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Distance runner Ray Christensen

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  • 2002-05
    • 2002 Training Log
    • 2002 Philly Distance Run
    • 2002 DE Distance Classic 15K
    • 2002 Dublin Marathon
      • Dublin: Sightseeing
      • Dublin: Pasta Dinner
      • Dublin City Marathon
      • Dublin: Celebration
      • 2002 J.I.M. Bermuda
      • 2002 J.I.M. Disneyworld
    • 2003 Icicle, CR, Broad Street
    • 2003 Marathon Training
    • 2003 Humpy's Marathon
      • Alaska Trip: Travel and Cruise
      • Alaska: Humpy's Marathon
      • Alaska: Talkeetna, Denali
      • Alaska: Team Cobey Hiking
      • Alaska: Sightseeing Anchorage
      • Alaska: More Photos
    • 2003 NYC Marathon
      • New York City Start
      • NYC Triumph
    • 2004 Icicle Run in Wilmington
    • 2004 Caesar Rodney Half
    • 2004 Paris Marathon
      • Paris: Delaware Runners
      • Paris: Notre Dame, Louvre
      • Paris Marathon – Race Day
      • Paris: Cemetery, Eiffel Tower
      • Versailles & Paris Sightseeing
    • 2004 Bay to Breakers
      • BTB in San Francisco
      • BTB Naked Runners
    • 2004 Races & Training
    • 2004 Chicago Marathon
      • Chicago Expo, Sightseeing
      • Chicago Race Day
      • Chicago Congratulations
    • 2005 Winter Races
    • 2005 Boston Marathon
      • Boston Bus Trip
      • Boston Marathon – Race Day
      • Marathon Press Recap
    • 2005 Summer Races
    • 2005 Twin Cities Marathon
  • 2006-10
    • 2006 Boston Marathon
      • Boston Bus Trip
      • Hopkinton to Boylston St.
    • 2006 Steamtown Marathon
    • 2007 Big Sur Marathon
    • 2007 Marine Corps Marathon
    • 2008 New Jersey Marathon
    • 2008 Breakers Marathon
    • 2009 Disney World Marathon
      • Disney Marathon Trip
      • Goofy Challenge Races
    • 2009 Boston Marathon
      • Boston Bus, Expo, Rebels
      • 113th Boston Marathon
      • Boston Globe Photos
    • 2009 California Intl Marathon
    • 2010 Country Music Marathon
    • 2010 Wineglass Marathon
  • 2011-18
    • 2011 Garden Spot Marathon
    • 2011 Marine Corps Half
    • 2011 Philadelphia Marathon
    • 2012 Bob Potts Marathon
    • 2012 Hartford Marathon
    • 2013 Vermont City Marathon
    • 2014 Ave of Giants Marathon
      • 2014: Northern California
    • 2014 Monster Mash Mar.
    • 2015 River Towns Marathon
    • 2015 Richmond Marathon
    • 2018 Baltimore Marathon
  • Contact Ray

2002 Dublin City Marathon: The Race

Official race photo
Official race photo

Triumph in Dublin!

Is it in you?      You better believe it, baby!      The moment had arrived…

I proudly ran as a member of Team Delaware of the Arthritis Foundation’s Joints in Motion program. I ran in honor of my father, who has undergone two successful shoulder operations to remove arthritis and raised $4000 for the cause.

Sightseeing in Dublin – our trip to Ireland and escapades in Dublin
Pasta Dinner – International Breakfast Run, J.I.M. pasta dinner
The Marathon – running commentary of race day
Celebration and Recovery – more photos, more Guinness!

Ray’s stats – – – Overall 1619th of 6500+ – – – – – – Age group Male(40-44) 225 of 590 – – – Official time 3:50:25 – – – Chip time 3:49:57 – – – 1st Half time 1:48:38 – – – 2nd Half time 2:01:47 – – – Can you do better?

Running Commentary of the Race
Monday 10/28/02: Marathon Day
Good sleep, but I’m awake at 4:30am before rising at 6. A light “power breakfast” downstairs was followed by stretching and suiting up. At 7:30, Team Delaware departed the lobby for the one mile walk to the start line near Merrion Square. It was cool (40’s?) but no rain and no wind. Thank you God! I deposited my numbered bag in the staging area, made a potty stop and headed to the start area on the street next to Trinity College. The atmosphere was tense, but festive. Ten minutes before the 9am start, runners started peeling off outer shirts and throwing them to the sides of the street.

Team Delaware       Official Water
Team Delaware is ready to rock!

The race starts and half a mile down the street, I hand off my hat to Duncan, who will meet me at mile 18. I ran most of the first 7 miles with Mark from Belfast and a guy from NYC who were also aiming for a 4 hour finish time. Our pace was a little faster than I had planned, but I hoped the cold weather would keep me strong. I was comfortable in my Joints in Motion jacket. We received great encouragement from onlookers all along the course. Applause and shouts of “You’re doing great!” and “Well done!” filled the air. Kids wanted high fives, and I obliged. At one point, the crowd was so close on both sides that runners had to run single file. Water stops were every 3 miles. My gloves were on and off, since the bottled water was spilling on my fingers. Around mile 9 it was time to chow down on a granola bar. I was feeling pretty good, drinking plenty, with no leg problems. The course wound through residential areas, with smiling spectators standing in their yards or in large groups at street corners. I was encouraged that my 13.1 mile split time of 1:48 was virtually the same as I had done in the Philly Half Marathon in September.

     
Course map –     –     –     –     –     –     – Joints in Motion cheering sign

Strong Pace
My form was good and the spectators definitely helped push us along. My only stop so far was to walk while drinking Lucozade from a cup. Duncan greeted me before mile 18 and I gave him my jacket. It was time to get serious! My roommate Chris handed off a Power Bar and Gel. The vanilla gel was the first to be consumed, while I held a water bottle in my other hand. We entered Phoenix Park around mile 20 and immediately faced a long, steady uphill climb. It was like a death march. I started walking around one third of the way up to eat the chewy Power Bar and I kept walking (and chewing) a little longer than I would have liked. But I was a little nervous, since we were approaching mile 21, the longest distance I had run in training. Everything beyond that point was going to be a new experience. After passing a few trees I liked, I finally chose one to relieve my bladder. Oooh, that felt good!

The Wall
I think instead of “hitting the wall”, we hit “the park”. It just kept going and going and going. Yes, there were spectators at various points, but the path kept winding through the same scenery. I laughed about carrying my Power Bar wrapper and water bottle the whole way through the park since there wasn’t a single waste basket along the way. Then I thought about taking another walk break, but told myself to keep on trucking. From this point on, onlookers tried to cheer us by saying “It’s all downhill from here!”, so every slight upgrade from that point seemed like a cruel joke.

Road to Glory
Leaving the park gave me an immediate lift. At around mile 23, a radio DJ was pumping out some good music, and there was a sizeable crowd. That’s the point that I became emotional and had to fight back some tears because barring a major problem, my four hour goal was within reach. My nerves were tested since I could now feel soreness in my feet and a tingle in my legs every few strides or so. I prayed for God’s mercy to finish the race and felt sad for guys I passed who were stopped or limping in the final miles due to injury. They were so close to the finish! As I ran past the Gresham, there was just one mile to go.

800 M
The crowds lining both sides of the street grew larger as we approached Trinity College. There were barricades up once I saw a sign for “800 Meters” to the finish. But like some of my teammates agreed later, my mind wasn’t working well enough to figure out exactly how far 800 meters really was. One lap? Two laps? A man on a bike came alongside to encourage me. I could feel the energy from the crowd. Once I reached the final turn, there were just 100 yards to go and I started any vestige of a sprint that I still had in me. I couldn’t smile. I couldn’t acknowledge the crowd. I could only run.

Victory
The clock showed 3 hours 50 minutes! As I crossed the line with my arms in the air, a voice announced “Ray Christensen from Wilmington, Delaware…I think it’s Wilmington.” I said to myself, “Yes, that’s right, Wilmington” and walked into the chute where my time chip was removed. A few feet further, someone draped a foil blanket over my shoulders and finally I was handed a bag containing my “finisher” T-shirt and plaque. I was filled with pride, but felt alone among thousands of people. A personal victory.

Leaving the “chute” area, I picked up the bag I had left earlier (containing my old camera and a sweatshirt), enjoyed a cold cup of orange Lucozade, passed up the line for massages and wandered to the side of the crowded street to stretch and ask a man to take a picture of me. While looking for teammates or Duncan, I finally remembered that I had to check in with Joints in Motion when I saw signs directing me to another area. Still wrapped in my foil blanket, I checked in and grabbed a banana. Too bad what I really craved was a bagel!

Another 15 minutes went by as I decided against getting on a bus back to the hotel in favor of waiting for teammates. I was happy to see Scott and he was happy to see the bananas! A little later, Jane appeared. Jane was very happy to see the potato chips! Ninety minutes after I crossed the line, I boarded a bus back to the hotel. I couldn’t have walked it, but my legs weren’t in bad shape. A shower felt good and eventually I hit the lobby and received the happy update that all of us had finished! Now I felt pride for the team.

Gresham   Marathon Program
Pre-race photo with Gresham Hotel manager . . . . . . . Official race program

Team Delaware   clown
Anxious athlete wait for start – – – – – – – – – – Stress-free clown
(l. to r.) Ray, Scot, Patty, Andrew, Jane

start   leading pack
Marathon start – – – – – – – – – – Leading pack of runners

Annette   cheering ladies
J. I. M. athlete “Annette”, who walked complete course in over 12 hours – – – – – Cheering ladies

 
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Ray at 18
Ray getting re-supplied by Chris at Mile 18

finish area   finish area
Finish area in front of government building

Ray after finish   Ray after finish
Ray, in all his glory, at the finish area

Ray, Scot, Jane with Tino (Arthritis Foundation director)   finisher plaque
Team Delaware runners Ray, Scot, and Jane rejoice their completion with Tino (Arthritis Foundation director)

Home Stretch!

Boston Marathon finisher medal

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Home
About Ray
2002 Dublin
2003 Humpy’s
2003 New York City
2004 Paris
2004 Chicago
2005 Boston Marathon
2005 Twin Cities
2006 Boston Marathon
2006 Steamtown
2007 Big Sur
2007 Marine Corps

2011 Philadelphia
2012 Bob Potts
2012 Hartford
2013 Vermont City
2014 Ave of Giants
2014 Monster Mash
2015 River Towns
2015 Richmond
2018 Baltimore
Contact Ray

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The Lord is kind and merciful,
Slow to anger and great in compassion.

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