Local cheerleaders encouraged the runners along Lafayette Boulevard

I recently uploaded photos from this past weekend’s Detroit/Windsor marathon.

A group of us rode downtown from Royal Oak and elsewhere to cheer on our friends who were running.  It was a chilly ride down, but no injuries were reported.

We were starving midway through the ride, so I coerced the group into ordering crepes at Good Girls go to Paris.  It was very convenient that the marathon course went right past the crepe shop.

On the way back we stopped at the Woodbridge Pub for a beer.  Then we made another beer and bathroom stop at the Stonehouse Bar.

Photos: Detroit/Windsor Free Press Marathon

What a magical race.

Boston is just a great town to hang out in for a few days then run a marathon. This race has so many positive memories for me. Thinking back on this race still gives me chills. Of course afterwards I couldn’t walk, but it was a small, temporary price to pay.

Some of my favorite moments include running past the screaming all-girls college, having runners yell to the spectators “How are the Red Sox doing?”, catching up to the Hoyt’s, passing other runners on Heartbreak Hill, not falling when my legs went numb, and drinking cold beer at the after party.
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In this photo from Windsor, I’m obviously still smiling, floating inches above the Canadian soil and hanging on to a sub-6:30 minute per mile pace. I had originally planned on keeping a 6:30 pace from the gun. My racing partner Joe Deighan said he’d do the same. That first mile was 6:20 then 6:15. I slowed down as Joe continued to push the pace up and over the Ambassador Bridge.

Our pace changed during the next 21 miles.

Still, I hung on for a 2:52:59 finish, almost beat a bonking Kenyan, and qualified for a pilgrimage to the Boston Marathon.