The hills were difficult, but not impossible; they were not incredibly steep, but they were plentiful. The large crowds helped keep everyone going and nobody had shame in walking for a few steps here and there- any step, be it walking or running, was one step closer to the finish line (at least that’s how I looked at it).

 

Just after passing the mile 19 marker I called TJ, my boss at Runworldwide.com. He provided a lot of encouragement in the months leading up to the race and I also thought he would appreciate that I was still forging ahead with just over 7 miles to go. I honestly can’t remember our exact conversation, but I do remember hearing a spectator say “Is that girl on her phone?” I’m sure most of the runners were not making phone calls just before hitting Heartbreak Hill, but I was running my own race. I was running as fast or as slow as I wanted to, walking when I felt like I should and I figured if I wanted to include making a phone call while I was running a part of my marathon experience then that was my prerogative.

 

Other than knowing the approximate mileage, I didn’t realize I was actually running on Heartbreak Hill until I was half way up it! The multiple hills I had already run up through Newton had all been different distances and grades (i.e. some were steeper than others) so it just seemed like I was hitting yet another of many hills. At this point in the race the crowds seemed to grow exponentially. Passing by Wellesley there were hundreds of students wearing “Kiss Me I’m _____” t-shirts with descriptors like “German,” “Blonde,” and “Gay” filled in. One runner around me actually went over to the side of the course to get a kiss.