Athlete Pedro Esteso tells us about his experience at the Valencia Marathon.
Athlete Pedro Esteso shares his experience at the Valencia Marathon.
Our coach and athlete Pedro Esteso shares his perspective on the Valencia Marathon.
The Marathon has changed the way I see life... My Valencia Marathon race report.
Before I start talking about feelings and letting my heart lead me to recount and try to convey my latest sporting experience, I want to explain the reasons and arguments why I decided, almost at the last minute, to change my plans and take the leap to become one of many, just like all my fellow Urban Runners, and be able to shout
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I AM A MARATHONER!
Those who know me have always known that when someone asked me why I didn't try to run a marathon, I would tell them it was because I hadn't felt the call. But 15 days before the Valencia Marathon, one Sunday afternoon, I went for a run to burn off the excesses of a very lively Saturday night.
I went to the river alone; I wanted to do a medium-long run, I wanted to test my legs at a high pace and see how my mind could behave by making my body "suffer." It was one of those afternoons that reminded me of our training sessions in the park, of those days when things flowed and I knew it would go well. It was a total of 24 kilometers at a strong pace for me.
When I was already relaxed at home and analyzing the heart rate data, paces, and splits achieved, I don't know how I saw the clock and observed the total number of kilometers achieved in reverse. I visualized a 42, took a deep breath, did the math, assessed the accumulated work hours, and asked myself, "Pedro, why not?"
As the days went by, my eyes opened, my registration was confirmed, and I became even more infected, if possible, with all the marathon fever of my training group.
THE RACE BEGINS!
The marathon begins, my personal test journey. If there was one thing I was clear about, it was that I was going to create my own sensations, whether good, bad, or regular, they were going to be mine. I burned Martín Fiz's advice into my mind the day before: not to think until kilometer 30 and to experience it my own way, that the first one is never forgotten, and that I should never stop experiencing this great celebration with my teammates.
The first few kilometers are a bit chaotic to get into the chosen rhythm. We can't find the ideal space, with stumbles, constant overtakes, and stops. My two escorts are unfazed, and we continue dodging people until kilometer 5, where we find our zone to run with more space, all three of us in parallel.
The clock keeps ticking, hitting the established splits. The main idea was to run at 4'30" and aim for 3h10'. These initial test stages are where the legs move very easily; there's a lot of control. As soon as Dani saw me speeding up, he would put out his arm, open his hand, and gesture for me to slow down a bit and CALM DOWN.
Miguel is very strong; we refuel at every station. The kilometers pass, and we ask each other every now and then how we're doing, always with positive answers and confident gestures. Kilometer 10, the first quarter of the race, and everything is going as planned. First gels, and we continue our march, through areas with a huge crowd, and we stick to our plan. An hour into the race, and everything is in place, no pain or muscle overload; the calves, which were the biggest concern, aren't complaining.
WHAT A BEAUTIFUL FEELING!
One feels unique, hyper-motivated, already knowing that everything is done. I look at Dani and feel proud of him; I start to imagine that all my teammates will also pass through here with that feeling that everything is about to arrive. Last kilometer, we are now running in parallel. As soon as I finish that last downhill to enter the corridor towards the carpet, that's when I burst into tears, as if something from my ankles rising to my face runs through me in a few seconds.
Some tears well up before the last 500 meters. I run with my arms open, I free myself, I feel calm, I feel my feet touch the ground and it's as if nothing weighs me down, an orgasm after a long time of passion and dedication. Blue carpet and I immerse myself in everything I had always heard would happen when we approached the final straight, I reached where I had wanted and on one hand, I wanted time to stop.
I felt invincible; we held hands and, raising our free arms, crossed the marathon finish line in 3 hours and 14 minutes of pure pleasure. A huge hug at the finish line and we celebrated our most personal victory.
It's more than just a race; it's a test not only of the body and mind, it's a beautiful way to challenge oneself, to battle against oneself, to overcome phases, to be on and participate in this Ferris wheel that is life, an attraction with 42 cars in which, no matter how confident one is, something unexpected can happen at any moment, something that startles, that can make me stop but also start again and even make me feel at the top, seeing everything from the best perspective, and when my feet touch the ground, that's when I know it was worth it.
I will remember each of the conversations and multitude of messages we had after I shared their emotions, feeling that they were at the finish line, and above all, feeling one of the most important words in this life we run... GRATITUDE.
