it was 5:30am and dawn and i were standing outside mandalay bay in the dark trying to stay warm among the masses of people in line waiting for the race to start. people around us were trying to get a last packet of gu down or finish the rest of their gatorate mixture while others were stretching or jumping up and down to keep warm. then there were fireworks and everyone was mesmerized for a couple minutes by the lights in the sky and forgot about the nerves from anticipating the long hard run each of us was about to endure.
and then the race started, but from where we were standing, you wouldn't know it. we just stood there, took a few slow steps forward every now and then and listened to the blue man group bang on their drums. when we finally reached the start line, elite runners were already 12 minutes into their run, probably approaching mile 3. finally we were off. we weaved through the crowds and made our way up the strip past all the big hotels and flashing lights. dawn and i chatted away as we ran up the strip, but split up 25 minutes into the race. i then took off at a pretty fast pace for me, around 9 minute miles, which i'd regret at around mile 10.
i was pacing with a group of canadians who got cheered on whenever they past other canadians. our northern neighbors always seem to have a maple leaf or flag visible on them at all times when they leave their country.
at mile 5, there were people lined up for a pit stop at a wedding chapel to tie the knot. every mile had porter potty and water/gatorade stations set up and lines were surprisingly long. i couldn't believe how many people had over hydrated and stood in lines at even mile 2 for the bathroom. most guys just used any wall or shrubbery present along the side walk.
i finally turned onto fremont street and got some energy from the crowds cheering us on and from seeing all the christmas decorations. as we rounded off fremont, we turned onto a street that ran behind the strip and i guess this was where the race organizers stopped caring. 
mile markers stopped, along with big aid stations , and 'exotic dancers' in front of their places of employment were our only fans. the wind was pretty strong back there without the big hotel walls sheltering us. i started to feel the fatigue, and around what i thought was mile 11 i ran out of steam. my pace dropped pretty dramatically and i struggled to finish up the last couple of miles. i actually had to walk a bit and alternated with running, walking, which really stinks. then i passed a second 'mile 11', apparently the mileage was a bit off (this is only the second year the race has run).
i could see mandalay, but in vegas it's difficult to estimate how close/far you are from the massive hotels. there were some bands along the way that gave me some energy, and i finally rounded the last corner for the longest .1 miles to the finish line (which apparently were also the last .2 miles for full marathoners..).
