Big Sur

This is another post about running because my upcoming marathon is blocking everything else out of my mind. The Big Sur Marathon is coming up in a little less than four weeks and it will be my 10th marathon. Runner's World calls it the Number 1 destination race in the world, mainly because the route runs North on the Pacific Coast Highway from Big Sur to Carmel. I've read that it's among the most picturesque and stunning stretches of highway in the country and it closes to runners on this one day of the year. In fact, the race was sold out in 59 minutes this year! I was lucky to get in.

It's been on my bucket list of marathons for about 5 years and this is the year. I've only been to California once before, and only briefly, and not to that part of the state, but I've been told that the course is exceptionally hilly and some years involves dealing with some mighty winds. This is normally not a problem for me, but I'm coming back from knee surgery 8 months ago and my other "good" knee has been very creaky, which has put a damper somewhat on my training. Essentially, I'm a bundle of nerves, even though I am a veteran marathoner. I've never gone into a race with so many physical questions and have never been on such a challenging course, three Boston Marathons and one Steamtown Marathon notwithstanding. 

But pre-race jitters in the final month of training is normal for many runners. Partly because training for a marathon takes about four months, so after the first three, you're body is rounding into great shape and your energy levels are peaking. Most people, like myself, blow off some of that excess energy through excessive worry, fidgeting, paranoia, pacing and imagining strange aches and pains that spark additional loops of worry, angst, and short-temper-dom. There will be more on this as the date approaches. 

Again, I welcome comments--there must be one or two runners out there who have accidentally happened upon these posts.