A Week In The Life: Sunday

This post is going to come in a couple parts.  Part I is my recounting my view of my brother's marathon this weekend and the second part is my brother's story in his own words as my first guest blogger.  Pictures will appear in both.  Some of them are mine, but most were taken by Tracie or Audra and I use them here with their permission and a big thanks to them.  We invite you to enjoy an amazing day and a wonderful story with us.

Part I
After all of Saturday's fun I was completely exhausted.  The tricky thing about that is that instead of resting on Sunday we woke up very early to staff "Team Able" for the OKC Memorial Marathon.  Able arrived at my house at 5am for his pre-race meal: a banana wrapped in a whole wheat tortilla smeared with peanut butter.  After he departed for the race with my Dad I tried to sleep a bit, but eventually just started getting ready including packing snacks and layers of clothes for a cold morning.  Mom and Audra arrived just after 6 am. with everyone's bags from the hotel, maps, more food, water, medical supplies, and our matching team shirts.  We departed for the first planned meeting point around 6:30.

We had to change the pre-race plan due to some road closures, but by 7am had met up with my Dad and Tracie near the OSSM to watch the first leg and cheer on Able.  We even saw a few other people we knew at this stop including Able's friend Melissa, a lady from my body sculpting class and Tracie's friend Matt. After Able sped by we tried to all pile in to Tracie's Denali for the next stop, but got caught on the wrong side of the 5K race route.  We eventually escaped thanks to a break in the runners and Tracie's strategic driving.  We made it in time to see Able again on the other side of the capital.  We weren't sure we were on time and were taking pictures when he surprised us by jumping off the road and right into our shot as Tracie clicked away.  So exciting!!  After getting a bit of caffeine we headed to stop three when our support jobs began in more earnest.

Stop 3 - Mile 11- was at 91st and Waverly (Near Britton and NW Pennsylvania for those OKC folks out there).  At this stop we had about 45 minutes before Able arrived.  We all pinned on our team bibs (You'll see them here, they have his bib number and each of our titles, including Staff Nurse, Legal Counsel, and more.  Even Maggie and B had bibs for their matching shirts when they joined us at Stop 4.  But back at Stop three, we set up camp, cheered for all the runners, took pictures, and tried to check split times on Tracie's IPhone (yes, Tracie was team captain--- she navigated, provided transportation, a chair for Audra, the tracking technology, photography, pharmaceutical advice, and was a spectacularly spirited cheer-leader.  My Dad knighted her an honorary Blakley.  She totally made our race support team happen). Able arrived looking great, but needing GU and asking us to prep a new headband for the next stop.

We had some trouble getting to Stop 4 and saw Able approaching it from a distance while we were still in the car.  We did make it, however, and even rendezvoused  with Brent and the kids.  This stop was at Lake Hefner which is beautiful, but was filled with masses of people as it was a relay exchange and a pretty location.  The kids seemed very confused about what we were up to.  My Dad encountered a former student so we cheered her the rest of the race as well.  Able was looking so great even at this 16 mile point.  He got his new headband high fives and was on his way.   By now, other runners and people were asking who Able was and wishing they had his team.  We cheered them all as many in roughly his time group were becoming familiar.  As he headed out so did we to catch him at mile 21 which would be the furthest he'd ever run.

Stop 5 - Mile 21 was on Classen.  Lady M needed to nap in the car with Daddy, but everyone else sped across Classen to look for our conquering hero.  We saw Dad's former student and some familiar faces.  Mom and B went looking for Able and then there he was.  This was the first time that he started to look pained. He got more GU and encouragement, but sadly no high fives from B who seemed a little scared. Then we rushed back to the cars for the 6th stop.

Stop 6 - Mile 23 - We stopped right next to the mile 23 Marker still on Classen.  You'll notice our stops are getting closer together as we near the end of the race so we can give him more support.  B loved this stop as he could play with traffic cones.  Lady M joined in in the sling in her matching team shirt.  Able came by a bit slower this time and seeming to be more uncomfortable, but still running and we cheered and cheered.  This would be the last stop before the finish.  I was so incredibly proud. I cannot fathom running so far and he was so far ahead of his anticipated times at this point.  Very impressive!

The Finish Line: We piled back into cars to search for parking hear the OKC Bombing Memorial.  As we drove, the replay of the bombing memorial dinner this week as well as some Flashback stories were playing on the radio and the whole thing started to get pretty emotional for me.  In part, because I knew what an incredible physical thing my bro was doing and in part because of the enormity of it being the Bombing Memorial Marathon to commemorate all that was lost and all that the people of Oklahoma rose together to do that day.  So phenomenal.

   We re-joined Tracie's car of people near the finish line.  Tracie, Audra and I found a spot in the grandstands just before the finish where with Tracie's awesome telephoto lens could capture second by second the end of the race.  Able was still running, still smiling, absolutely triumphant.  I could not be more proud of him.  In the moments after, the anguish was there as he came down from the experience, but also great joy.  We stood around and hugged, helped take care of his medical needs, talked through it, waited for final times, etc.  It was incredible.  His final time was 4h 49min 06sec.  He placed 14th in his weight class, and about 1610 out of roughly 3500 people in the full marathon.  It was AWESOME. His goal had been to finish in less than 5h 00min so this was a great result.  You rock lil' bro.  We love you!

The rest of our day was recovery, dinner and some fun at the farm with Grandma and Grandpa, but I'm going to leave a little space here for Able to add whatever he wants to this account.

Part II
Good Morning "AT HOME with the Richards Family" Readers.  I am happy to be a guest contributer to the blog today to tell you a little bit (what I can remember) about the experience of running a Marathon.  First of all it should be noted that I do not now nor have I ever considered myself a "runner", but I'm not here to tell you about me but more about the actual experience of running a Marathon.  I am still in a little bit of shock and a lot of PAIN so my memory may not be the greatest but I'll do my best to put my experience into print.  A Marathon is really an emotional roller coaster for someone who has never attempted one the training leading up to one is a minimum of 16weeks up to more realistically 20 weeks of running 3-4 times a week with long runs (up to 20miles) on weekends.  These long runs are extremely painful and after every one you question your ability to walk the next week and your own personal sanity but you take a day or 2 off of running then go back outside in the brutal 20 degree Colorado weather and run another day.

 Then this thing you've working, sweating, suffering your way through for 5 months culminates one dark cold morning in April at the site of the worst terrorist attack by Americans on American soil in history.  All of these things are running through your head as you stand in the dark with 25,000 other people who are all feeling the same thing.  The countdown starts and....BANG!!! nothing happens you see I was towards the back in the 11-12 min mile section as a matter of fact nothing happened for probably at least 4 min.  I turn my Ipod on shuffle and the first song that comes on is the Guns and Roses classic "Welcome to the Jungle"  and I know the good Lord is surely smiling down upon me and this race. Soon the crowd begins to slowly inch forward a sea of humanity stretches out in front of you as far as the eye can see up Robinson St. in downtown OKC.
     One thing that struck me about  the marathon is that everyone was running for a reason and most of them have that reason written or pinned on the back of their shirt.  I was running with nothing pined to the back of my shirt which for the first 5K or so made me think about why I was there.  Every time I read the signs and sharpie written words on the back of peoples shirts that read "I RUN FOR  insert fallen soldier/loved one/incurable disease" I would think to my self "sure I'll run for that" so I ran for whatever that was for the next few yards till I saw another one.  At one point when the sun was coming up over the Oklahoma state capitol I was running next to a man with a Marine corps flag The Boss came on my Ipod  singing the old Pete Seeger protest song "Bring'em Home" so I ran for our men and women over seas some of which will never get to see such a sunrise over their home state again.

     I continue to jog as the sun rises when all of a sudden I hear screams to my left and there is my family all dressed in their blue shirts with my bib number safety pinned to their shirts.  "They aren't nearly as far down the trail as I thought they were going to be." I continue to jog.  The people on the side of the road are amazing there is always someone there to give you a high five when you need it.  Everyone is so supportive so positive so enthusiastic there is so much energy in the air I didn't even feel the pain in my legs that is usually there for the first 3-4 miles!  There were people from every demographic, every age, race, class gathered cheering us on and giving us supplies. People even pulled off on the side of the Interstate to get out and show their support! Some of the more interesting things that I saw people handing out were Dunkin Doughnuts and Bacon I didn't stop for either.  In all honesty I felt amazing through most of the race I am certain this had a great deal to do with training the whole time at 5280 feet then running at roughly sea level. Also the support of my family and friends was unbelievable every time I started to slow up a little bit I would start looking for the blue shirts and pretty soon there would be half a dozen people holding signs with my name on themcheering me on!
     During my training after my longest run (20 miles) and before the marathon (26.2 miles) lots of people told me that the enthusiasm and support of the crowd would get me through the last 6.2 miles (I had my doubts) but I really must admit that it did.  I was virtually pain free until about mile 21. I saw my family/friends one more time at mile 23 which was a great support that got me to about mile 24.  At this point my quads started cramping and the blisters on my toes burst the pain was definitely there but at this point there was no way I was going to stop. I finished the Full Marathon in 04:49:06 the ONLY time I walked was through water stations.  Thank Everyone that supported me through both training and the race I seriously could not have done it with out you!!!

Special thanks: My parents Danny & Debra Blakley, Brent, Abbey, Brendan, & Maggie Richards, Audra and Zane Korenak, Tracie Simard, Lauren Edwards, Sam, Pamela & Catherine Bratton, Melissa Brevetti-Walker, Jim Dotter, Grant Neptune, Zenie Russ, Amy Pedilla.