July 26 was the San Francisco Marathon. The race started before sunrise, running along the Embarcadero waterfront. My friend Sean and I met Anette, a marathon first-timer from Wisconsin on summer break from college, who was running a race for the first time in two years, after a collegiate running career that was ended too soon because of knee problems (she credits her recent running resurrection to Glucosamine, which edges me towards trying the stuff). We enjoyed the start of the race, which was so packed with runners that we had to zig and zag around the slower folks like we were in a maze (since we started near the back of the pack, there were lots of slower folks in front of us). From the start, the race felt like classic San Francisco, with thick fog all around us, historic streetcars gliding by on their rails, fog horns blaring from the waters of the Bay, and cheerful spectators and runners in colorful garb.
The three of us ran and chatted along the water, past Fisherman's Wharf, up the first hill to Fort Mason, back down along the fast course through the Marina and the well-restored Chrissy Field, then up to the Golden Gate Bridge. Two lanes of traffic were coned off for us runners, and this was a bottleneck, for all 20,000 of us runners had to squeeze into one lane each way. More zigging, zagging, and dodging to get past the slower folks. Still, we were socked in with cool thick fog, making for ideal running conditions. We turned around in Marin, and doubled back across the Bridge to the Presidio. The course took us through the Cypress and Eucalyptus forests that cover the hill on which the old Army base stands. The three of us then descended the hill towards the ocean and ascended back up to the Richmond district, where the City's residents again cheered for us.
Still shrouded in mercifully cool fog, we entered Golden Gate Park and headed toward the ocean. After looping back toward Stow Lake (about mile 15), my knee, which I had injured only a month before, started complaining, despite the knee strap and tape that I had supporting it. Sadly, this meant I could no longer keep up the 8:40 minute/mile pace that we had been running, and had to drop back from Sean and Anette, which left me lonely for the companionship of friends which is such a boon during a long run! Also frustrating was that the structural weakness of my knee prevented me from being able to run to my aerobic potential, which made me feel like I was no longer racing but merely jogging. Nonetheless, the beautiful sights of the City, the momentum of the second-half-marathoners flying past (these guys had just started their race in Golden Gate Park at the time that we passed by our half-way point), and the cheers and music of the spectators kept me motivated.
After the familiar sights of the DeYoung Museum, academy of Sciences, and Parnassus, I said farewell to the Park, and headed through the rolling Haight neighborhood, full of its classic Victorians, Edwardians, and other styles of building, all of which I know nothing about but do appreciate the full asthetic value of. Residents and shop owners were out cheering for us runners, and many were even offering us food from their restaurants or bakeries. I don't think many of us marathoners were up for pastries at that time, though the occasional banana or orange did come in useful. After the Haight, the course descended steeply through the colorful Castro district, to the familiar Mission District, which I called home for this past year. By this time (after 9 am), the sun was starting to shine through the fog. As the air was becoming warmer and dryer, I knew that I'd better finish soon before my body and motivation began to melt, though my bad knee still wouldn't allow me to run to the threshold of the energy brimming over from inside.
The course entered China Basin, past Giant's park, and ran back along the water, where Joseph cheered me on! It was great to see a friendly face, and then the Bay Bridge, with the Ferry Building in the distance, signaled the finish line. I barely beat my worst goal of 4 hours, with a time of 3:56, so was bummed not to run to my conditioned potential, but was happy to still finish less than 4 hours.
Sean and Anette had finished a few minutes earlier, but were lost in the crowd at the finish. Joseph (who had finished earlier with an amazing time of 3:12) and SuetFei met me, and then Gerard, Marcus, Ken, Hiromi, Yoko, and Nobuko came to celebrate with me after the race. We lunched in South Park, and all these old friends enjoyed good company and good food after a morning of racing. It was welcome counterpoint to my achin' knee!
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