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And it’s done..first official live marathon that didn’t involve swimming and biking first !!

They said train well because it might be cold or windy on race day…it was.. blustering cold winds and gusts upto 40mph provided a decent challenge in addition to the hills as my friends and I completed our marathon 26.2 miles

Some of my amazing atheletes did a half marathon the day before… to complete the chowda challenge at the cape cod marathon….

I had come to this same race to do my first half marathon back in 2017 and now 5 years later I was back for the full

I got into the race shute with minutes to spare amongst hundreds of excited runners.. the gun went off and zoom zoom we started.

The first Mile I could feel the heavy calves and was hoping things that would not deteroritate….i was like ” crap this is gonna be a long race or a very short drop.out if the legs don’t work” so I willed them to keep moving and enjoyed the coastal view instead…

I Warmed up by mile 2 to 3 and met some friends and we ran together till mile 8 or 9…

( details on interesting encounters of runners tomorrow)

The unrelenting headwind proved quite the annoyance as we all pushed through…it felt like running on a treadmill…not going anywhere very quickly while being in one position

The majestic waves on the ocean were churing up the beach line and was a pleasant distraction

My biggest struggle was keeping my hat on… thereby wishing I wore my beanie for the race..

There was alot of opportunity to get to know strangers but there was a lot of alone being in my head and talk time…more insights soon

After mile 21 I started questioning my life choices along with many first time marathoners as we walked up hill..

Until that point i was maintaining a 10 40 to 11 min per mile pace on my tires legs…not bad for an old man but it was disheartening to fins a 16min Mile on some walk run intervals

Mile 23.5 I chugged down a pickle juice to.keep me going…I had maintained my balance of salt and Gatorade and consuming energy gels well till that point…but I was getting gassed out..

Mile 24 and 25 were the hardest…every part of me knew that that I would finish even if I walked to the finish line.. the winds kept beckoning me to walk….but I had to get this over and done with…

As I turned approached the 26 mile marker I thought about the kids… and pushed.. and as I turned the corner to 0.2 mile to the finish.. there they were…. they ran out of the crowds and came onto the course and grabbed each hand and ran with me through the finish…..

Best day ever…

I realized that 2 weeks ago I did the half ironman 70.3 miles with bike being 56 Miles and 13 miles of run… 7 hours and 45 min

And this running only race of 26.2 miles 5hours.and 36 min..

Fewer mileage by a lot but time was close..i so missed my bike lol

Humbling for sure…

.grateful for all my ryh and 4run3 fellow atheltes who ran this weekend…

Grateful for my wifey Nitika Bhatnagar and kids for being the ultimate support crew

Grateful for my coach Jon Blanchard who helped get me this amazing level of fitness in 16 months and to be here doing my first marathon ( we have much to work on to iron out my weaknesses)

Grateful to my 3am running crew Jeff Castonguay and Jennifer Davis we have quite the adventure in training..

I realized that it is not a case that I have to do these races.. but I get to do them…. with gratitude and love it is all the difference in the world.

Now I have done one marathon.. there is no limit to what can happen next…

On the way back to the hotel devoured an entire pizza that was simply divine and was all mine… hopped on the bed and got into my compression boots…Best sleep in years
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I love you