However, Eric didn't feel so great afterward. His belly was upset and his legs were killing him. I had hoped to leave church after the 11 am service and get to the finish line in time but the group he was in went out early and so Sherri advised me not to try. Traffic and parking in Tempe at the finish line was pretty dense and crazy.
I was able to follow Eric's last miles by use of an app that was provided by the Rock and Roll Marathon. Even though I couldn't see him, the app showed his progress on the course and gave information on miles run, time of each mile and approximate finish time.
Sherri left after the 9:30 am service, picked up Eric's wife, Christina, and their kids and made it to Tempe with time to spare. It was a pretty special moment when Eric crossed the finish line. The crowd there cheered everyone who finished which was a pretty cool thing to do.
I met them back at Eric's house. We had a little celebration with, what else, pizza! Christina's back was really hurting - a result of too much exercise (which can be bad for your health) - so Sherri and I spend a lot of time with the kids outside while Eric and Christina relaxed indoors.
I couldn't be more proud of Eric than I am right now. I admire that he set such a lofty goal and had the discipline to do the training and preparation to be ready for the big day. He's not a runner, per se, so completing the marathon was quite an accomplishment.
When I asked him if this was the first of many marathons, he wearily smiled at me and said, "First and last!"
Don't blame him a bit.
