Marathon Soundtrack

You see them every day; runners with little white buds stuck in their ears, the dangling cord bouncing merrily with their stride, leading to a box strapped to their arm or tucked into clothing. Inside that box are hundreds of songs, meticulously selected to make the miles go by faster. Not every runner needs a soundtrack, and many- like myself- would prefer to share the miles with friends. But as I stand on the starting line of the Eugene, Oregon marathon in early May with 26.2 miles in front of me, my only running companions are my goal of qualifying for Boston, and my ipod shuffle.

The starting gun goes off, the ipod goes on, and Whitney Houston reminds me I have just one moment in time, when I’m more than I thought I could be. Inspired, I start off a tad bit too fast, and spend the next few miles trying to reign in my enthusiasm so I don’t burn out too early.

At mile six I feel fantastic, as Eminem asks me if you had one shot, or one opportunity to seize everything you ever wanted- would you capture it or just let it slip? Capture it! I yell aloud to confused faces around me. At 13.1 miles, Bon Jovi belts out Ohh, we're half way there, woah livin' on a prayer…we'll make it - I swear and I take that as a positive sign that this day will go even better than expected. After 16 miles of tranquil green parks that wrap around the meandering Willamette River, I’m doing so well I envision the surprised face of Doug as I cross the finish line well under my goal time, waving victoriously to We Are The Champions by Queen.

But at mile 20, my energy wanes, and my pace slows. The cushion time I banked early on begins to fade away, as I question everything from my training, to my diet to whether there really is a God, because I could use a sign right about now. As I struggle to keep a positive attitude, a runner comes up from behind, gives me a half hug, and says "I’ve been watching you- you’re doing great". Not waiting for an answer, she continues on, as I notice the name on her bib is LAURA- my friend who passed away that same week. As if my ipod can read my mind, Train sings I need a sign to let me know you're here… I'm calling all you angels and I promise along with the lyrics that I won't give up if you don't give up, because if an angel made the effort to come down and lead me to the finish line, the least I can do is follow her.

And follow her I do. Over the final 6.2 miles I kept that angel in the green shirt in my line of vision. This despite a feeling of nausea I could not shake, calf cramps and Steven Tyler taunting me to Walk This Way. Wondering what I was thinking when I downloaded that song, I click forward only to hear I hope someday you’ll get the chance to live like you were dyin’. How appropriate, because I feel like I’m ready to keel over right about now. With three miles to go, my average time is dead on to what I need to maintain for the rest of the race, a task that seems increasingly impossible. I test my commitment by walking a few steps, until Nickelback reminds me every second counts cause there's no second try. Thankful for the reminder, the angel in the green shirt and I trot on.

At 26.1 miles, I pass through the gates of historic Hayward Field at the University of Oregon. There is no victory wave, just my stoic face fixed on the giant clock over the finish line that confirms I’ve arrived two minutes too late and ticking. I feel like a bride jilted at the altar, dragging a 26.2 mile train of disappointment behind me. How could my own body stand me up like this? I reach down to shut off my ipod, but not before Christina Aguilera whispers After all you put me through, you'd think I'd despise you, but in the end I wanna thank you 'cause you made that much stronger. Thanks for making me stronger, but I wish I was two minutes faster instead.

Although I’ve never had a baby, I imagine it is similar to running a marathon. Despite months of physical and mental preparation, the actual experience is so much harder than you imagine. And when your body is screaming ‘what did you make me do?!’ you swear you’ll never put yourself through that pain again. But when you see the positive outcome of your efforts, a spontaneous rush of joy comes over you, erases all your pain, and Stevie Wonder sings Isn’t She Lovely. For me, that moment came as I hobbled over to retrieve a printout of my net time (the actual time based on when you crossed the starting line), and through my salt caked, sweaty eyes, I see the magic number 4:05:50. That’s four hours, five minutes and 50 seconds- good enough to qualify for Boston with just 9 seconds to spare. A lovely sight indeed.

My marathon playlist:

Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now, McFadden & Whitehead
Ali In the Jungle, The Hours
All Star, Smashmouth
Amazing, Aerosmith
Authority Song, John Mellencamp
Bad, Michael Jackson
Calling All Angels, Train
Don't Rain On My Parade, Glee Cast
Don't Stop Me Now, Queen
Everyday, Bon Jovi
Fighter, Christina Aguilera
Fire Burnin, Sean Kingston
Gives You Hell, The All American Rejects
Going the Distance, Cake
Gotta Be Somebody, Nickelback
Have a Little Faith in Me, John Hiatt
I'll Be Missing You, Puff Daddy
I Got You Babe, Sonny & Cher
I Gotta Feeling, Black Eyed Peas
I Will Survive, Gloria Gaynor
If I Could Turn Back Time, Cher
If Today Was Your Last Day, Nickelback
Independent Women Part 1, Destiny's Child
Its a Beautiful Day, U2
It's My Life, Bon Jovi
Kryptonite, 3 Doors Down
Live Like You Were Dying, Tim McGraw
Livin' On A Prayer, Bon Jovi
Lose Yourself, Eminem
Musta Got Lost, J. Geils Band
My Time, Fabolous
My Way, Frank Sinatra
One Moment In Time, Whitney Houston
Run This Town, Rihanna & Kanye West
Say Hey (I Love You), Michael Franti and Spearhead
Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It), Beyoncé
Survivor, Destiny's Child
That's Not My Name, The Ting Tings
Touch of Grey, Grateful Dead
Tubthumping, Chumbawamba
Viva la Vida, Coldplay
Walk This Way, Aerosmith
Wanna be Startin Something, Michael Jackson
We Are The Champions, Queen
Whoomp There It Is, Tag Team
Wish You Were Here, Pink Floyd
Without Me, Eminem
100 Years, Five For Fighting

Have an inspiring running tune to share? Send it along to newsgirl01970@yahoo.com.