I should have stayed in Columbia this weekend. First, I came here so I could see Daniel and Sadie but especially Daniel. He’s been on my mind so much lately. I miss him terribly when I go a few weeks without seeing him.
Last night when we got into St. Louis at about 8:30pm, we had forgotten that this was the weekend for the 42nd “Forest Park Balloon Race” and in particular, last night was the “Glow in the Park” probably the most popular because all the balloons glow in the night sky. It’s actually very beautiful.
So, we got in the city and it took us 1.5 hours to get to our apartment, even though we could see it. And that was after the 2 hours travel to get here. Traffic was horrendous. The dogs where moaning to pee pee so I got out of the car and let Kevin keep on in the traffic.

So I walked through Forest Park at night for 1.7 miles to our apartment in sandals. By the time we got to our apartment, it was 10pm but at least we didn’t have to get back out to walk the dogs! HA!
But, I got a blister on the bottom of my foot from walking that far in sandals. And they started shooting fireworks (which were beautiful) but scared the dogs and it was hard to hold on to them…in the dark.
I didn’t eat well yesterday and still wasn’t feeling that great. I woke up this morning and did not eat a proper breakfast that I normally do before a big run.
We fed, walked the dogs and got our stuff together and drove to the downtown area near where the Rock ‘n Roll Marathon will begin and my intentions was to run the first half of the race that the Half Marathoners run.
I was tired when I started out. It was warmer than I like to run it. At mile 7, that same thing happened with my toe and the pain was excruciating. I will be retiring those Brooks Glycerin. But I did take another pair of socks so at about mile 8, I stopped and put on a second pair of socks to help with the pain and it did help some. But it made my shoes so tight…so there’s that!
The route goes right in front of my kids house and I almost stopped and asked them to take us home but I decided to try to finish it out. I knew I’d hate myself for the rest of the day if I didn’t at least try to weather the pain and tiredness. I always try to think if that was marathon day….how would I deal with those type issues so I soldiered on.
I got dizzy and nauseous which almost never happens on a run. I’ve never gotten dizzy. My legs would barely move. But I finally did finish my 14 miles and they were tortured miles for sure.
When we got to the car, I almost passed out. We were near St. Louis Cardinals Ballpark Stadium so we walked over to get a beer and some food. That was another weird thing…after a long run, I’m never hungry until later…but I was so hungry after the run that I couldn’t even wait to get home and get a shower.
The beer tasted cold and good and the shrimp po-boy sandwich was ok. I was still sick but the nauseousness went away. I was still dizzy and light-headed.
When we got home, I showered and laid down on the couch. Suddenly, I had chills and a high fever. I had felt like I was coming down with something for the last week.
I have kept that fever for the rest of the day and just now is it going down. I feel exhausted but some better.
My hope is that was why the run was so bad. I also think I took 14 miles for granted and didn’t do the right things before the run that I normally do. I didn’t eat enough fuel on the run either.
Anyway….as you guys know me by now….I’ve cried and felt terribly disappointed.
If today had been the marathon…..I would have not been able to complete it.
I do have 2 days off to recover. That toe may not recover and that’s another story.
I did not see to see my kids today. That is the reason I came to St. Louis. Daniel has pink eye and also has a fever. I didn’t want he and Sadie to be around me with the fever either.
We did facetime and they showed me apples they picked at Eckert’s Orchard.
My plan is to see them for a bit tomorrow. I have to see them.
So Kevin and I spent the rest of the day with Peyton and Eli in the apartment on a beautiful Saturday. I did manage to get out for a short bit to help walk the dogs.
I stopped by a frozen yogurt place and got a pumpkin pie frozen treat!
Enough complaining for now. This coming week will be challenging. 20 miles due up next Saturday.
“Relish the bad training runs. Without them it’s difficult to recognize, much less appreciate, the good ones.” -Pat Teske