Running the San Francisco Marathon was an interesting experience for me; many people said that was a hilly course (It was…).So I started training harder, including more hills, training on the treadmill and hilly roads. After the Vermont Marathon in May, I was determined to run better and faster if I could. I believe I over trained or didn’t train smart, because the week before the marathon I felt drained and unmotivated for the race. The Sunday before the race I ran my last 16 mile run in order to build some confidence in myself.

It was a long journey; I drove to New Orleans on Friday afternoon, took a flight at 5:00 a.m. on Saturday, arrived San Francisco at 11:00 a.m., and went directly to the expo. The Expo consisted of big tents in a park close to the Embarcadero (Marina). As always, nice people, a lot of things to buy, a great atmosphere that helped motivate my running spirit.

Close to the expo, at the Hyatt hotel, they were having the conference meetings. Dean Karnazes (Ultra-Marathon Man) was one of the speakers, I paid attention to his speech and became very exited about being a runner and how the lovely and simple action of running can change or improve life. I was inspired not just to run long distances or have faster times, but incorporate the sport as a life style.

Sunday at 5:00 a.m., I was in the starting line with more than 15,000 runners, ready to conquer the hills, the bridge and 26.2 miles of Victorian style architecture.

The gun went off at 5:30 sharp; we ran 4 miles around the beautiful bay, in the foggy morning I was able to see Alcatraz. I ran/walked uphill between mile 4 and 5.5 before getting onto the bridge. I was running my slowest pace trying not to get injured on the hills, when I got to the top of the hill, there it was, the impressive Golden Gate Bridge. It was a very emotional moment running across the bridge, could see the ecstasy in the other runner faces. On my way back, I picked up a better pace and began passing people. About mile 10 I had to run down a stepped hill that killed my calves. The Golden Gate Park that was fairly flat and I crossed the half point at 2 hours 25 minutes, a personal worst for the first half.

I decided not to walk at all in the second half, and it was like running on a roller coaster I pickup a decent pace to finish the race. Something that caught my attention was the traffic organization. In the city they didn’t close the streets, instead they figure out how to alternate the course at the most congested points keeping the same distance for all the runners.

I got to mile 20 without cramps (what a relief) and ran strong the last 6 miles, which became the longest miles in the entire race. At that moment I thought it was never going to end and then, there it was, the finish line. I sprinted the last 50 yards being proud of finishing the 7th Marathon in a year. I received my medal like it was an Olympic gold. My time wasn’t the best. I complete the race in 4hours 39 minutes, but I felt very satisfied with my effort. Again, running this marathon was a great experience that wanted to share with all my fellow runners. © Kily Garcia

Kily gives some advice to another runner before the marathon