Knoxville Marathon

We did it! My husband and I finished our first marathon and it was awesome! Early in the year we decided that this would be the year we would run a full. Once we decided I started reading reviews of marathons and really "shopping" for one we would enjoy. The Knoxville Marathon had great reviews, it is a smaller race with live music on course and tremendous volunteer and spectator support. Knoxville is only about 4 hrs from us so it was a perfect choice. My runner friends were excited for me until they looked at the elevation map, then they started to ask me if I was sure I wanted to run my first full there! It was a very hilly course, but so it the area we are from. Anyone who has run our local races would be fine in Knoxville. We decided to stay at the host hotel which was a perfect choice. The expo was in the hotel and the start line was right out the front door. When we arrived Saturday we got settled in our room then headed to pick up packets. It was amazing to finally step up to a "marathon" table and pick up t-shirts and bibs, a little scary but awesome at the same time. We shopped around for a bit finding 26.2 stickers and another race t-shirt. We debated going to a nearby restaurant but the hotel restaurant menu looked good so we stayed there. We had a nice dinner and met up with my parents who drove up to cheer us on. After dinner we went back to the room to get all our stuff organized for the next day! Luckily we both slept well and the next morning it was awesome just to walk out the front door to the start. We dropped our little girl by my parent's room and went to join the crowd at the start. The weather was perfect in the upper 30s, low 40s for the start and the temps stayed below 50 all morning. Mike and I intended to run together but he is always a speed demon at the start. He gets frustrated in the pack, so he waved bye and was gone. I cruised along enjoying the scenery and made a conscience effort to keep the 4:30 pacer in my sight. The start of the race took us along the Tennessee River which was lovely. The Sequoya Hills neighborhood was amazing! The signage was hysterical throughout the neighborhood and the route closed with a "What does the fox say" skit. It wasn't long before the famous HILL was upon us. I had caught Mike and we knew the hill was coming. Is was difficult but I ran the entire thing. Anyone who has run Birmingham's Statue to Statue 15K wouldn't look twice at this hill :) I lost Mike again and just cruised toward the 1/2 way point. I was so excited to see my parents and little girl near the 13 mile marker! I got a quick hug, took a picture and got a gatorade before setting out on the final half of the race. The second half of the course is more industrial and a little lonely at times, but there are several neighborhoods that came out to cheer us on. The race also has music acts all along the course in the same way a much larger race series does. I caught my husband again around mile 23 in the Island Home neighborhood. He was struggling due to some knee issues that he suffers from. We ran together for a short while then the 4:45 pacer passed us. I was determined to not lose her! I said good-bye to Mike and ran with the pacer for a few miles. I lost her at a water stop, but I knew I was going to finish well within the time I wanted (sub 5 was my first goal, but I really wanted sub 4:45) The finish was tough! The last 1/2 mile is uphill before entering Neyland Stadium for the finish. I caught the 4:45 pacer as I was walking up the hill (yes, walking in the last mile!). She encouraged me to get going and finish strong, so I did! 4:39 seemed very respectable for my 1st marathon.The medal was awesome and receiving a finisher's hat was also nice. Mike finished just a few minutes after me and then we went in search of food and my family. My dad and little girl met us at the bottom of the stadium steps and showed us where to meet them after we got food.  The post race food was adequate with pizza, trail mix, fruit, protein bars, etc. The post race party is dry, so if you want a celebratory beer you will need to head to a local restaurant or have one on ice waiting in your hotel room :) We met up with my family and walked back to the hotel (about 1/2 mile). I don't think I have ever walked so slow in my life! My parents packed up and headed home, and we went to the pool for a while. After swimming we walked to dinner and had fabulous burgers at a nearby restaurant. All in all a terrific first marathon experience. I was really sore for about 3 days then slowly worked my way back to running. We ran the Bridge Street half marathon in Huntsville 2 weeks later!