PETER TSAN

Motorola Austin Marathon 2000

Well guys, when we're old and gray-haired, we'll be able to tell our grandchildren that way back in February 20, 2000, we ran a marathon. It was a perfect day for a good, long run. Nice and cool, not too much sun. It was awesome seeing so many crazy folks out there running and all those people who came out early on a Sunday morning to cheer us on. For the first half of the race, I felt fairly good, muscles were loose, breathing was easy. I ran into some trouble in the second half of the race when the Mexican food from the night before started to kick my butt. And then about mile twenty, I started having spasms, first in my calves, and then the rest of my legs. I started wondering why exactly I was running 26.2 miles when I could be at home asleep. At about twenty four and a half miles, my legs were twitching so bad I had to stop and walk. Luckily, I met another walker who convinced me that we should get back running so that we could look good for the crowds at the finish line. So I gulped down some water and ran the rest of it, spasms and all. Reaching the finish line was great. It was like in a movie where everything slows down and gets quiet. It was sort of a peaceful, spiritual experience. Everything I had done for the year suddenly made sense. All the aches and pains, all the times I woke up early on weekend mornings to go running, in the cold, in the rain... All of it was worth it.

Anyways, I did it. We all did it. Congratulations to the rest of the team who ran the race, and thank you all for running with me this year. I couldn't have done it without you.

Happy running,
Peter 3:41:47.8!