he is sore, but not handicapped. He came home from work Monday and couldn't wait to show me how he could sit in a chair and just stand right up on his own. Not only is he faster than previous races, but also he is stronger, too.

It has been very odd this week to get up at 5:30 to run while he sleeps in. He didn't miss a training run at all this past go-round. 6 days a week, he was out there following his program of 70 miles a week. Now he has a full week of prescribed "no running." Then next week it starts all over as he begins a 4-week recovery before heading into his training for Hartford.