"The Race Report" - - "The Engine That Almost Couldn't"

I'm going to try something different with this report and list/focus on the pluses and minuses and see where that takes us. First for the pluses:

+ I finished the race in an upright position under my own power.
+ I finished with essentially no new injuries or blisters....wooohooo!!!
+ I ran with a great group sponsored by The Edmond Family Center for Autism.
+ Having Bonnie here was a positive thing for me.
+ The fireworks they use at the start at 5:00 AM were beautiful.
+ The rain that came thru at 4:30 AM while standing in the potty line was "refreshing".
+ The rain that came just before the gun start was as good as a shower at home, but no soap.
+ The scenary has to be the best of any race that I've run, though my career is still young.
+ The water stops offered plenty water, gatorade and icy cold sponges.
+ Remembering to bring extra socks in a zip lock baggy.
+ The sun was not a big issue until later in the morning, the clouds were a very welcome veil.
+ The course is challenging but not overpowering, with Diamondhead the only real hill section.
+ The spectators were totally awesome, tho many were Japanese so I couldn't understand them.

The minuses were present but were overpowered I think by the more positive aspects of this race:

- Finish time was 6:49:48 (chip time) for a terrible pace of 15:19.
- Too many participants (over 20,000) left you running in a constant pack.
- The torrential rain at the start slowed things down considerably.
- Wet socks, what else can I say about that.
- My knee giving me trouble early on and throughout most of the race, forcing alot of walking.
- Taking waaaay too long to cross the finish.
- I was too worried about my knee to take any photos even though I did have a disposable camera with me.
- The finish area was LOUSY for a number of reasons, mostly because it was a quagmire.
- We got a shell necklace at the finish line but had to slog thru mud that reeked of raw sewage for a 1/4 mile to get our medal and finisher's tshirt, not something you want to do after 26.2 miles.
- For the finishers they had apples and cookies, not the greatest of food for the end of the race.

While there were some negatives about the run, the positives so far outweighed them, looking back at them the next day makes them seem almost inconsequential. Today after reflecting on things, I would say the mud in the finish area that smelled of raw sewage and the distance the finishers had to walk to get their medals was the biggest issues. I would still put this marathon on your radar screen if you have yet to run in Hawaii it is crowded but still a beautiful run.

I'm down because of the poor finish that I had, but I'm also upbeat that I was able to finish in any time. I feel that I didn't post as good a showing for all that donated on my behalf, it's a personal thing, just makes me feel like cr%p. This makes me want to come back and redeem myself with a better effort.