Andrea
3/20/12
This past Sunday I ran the Rome Marathon. Needless to say, it was amazing. As I ran past the Colosseum at the start, then the Roman Forum, I couldn’t help but tear up a bit. After all, I had been planning and training for this race for over six months! I was finally running it! That sheer joy only lasted for about a kilometer, though, because right in front of the Vittorio Emmanuele monument in Piazza Venezia everyone came to a standstill. Really, Rome Marathon? You can’t stagger the start properly so there’s not a huge bottleneck in the first kilometer? I had a few choice words for the organizers of the race at this point. After the crowd dispersed things were a little better for the next few km as I pass the Forum Boarium, Temple of Hercules, Mouth of Truth, and Circus Maximus, but the overcrowding continued. It wasn’t until about 10 km into the race that I was finally able to run at my own pace! We ran past my apartment in Garbatella, through Trastevere, then up the Lungotevere towards the Vatican, my old stomping grounds, then continued north onto streets lined with flower trees. This is where I really started to make up some ground. I was feeling great! I wanted to pass all the macho Roman men who were decked out in their finest running gear, thinking they were tough shit (many of whom I saw walking later on – ha ha!). It felt pretty good to cruise past the masses, I must say. I continued my cruise for the next two hours, passing people dressed in goofy costumes, such as Spiderman, Snow White, clowns, and of course, gladiators. I finally arrived at Piazza Navona, near the end of the race, where I knew my yak and sherpa (i.e. my snack carriers/photo crew of Kristin and Tim) would be. Just before arriving in my favorite piazza I also saw my new favorite Aussie, our friend Victoria, and my former landlord’s wife and their children, both of whom cheered emphatically for me, giving me an extra energy boost. By the time I entered Piazza Navona I knew that I would meet my goal of running the marathon in under four hours (barring any unfortunate events in the last few km), and was further energized by the sight of Bernini’s Fountain of the Four Rivers. Almost in tears of joy, yet again, I laid eyes upon my yak and sherpa, one of which, Kristin, began snapping photos like a madwoman and ran with me through the piazza so she could get more shots. You see why she is my best friend?
After this monumental run through arguably the most beautiful piazza in Rome, things went downhill. My quads locked up as though they were filled with Roman concrete. The pain wasn’t as bad as the last marathon (Madison, Wisconsin, May 2011), but it was debilitating nonetheless. The last five km were horrendous, but I think I managed 9:30 minute miles somehow – somehow I willed myself to do it, probably with some help from Hermes (okay, “Mercury” since I’m in Rome, but in my mind my Hermes wing tattoo is Greek, and despite my location I will refer to it as my Hermes wing). As I passed the Circus Maximus for the second time I realized that I didn’t have much left to run and suddenly realized that it was time to kick it into high gear, no matter how bad my legs were hurting (mind you, high gear at this point isn’t very high). I felt like I was running in a Roman triumph as I ran straight at the Arch of Constantine, fueled by adrenaline, endorphins, and lots of Gatorade (or at the signs said, “salts”). Passing the Colosseum, all I could think of was being done – crossing that finish line and finally being able to stop running after four hours. With one final kick, I rounded the final corner and “sprinted” (okay, what I would call a sprint after running 26 miles) to the finish line. FINITO!!!!! 3:57:42
So after I crossed the finish line, wobbled over to get my medal, then hobbled to the refreshment tables, I immediately realized that Kristin and I had not set a meeting point. Normally, in a smaller marathon, this would not be a problem, but the Rome marathon had a few more participants than the Madison marathon, my first, and I had given Kristin all of my things, most importantly, my phone, keys, and metro pass. Brilliant. Okay, so if two people are both looking for each other and moving around it is unlikely that they will find each other, right? With this logic I decided to pop a squat on the Via dei Fori Imperialii near the finish chute exit and stretch and eat until Kristin spotted me. Sound logic, right? Well, after two hours of sitting, then wandering, then staying put again, and repeating this, I decided that it was unlikely that we would find each other. “What would Kristin do?” I thought to myself. Knowing that we were going to take the metro home, I walked (sloooowly) back to the Colosseo metro station, thinking that it would make sense that she would wait for me there and hoping that she didn’t think our inability to locate each other meant that I was in the hospital. Well, as it turned out the Colosseo station was closed. “Okay, if I were Kristin I would walk to the Circo Massimo metro stop since Colosseo isn’t an option.” At a crawling pace, I made my way to the next metro stop, only to find no one waiting for me. At this point I gave up on the idea that I would find Kristin and decided to take a bus home, since if I took a bus I wouldn’t need a ticket… necessarily, like I would if I took the metro. “Hopefully I won’t get fined!” Well, after sitting on the curb like a hobo waiting for the 715 bus for about five minutes the two intimidating military men across the street from me told me that they’d been there for three hours and hadn’t seen a bus. Of course. At this point I almost lost it and could feel the tears building up. I just ran a marathon and spent nearly three hours looking for Kristin – was I really going to have to walk home? “No,” I decided, “I’ll ask someone for a euro so I can take the metro home. Someone will part with one euro if I explain my situation.” This is where the kindness and generosity of the Romans comes into play again. After arriving at the Circo Massimo metro stop again I spotted a guy with a marathon bib with two friends, likely his support group, and decided to ask them first. Somehow I managed to process how to speak Italian, even in my exhausted state. I barely even had to explain myself and they happily gave me a euro to take the metro home. What nice people! (If you’ve seen the IT Crowd episode in which Roy is shirtless, kicked out of the office, and ends up on the street begging for money to make a phone call you’ll understand how I felt. If you haven’t seen the IT Crowd, well, you’re missing out!) Anyway, exhausted, I bought my ticket and waited for the metro to arrive. While waiting several other riders wished me “complimenti” and said “brava,” seeing my bib still attached to the front of my shirt from the race. My confidence in the Roman people was restored. After a few stops I got off the metro and had a mini-epiphany/telepathic moment with Kristin. I had already realized that I didn’t have my keys and therefore had no way of getting into the apartment unless someone else was home (which is what I was counting on), but I hadn’t thought about where Kristin was. Originally I assumed she had went home, but in my moment of clarity realized that she would have the sense to realize that she had my keys and phone and that the only thing that made sense for her to do was to go to my apartment, as well. “Oh please, let her be there!” I crossed my fingers for the whole walk from the metro, which seemed much longer than usual. Much to my joy, when I hit the buzzer outside my door of my building someone answered and buzzed me in. I hobbled to the elevator and lo and behold – Kristin stepped out of it! I think this was the third most happy I have ever been to see her (#1 was spotting her at the train station when we first arrived and #2 was picking her up from the airport in Milwaukee when she came to visit me in Madison). At this point it was 4:30pm and I had finished the marathon around 1pm. I was exhausted and relieved. Lesson learned: ALWAYS arrange a meeting point! If you somehow forget to do this I hope your support team is as smart and wonderful as Kristin! Lesson two: ALWAYS use the luggage deposit! The Rome marathon gave each participant a really nice Asics backpack with a clear plastic pocket in the front for your bib number. The idea was that you leave your Asics backpack in one of their luggage trucks with your bib number on it and collect it in the finish chute. It was a brilliant idea and actually very well organized, surprisingly, which I wish I had used… Next time?
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