First of all, in Korean parlance, a "marathon" isn't what you'd expect. Rather than completing a gruelling 42.2km in one go, like my friend Brandon, our "marathon" was really a 10k.
But "marathon" sounds so much cooler, doesn't it?
This was a Pagoda-wide event - English teachers and Korean admin - meaning that about 50 or so runners had a silly red PAGODA sticker literally slapped on their front and back. Piggybacking on a few good runners wasn't the worst idea our employer has ever had. Hey, if they'll pay for my race fee, I can at least wear it past the starting line ... beyond that, I won't be chasing it down if it flies off my running jacket.
Patrick - who completed a marathon before coming to Korea and who is expecting his first child in November - outran us all that day finishing in under 38 minutes.
Jon finished not much later, under 40 minutes. He and Patrick breezed past me at the 3km mark because I'd weaseled my way to the front of the 4,000-strong crowd before the starting gun.
I made the lucky mistake of pacing with a Korean man with blue tape on his legs, and finished first out of the women from Pagoda and 13th in the women's category. My time was 45:49 - which will probably remain my PB for years to come. I could barely feel my legs running to the finish - note how my stride is far lazier than my running partner's.
Like with the previous Adidas race, we were all provided with healthy fried food and beer after the race. Exactly what I needed! Thank you Pagoda!
Photo credits go to a Pagoda photographer and to Maria, who cheered us on past the finish - thank you! Stay tuned for our next ridiculous running goal - a half marathon on June 14.
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