Race Day

Last year some time Mike got this crazy idea from our friends in Hailey that he should run a marathon. So just after Christmas he started his 4 month training for the Salt Lake Marathon on April 16th. I have to admit I was impressed. He really stuck with his training and was doing really well. He was getting in great condition and was able to run long distances like 16-18 miles. Then in the beginning of March his left foot started to bother him when he ran. Then it got to the point when it hurt just to walk, so running was out of the question. He self diagnosed the problem as a stress fracture. He got new shoes and tried taping his foot. But the only real cure was rest when he was supposed to be running 20 miles every Saturday. So he rested and was really worried that he would not be able to run the marathon. When race day came he decided to try and see what happened. To be honest I did not think he should run. I was not sure he was going to be able to finish. I knew he was in pain with just walking and he had lost some conditioning while resting his foot for the last month. But he wanted to to do it anyway. He said he would call me from one of the aid stations if he had to stop. I saw him on the course at mile 4 in the intersection of 2100 South and 2100 East. He looked great and was running with his buddy Brad. Mike is wearing a red shirt.





After that I did not get to see him because it was hard to time when he would get to a specific point on the course. So I went to the finish line and hoped for the best. I did not hear from him and just assumed he was fine. It was not until almost 5 hours later that his buddy crossed the finish line and said they stayed together for the first 18 miles. So I knew he was going to make it, I just did not know when. Then I heard the announcer say Mike Griffiths from Rigby, Idaho. He had made it! His time was 4 hours and 59 minutes. It was not the time he had hoped for at the beginning of training but considering the circumstances he was happy just to finish.





The last 8 miles were torture. He had to stop every 1/2 mile because his right quad muscles would cramp up. He had adjusted his running to compensate for his bad left foot and therefore put more stress on his other muscles. He would walk and stretch and then run until the pain made him stop again. When he crossed the finish line he looked spent. But I was so proud of him! What an accomplishment! He was very sore and stiff the rest of the day and the next day. He looked like an old man trying to walk around. But now he can say he ran a marathon. Way to go Griff!



Eliza also had a race that same day. She ran in a Kid's Marathon 1K race. It was 0.62 miles and she ran the whole way. She said she even passed a 7 year old. She was so excited and even trained a few days before the race. She got a t-shirt and a medal for participating. Way to go Eliza, we are so proud of you! Thank you to Nana and Grandma Kay who came to support our runners and help with the boys. I would not have been able to do it without your help.