20 miles & a 10K

"The marathon's about being in contention over the last 10K. That's when it's about what you have in your core. You have run all the strength, all the superficial fitness out of yourself, and it really comes down to what's left inside you. To be able to draw deep and pull something out of yourself is one of the most tremendous things about the marathon." -Rob de Castella

I can already tell that for the next few days I'm going to be writing a lot about the marathon, it's just about here & I'm trying to self motivate! 5 days to go until I put my body into total shock. Am I excited... YES! But so scared at the same time. I've been training for months and know that I am ready, but the farthest distance I have gone is 20 miles. On Sunday I will be doing that same 20 and then slapping on another 10K. Yikes - I'm just hoping to finish, I have no goal time in mind. Next year I will be more time oriented about it, but for now finishing is what I want to accomplish. I'm just worried that my hip will give and I will have to slow down. Through all my training I've been great, but after the 20 miler my hip was feeling the wear and tear of it all.

The Chicago Marathon has a great service set up and you can receive text or e-mail alerts to where I am on the course. They will send you a message when I hit 10 miles, half way point (13.1), 30K and the finish line. So please track my progress and see how I am doing, it may help me to move a little faster knowing that people are tracking me!