I now have my official bib number for the MCM, it is 9394. You can actually get real-time updates on my progress throughout the race by registering at http://www.marinemarathon.com/Results/remote_runner_tracking.htm

Unfortunately, you have to create an account to do this but you will get split times and finish information instantly on a pager, text messaging number or e-mail. This free service is a great way for spectators to cheer for their runner (or runners) and be there to meet them for the celebration at the finish line. Live split locations will be at the 5mile, 10 mile, 13.1 mile, 15 mile, 20 mile, 23.5 mile and the finish points.

I'm going to create an account just so I will have emails of my own split times for posterity. The marathon starts at 8am and there are several "corrals" that runners will line up in based on their expected finish time. I'm going to be in the 4th one back which is for the 3:40 to 3:59 finish time. Audrey and I will be staying near the Dunn-Loring Metro stop which is about 8 miles from the start line. We'll get on the metro around 5:30am and head to the start which is in Arlington near the Pentagon Station Metro.
The website describes the course as "Similar to 2006, the 2007 USATF certified course starts in Arlington, VA, and winds its way through Rosslyn along Lee Highway before turning on Spout Run and the George Washington Parkway. Runners will experience a climb on Lee Highway in the first few miles of the new course, but are rewarded with a descent along Spout Run and the parkway. After crossing the Key Bridge into Georgetown, runners will be on familiar territory through the District of Columbia. The course passes the Kennedy Center before entering the National Mall and numerous monuments, memorials and landmarks, such as, the Lincoln, FDR, Korean War and Vietnam Veteran's memorials, Washington Monument, and the U.S. Capitol. The marathon once again returns to Hains Point and "the Awakening" (see below) in East Potomac Park before passing the Jefferson Memorial. After crossing the 14th Street Bridge back to Virginia, runners will venture to Crystal City, return past the Pentagon and finish at the Marine Corps War Memorial. It is truly a beautiful course and aptly nicknamed "The Marathon of the Monuments.""

"The Awakening" is a 100-foot statue of a giant embedded in the earth, struggling to free himself. It was created by J. Seward Johnson, Jr. and installed at Hains Point (East Potomac Park), Washington, D.C. in 1980 for the International Sculpture Conference Exhibition. It proved so popular, however, that 27 years after the event it still remains, even though the National Park Service admits that the "temporary permit" has long since expired.

The statue consists of five separate pieces buried in the ground, giving the impression of a panicked giant trying to pull himself to the surface. The left hand and right foot barely protrude, while the bent left leg and knee jut into the air. The 17-foot right arm and hand climb above the observer while the bearded face, with the mouth in mid-scream, struggles to emerge from the surrounding earth.

I have three long runs down now and plan to do 5 all together before the marathon. So I have two more weeks of fairly intense training followed by three weeks of taper. I can't wait.