The quick and dirty race recap.

Its OVER!!! I am so relieved and so tired. I don't have the alertness or mental faculties to give all of my thoughts now, but here's the quick rundown:

Starting line: Zoo. It was a good 30 minutes after the gun fired before I even saw the starting line, and another 10 before I crossed. I think a wave start would be a better system. I did appreciate the Marines lining the streets to give us high fives.

Miles 1-10: Awesome. Pace was no trouble, scenery was beautiful, saw my friends Kim and Matt with their adorable baby in Georgetown. Loved it.

Miles 11-13: A little challenging, but still doable. Very excited to hit the halfway mark.

Mile 14: Wall. Pretty much came out of nowhere. I wasn't breathing heavy or dehydrated, but my legs just stiffened up and I felt like my right knee was going to give out. Tried to keep running, but had to walk a bit.

Miles 15-20: Agony. I started a 5 minute running/5 minute walking game with myself just to keep going. When I ran, my knee hurt. When I walked, my hip hurt. There were plenty of moments when I was not sure I would finish. This was when I literally thought of every person who supported me in this and every prayer I knew was being said for me. So, if you are reading this, you had a very real part in me getting to the finish. I saw my roommate Steve somewhere in here and was both touched that he came and happy that he caught me when I was actually running.

Mile 20: I "beat the bridge," meaning that I got to the 20 mark ahead of the SAG wagon and knew I would be allowed to finish. Still in pain, but certainly relieved. At this point, almost everyone around me was walking and I saw a few start sobbing when they realized they were going to make it.

Miles 21-22: Better. I was able to switch to a 10 minute running/5 minute walking ratio. At mile 22, I saw our coaches Bob and Susan who gave me some encouragement and some Advil. The encouragement kept me running to 23, which is when the Advil kicked in...

Miles 23-25: Back to awesome. I felt a million times better, got back to my goal pace, and knew I was going go finish the thing running.

Miles 25-26.2: Emotional. At 25, I started fighting back tears. I was so happy and relieved, but I really didn't want to cry because I wanted nothing interfering with the groove I had re-established. This was made much more difficult at mile 26 when I came around a corner and saw my friend of 16 years, Pat. He actually ran alongside me in the spectator area to the finish.

Finish: Grateful! I told the person next to me that I wanted to kiss the ground but wasn't sure I would ever get back up if I did. I found Pat, my mom, my sister, my friend Scott (pictured above) and some other Striders and celebrated for a bit, then headed back home for some much-needed food and a bath.

So, now I'm home, getting ready to lie down and hoping that I'll be able to move in the morning. Thank you, thank you, thank you for supporting me throughout this process! Thanks especially to those who donated- the total as of now is well over $3300!