Happy Monday, everyone!  Before share the fun that was yesterday, I must tell you about two things that happened in my spin class tonight.  First, there were MORE MEN than women!  In fact, a 3:1 ratio (sadly, there were only 8 people total – I guess the rain scared everyone away?  Those of you who came and are reading – thank you!).  The ratio is almost always flipped – three women to one man.  But not tonight!  The boys just can’t stay away (or something like that).

Second, one of my best regulars, Ron, showed up to class with a CD.  At first I thought he was giving me some new music – as in, “Sarah, you need some new tunes.”  But much to my delight, it was quite the opposite – Ron (who just so happens to be the Franklin County Prosecutor) was asking me for a copy of the sweet playlist I made for Ashley’s marathon!   I’m not sure what makes me happier – that Ron wants my music to motivate him through his impressive athletic endeavors (he’s a triathlete and marathoner), or that he’s reading O-HI-30!  I think the latter wins out.  Ron – CD full of tunes coming your way!

OK, back to the title of this post!  Yesterday, I had the honor of cheering on the thousands of marathoners that ran past my apartment on their journey to conquer 26.2 miles.  The most important of whom was my dear friend Ashley!  It was a morning of firsts:  Ashley’s first marathon, her husband Johnny’s first half, Nash’s boyfriend Kyle’s first full, and our friends Ali and Brady’s first full (we also cheered on Kara – I think this was her third full?).  That’s a lot of friends tackling a lot of miles!

The morning started bright at early at 7 AM when Nash arrived at my apartment after dropping off Kyle and Kara at the start.  We both fell back asleep for a short while, and then began preparations for an epic marathon-watching party!  Mile 13.5 was directly outside my windows, and mile 25 was just one block away, so hosting a party was a no-brainer.  We stuck our egg casseroles in the oven, started some coffee, and waited for the first of the elite runners to run by – right around 8:40 AM, just over an hour into the race!  Wild.

Over the course of the next hour, my parents, Karen, and some of their friends arrived, along with a bunch of Nash and my friends – we had quite the cheering section!  With coffee in hand, we cheered on the runners and waited for our friends to run by – which came up sooner than expected when Kyle headed the pack ahead of schedule!  Not far behind were Ali and Brady, then Kara, and then Ash!!

Quick funny side story:  Ash told me that our friends Clint and Kelly were along the second half of the course, holding a sign with a HAIKU!  Clint is known in our group of friends for writing epic (read: dirty) haiku poems, and the marathon was no different:

Marathon Haiku
Go Run Like the Wind Ashley
Beat Up Them Street Guts!

Amazing.

With our friends well into the second half of the race, we all headed upstairs to refuel for our next round of cheering.  I’m a terrible blogger and didn’t take ANY photos yesterday (luckily, my Dad took a million), so I failed to capture a photo of the beautiful brunch spread.  So instead, I borrowed this photo and corresponding recipe from The Kitchn.  I made a few modifications, of course – I added some ground mustard, worcestershire, and hot sauce to the egg mixture for some extra flavor.  I also changed the veggies, subbing leeks instead of the sundried tomatoes, peppers, and onion.  It was very good!  Nash also made an egg casserole (sausage and mushroom) that was very good – domestic goddesses!  The eggs were served with bagels and cream cheese that my parents picked up on their way, fruit salad that Jackie made, lots of yummy desserts, and brunchy cocktails!  Not to mention lots of coffee – I learned that it’s difficult to keep up with coffee consumption when hosting brunch!

After warming up our bodies and our bellies, we all headed back out – but this time, we crossed the street and walked a mere block to mile 25 of the course!  Cheering at mile 25 was truly special.  You could tell that the runners really needed the extra boost that our large crowd provided.  My favorite was my Dad yelling “just 2 kilometers left!” – giving the runners something to contemplate (it was more like 1.8 kilometers left).

And in no time, our friends came around again – all looking exceptionally strong and happy!  I was almost brought to tears seeing Ash so close to her goal.  I know how long and hard she had worked to reach that point, and being there to cheer her through the last of it was really something special.

And then it was over!  Everyone finished all 26.2 miles in one piece (not to be taken for granted), feeling strong and healthy and happy to officially be able to call themselves marathoners!  I am so impressed and in awe by all of them.  No matter how athletic you are, a marathon is no joke – it takes a level of perseverance and dedication unseen in other aspects of life.  And not to mention, a body that doesn’t fall apartment after half of a half-marathon!

A huge congratulations to Ashley, Johnny, Kyle, Kara, Ali, Brady, and all of the other runners out there yesterday!  I’m honored to have been a part of your experience.

Who’s running next year?!