Taking place late February, the Hyannis Marathon was supposed to be my first full marathon. However, thanks to the worst snowfall in Massachusetts history…it was cancelled. I easily could’ve bailed. I could’ve just kept quiet, done the other races on my list, and never brought up “26.2” again.

But I didn’t.

And now I’m sitting in a hotel room in Maine. And in 11 hours I’ll be standing in the starting corral of the 2015 Maine Coast Marathon…my first marathon.

Holy crap…

Oddly enough, I’m not nervous.

I’ve got this weird little sense of peaceful certainty going on. I was reasonably confident in my training when it was time for Hyannis to happen…but the last two weeks alone have shown me that I can not only finish this race, but I can hit my goal time too.

So why didn’t I bail?

I had already made the decision. The scariest part was already done – I had registered for the Hyannis Marathon. Making the decision and clicking “register now”…it was like a switch flipped. Things were different. I was no longer afraid of the big bad marathon. It was no longer up on a pedestal – a mythical “I’ll never do that” thing to be brushed off and nervously laughed about in conversation. In that moment…it became something to me.

So when Hyannis was cancelled…

There wasn’t a sense of “relief” that I no longer “had to do it”. Instead…I went through a range of emotions akin to the 5 stages of grief! I was in disbelief…in denial that it had been cancelled. Then I was angry as all hell. Then I was sad that all that effort, anticipation, and excitement was for naught. And finally I accepted it.

But then…there was still a void.

Almost immediately during the “denial” bit I started looking for other marathons in New England. I had to do it. And I found one. I found IT. The best option for my first marathon without waiting until fall. The Maine Coast Marathon. A gorgeous course through Kennebunk, the Maine coast, Kennebunkport, and then the Maine coast again. A great finisher’s medal and post-race celebration. Hell, I can even get a finisher’s jacket! In my favorite color!

And here I am.

And by the time I cross that finish line tomorrow…I’ll have travelled a lot farther than 26.2 miles.

You’ll never know what you’re capable of until you take the plunge and try. See you on the other side.