It was pretty congested for the first couple miles. It was such a big race! There were 9700 runners. The only race I've ran that is bigger is the Boilermaker in NY, which is 12000+ runners. Those first couple miles were really cool b/c I could see the sea of runners ahead of me.
I had to pee very soon after we started- between mile 1 and 2. There were a few people ahead of me in line for the portapotties, and 600 people must have passed by in the time I stood there waiting. But you gotta do what you gotta do, and at that time I had to PEE like it was nobody's business. Better to drink too much than not enough, right?
The first couple miles were pretty standard and uneventful. I talked to people around me- one thing about Grandma's is there are no headphones/ipods allowed, so people are a lot more chatty.
At each water station I stopped to walk and drink, like my last race, except I walked for longer stretches- probably 1:30 or so.
The spectators along the run were great. There was this one group of people that were blasting that song "I like to move it move it!" and they had a guy in a big penguin suit jumping on a trampoline, and a guy in a cow suit yelling "mooooo-ve it! mooooo-ve it!" Hahaha.
I had to pee again around mile 7. At that time I took in a gu. I didn't feel like I really needed it, but better to be safe than sorry.
So I was just trucking along, feeling good. I saw a guy with an mdot tat on his calf and talked to him for awhile. He did IMWI last year and is going to do it again in 2008 (like me! hopefully) but couldn't this year on account of his wife "threatened divorce because of that damn triathlon obsession," hahaha. I am sure people here can relate!
Around mile 10 there was this most beautiful black man I had ever seen, running shirtless just a bit ahead of me. He was GORGEOUS. Well actually, his body was gorgeous, I didn't really pay attention to his face. The same time I noticed him, I overheard a group of girls right next to me who noticed him and we all talked about how he was the perfect carrot-on-a-stick to chase after. I figured what the hell, why not go and say hello, so I made my way over to him and introduced myself. Turns out this adonis was named Jeremiah and it was his first marathon! Unfortunately he was moving slower than I was, so I had to bid him adieu.
The half way mark came and went. Running along the lake was really nice, but it was starting to heat up and there was hardly any shade anywhere! I made sure to dump water on my head at each stop, and occasionally took ice and poured it down my sports bra. I had brought advil with me (lesson-learned from the last race) and took some around half way. At this time I started looking out for the three guys (Soren, and my two friends Matt & Tom who came along for the weekend) b/c they were going to meet me along the course and then head to the finish line.
I ran up on two girls, sisters, from my No Limits class, so I ran with them for awhile. It was good to see them and I got a little boost from it. One of the sisters was having a harder time than the other one and she kept saying "you can go! you can leave, don't let me hold you back" but they were going to cross together. I thought that was so cool, my sister & I will totally have to do a marathon together someday!
At mile 16 there were a ton of spectators, and I heard the three guys before I saw them- they were screaming their heads off! They all had on homemade "Go BD!!" shirts (complete with sparkles!) and posterboard signs for me! Such a nice suprise! They looked so good that I stopped for a photo-op with them and then went on my way, saying that I'd see them at the finish line.
Another stop at a portapotty (I had FOUR stops total, yowza), another few miles done. Had my 3rd and last gu at mile 20. Around this time we were starting to make it into town. I saw my roommate Jeff, who was up there for the weekend to cheer on one of his best friends. He took a picture of me flexing as I ran by. I noticed that I didn't have any of the quads-are-seizing-up feeling like I did for my last race. In fact, I felt pretty good, all things considered! I continued taking my walking stops at each water station, which were now every mile. Kept dumping water down my back and on my head b/c it was really warming up.
The last 6 miles felt pretty good (in fact, my 1st 10K time was 1:04:14, my last 10K time was 1:05:14)- there was not any of the pain like the last race. I skipped the last water stop b/c I was feeling so good and finished strong!!

Nothing- I really had fun this race and enjoyed being able to take it easy and not care about my finishing time.

I got my medal and finisher's shirt, and saw a bunch of people walking around with ice cream, so I investigated the sitaution and got myself over to the ice cream booth asap! They had SO much food for the runners, I saw people walking around with trays piled full of chips and sandwiches and fruit. I didn't have much of an appetite but that mint chocolate chip ice cream was just what the doctor ordered. I strolled voer to medical and asked for two bags of ice for my knees, then found a nice curb to sit on and eat my ice cream while icing my knees. It tasted glorious! Especially in the hot sun. A girl sat next to me and we started talking about the race, and it turns out we had met at the wine and cheese party last month! Small world. She had to sit in the medical tent for 1/2 an hour during the race b/c she overheated and couldn't see straight- yikes! Good thing I was able to keep myself cool, that would have been terrible.
I decided to leave the runner's area and find the guys. Turns out I beat them to the finish, b/c of all the traffic from the race, but we found each other easily enough. We headed back to the camp ground to wash up and have some lunch. I had a nice long nap before going back into Duluth for dinner and drinks that night- I felt good enough to walk around and stay out! Those people running slower marathons have the right idea!


Running a marathon 3 weeks ago. But I'm so glad I ran this one the way I did- it was FUN! And the day after I felt good! Who ever thought that a marathon could be so enjoyable?


This marathon is wonderful. The course is great, the volunteers are wonderful, the water stops are plentiful and organized. They do a GREAT job putting on this race. I can see why this is a must-do for anyone in the midwest. I give it two thumbs way up!