I ran the Raleigh marathon when it debuted in 2000. Okay, I ran a portion of the marathon by being part of a five person relay. I ran five of the 26.2 miles, which at the time, was the most mileage I had ever run in a race.
I was nervous as heck but also extremely excited. It was COLD. I believe it was in the 30s that day. It wasn’t a pretty day but it was the first marathon that Raleigh ever held, so it didn’t really matter. Excitement was in the air.