26.2

Riley took an online test once that told him that he is the 1/2 marathon type of runner... that he COULD run a marathon, but he would be hurting and the 1/2 is better suited for him. He decided to run one anyway!

Riley and Kyle found out last minute that they were going to have to work this weekend and couldn't run the race, after talking to their higher-ups they were excused to go run... i mean it IS a marathon after all!

We started our day at 12:30 (ya as in 30 min past midnight) we left the house by 1-ish to drive to waikiki and find parking... oh my goodness that was an experience all on it's own. we made our way down to the shuttle which then drove us over to the starting point. I realized quickly into the day that i am sick... i have some sort of a stomach bug, and was definitely NOT feeling too hot. fighting the urge to puke into a porta pottie is NOT fun... ugh.

We made our way to their designated start point ( the 3-4 hours group) and waited. The instructions were all given in japanese first and THEN in English, which i'm not going to lie upset me a little. I understand that 75% of the participants flew here for the event FROM Japan... however they were guests... if they held a race and 75% were americans that flew in for it.. i would still expect the primary language to be japanese. ANYWAY we were eventually able to find our way without any english signs telling us where to go.

The boys took off to a starting firework show, it was pretty legit. like 10 full minutes of fireworks... i'm a sucker for fireworks. and you can't tell me you don't love their outfits. they ran the whole thing together, how many people do you think thought they were a couple :)

After they started i was planning on heading straight to the finish to wait for 4 hours... but then i overheard that mile four would wrap right around to where i was... so i wait a little bit. i was SEARCHING for the green shorts along with the shirtless guy with a pink headband... how i missed them i'll never know (my eyesight is getting worse) LUCKILY my husband saw my pretty little face and pointed himself out... so i just barely missed it.....

if you look closely you can see Riley's eyes under Kyle's chin, staring at me like a creeper... gosh i hate that i missed them. So They passed and i started making my way to where some of the buses were SUPPOSED to be to take people to the finish... no buses... LAME... so i knew at this point i would have to walk the 3 miles back to the finish line... all the while feeling like i was about to puke. so i was standing and just playing with my camera taking some blurry shots (on purpose) wishing i had my tripod to get the effect i was wanting... when some weirdo starts talking to me. His name was Will, he's in the army and he was a creep. he told me (in the first 15 minutes of talking to him) that he has no problem going after married women as long as their men aren't deployed.... i looked at him and just said "seriously" with my most judgmental face on :) I am not the quickest person to realize when someone is hitting on me (cause it doesn't happen often) so it took me a good 10 minutes to realize that is what he was doing. When i mentioned i am married is when he brought out his charming line about married women (creep)... then he found out i was Mormon, and the rumors started flying... he was CONVINCED that i was a polygamist. the ONLY good thing that came of Will, is that an hour of me trying to get rid of him just flew by.

So with only about 2 ish hours left i joined the crowd of 10k race day walkers on their last 5k to the finish line... i tried to stay on the side since i was not registered... i honestly just needed to know how to get back to the finish. I walked down the main shopping strip of waikiki, when i nice older couple stopped me and asked me what the point of the marathon was, if it was for a foundation or what.. i informed them it was just the annual one but that their were a lot of teams running with shirts either FOR a foundation or there was a team whose shirts said "victory lap of 26.2 miles after beating cancer" he informed me his lovely wife is a cancer survivor and i told them that my nephew of only 4 years old just beat cancer as well. we chatted for a few minutes about their trip, and i learned that the younger man with them on their trip came to the island to visit my base... his brother was stationed at Kbay and was KIA earlier this year in Afghanistan. It was a conversation that i am better for having had.

I got to the finish line with nearly 3 hours on the clock. i decided it was time to find my spot at the finish line to get my classic picture of them finishing... this race was designed so if you want a picture of you finishing... you MUST buy theirs. there was no way for me to get a clear shot of the finish line. So i made the decision to walk down to right before the finish where everyone was cheering them on to finish strong, and found a place.

right before 4 hours i saw the green shorts and blue shirt.

 At the finish line then had these showers set up... Riley said it was AMAZING!

The are both in pain at this point. Riley has decided he is MUCH better at running 1/2 marathons, and that while he will do a few marathons... he's gonna mostly stick to the shorter distances... if you can call 13.1 miles short. Now we just need to get me ready for my 1/2 marathon.. i have about a year until go time!

I am SO proud of these boys. also you can SEE them getting thinner and more fit through all their races. I am SO glad i was able to brave through not feeling well and be able to be there for the guys. They are amazing, and i love being there to support them!