This race report is pretty simple:
Felt good at the start.
10 Km split: 46:04 (7:25 pace)
Ouch.
Half marathon split: 1:42:39 (7:50 overall pace)
Wheels started to come off.
21 Mile split: 3:01:30 (8:38 overall pace)
Wheels completely off.
Where am I?
Finish time: 4:09:50 (9:32 overall pace)
I saw a t-shirt which summed up the day very well:
"The marathon can humble you." - Bill Rodgers
Showing posts with label Marathon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Marathon. Show all posts
Friday, June 12, 2009
Monday, February 23, 2009
Hyannis Marathon
Yesterday I ran the Hyannis marathon. My training has been enjoyably loy key, with a mere 21 miles/week average for the year at a relaxed average pace of 8:59. (Last year I started the year aggressively in order to try and BQ at Miami in January. Then I struggled through the balance of the year with an injured hip. So I'm trying not to repeat that this year. So far so good.) Anyway, minimal training and about 15 extra lbs. on the frame and my expectations weren't too high for Hyannis. I was shooting for a respectable sub 3:45. This year I ran the race with Mike.
Mike in the parking lot pre-race
Mike and I ran the first half marathon pretty smoothly in 1:47 (8:09 pace). As we headed out for the second lap the rain started and the wind picked up. Awesome. The 2nd lap was going to be fun. Mike drifted back a little and we split up. It started to get harder to maintain the pace. It took 42 minutes to cover the next 5 miles (8:28 pace). Not too bad, but fatigue was setting in. Some walking through the water stations in the next two miles slowed me even more and I hit the 20 mile mark at 2:48 (Overall pace of 8:24). If I could average a pace at or under 9:10 for the final 10K, I could get the sub 3:45.... But I couldn't do it. Instead, it was 1 hour and 8 minutes of me walking and shleping through the rain while cramped and frozen, wondering why the hell was I doing this race. I crossed the line in 3:56. Things went about the same for Mike and he finished 5 minutes after me. Had we known we were so close we could've death marched it in together! After thawing out Mike and I grabbed a beer and drank to getting in a long training run. And we toasted our new purple Barney shirts:
Wtf? Who picked the color of the shirts this year?
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
2008 Boston Marathon Race Report
Monday morning at 4 AM, Mark and I departed Connecticut for the one hour and fifteen minute drive to Hopkinton, MA. We drove to the designated industrial park where we would catch a shuttle to the starting line. The brochure said there was “limited” parking and the shuttles would start at 6 AM, so we figured we’d give ourselves plenty of time to execute plan B if something went awry. We didn’t have a plan B, but we figured we’d worry about that when and if we needed to...
We were pretty close to being the first ones to arrive at the industrial park. Place was empty. So we chilled and broke out the camping gear in the suburban. We tried to create a bit of a trail race environment in this road running mecca of an event.
Mark and I made it into our corral just as the national anthem was being sung. The clouds were lifting and the sky was clearing (not quite in time for the flyover though, which was a bummer.) With the sun breaking through, the temperature warmed pretty quickly. I flung my long sleeve and was ready to go. The race started and it was pretty cool to feel the mass of runners get underway. I woke up 7 hours ago and now the race was finally starting!! Because of the downhill nature of the beginning of the course you could see the thousands of runners up ahead, which was pretty wild.
Because I had to evade the police before the race, I had to pull up short and didn’t get to finish my business. Mark had to pee too since he never got the opportunity to go before the start. There were many runners ditching off into the woods in the first mile of the race. So we did the same and I was able to finish relieving myself. Ahhh, ok, now I was ready to run!
After the pee stop warm up first mile (8:10) we fell into a nice rhythm of 7:30 /mile pace. My hip felt ok. It was a little stiff, but it didn’t hurt and wasn’t hindering my running at all. So far, so good! Soon the spectators started to increase along the course. The energy from the runners, the spectators and the sun was incredible! What an awesome feeling!
As we cruised along I noticed that it was incredibly congested but that it wasn’t a problem. People weren’t tripping over each other. Everyone was a solid runner and was moving at a consistent pace. Pretty neat.
At around mile 12 a roar could be heard in the distance. As we progressed the noise got louder and louder. Soon we were passing by the cheering girls of Wellesley College. Wow!!! Talk about enthusiasm!! Simple description is this: We were the Beatles and they were excited out of control teenage girls!! I ran down the right side and high-fived about 250 of the girls. That was a lot of fun.
The first half went by in a flash. Mark and I hit the ½ marathon point at 1:38:24 (7:30 pace). I had no intention of going that fast and probably had no business going that fast, but I think I was in a euphoric zone, absorbing the spectacle of the race. It was fantastic!
I think high fiving the women of Wellesley took me a little out of my rhythm. I started to fatigue and slowed a bit to 7:40 per mile for the next 3 miles. Mark and I then hit the Newton hills and I slowed even more. I finally ran out of steam going up heartbreak hill. This is where I felt the effects of my lack of recent training. I’ve only logged 81 slow miles over the past 5 weeks. That’s a pretty wimpy 16 miles/week! (Not quite worthy of an ultra-runner-wanna-be-in-training!) Even though I had to take a walking break, the excitement of heartbreak hill was pretty cool. I didn’t feel bad that I was walking; I just tried to focus on keeping moving as quickly as I could. When I got to mile 21 I was pumped that it was just a 5 mile run to the finish.
But those 5 miles weren’t that easy. I had a couple of occasions where my legs cramped and locked up. So I had to stop, stretch, and massage them a few times. But I kept moving. Turning the final corner onto Boylston was awesome! The finish line in sight, the crazy loudness of the cheering spectators, the sense of accomplishment, the exhaustion… All good stuff!!
We were pretty close to being the first ones to arrive at the industrial park. Place was empty. So we chilled and broke out the camping gear in the suburban. We tried to create a bit of a trail race environment in this road running mecca of an event.
Eventually people started to arrive, the parking lot filled up and the school bus shuttles got to work transporting the hordes of runners. We were comfortable and relaxed and wondered why people were in such a rush to get over to the start, which was still over 3 hours away. We finished our breakfast, gathered our stuff, used the port-o-lets, changed into our running gear and hopped on a shuttle around 8:00.
Our bus pulled onto highway 495, drove about a ¼ mile and then got backed up in the traffic that was lined up all the way to the Hopkinton exit. It was still several miles until the exit. 45 minutes went by and we inched along not making much progress. People on the bus started to get a little antsy. A bus full of Type A personalities with things not going as planned, can create some tension. As 9 AM approached, the 10 AM start no longer seemed too far away. So we asked the driver to blow down the middle lane and slip back in line by the exit ramp and cut off the other busses that were waiting. She hemmed and hawed and finally gave in to the crowd and did it! She rocked! She easily saved us 25 minutes!
Even with the heroics of our bus driver, we didn’t arrive at the athlete’s village until 9:30. We dropped off our bags at another set of buses that would take our stuff to the finish. We then followed the thousands of runners being herded the mile to the starting line. I had to relieve myself from all my hydrating, but there was no opportunity as we strolled through the residential neighborhood. The police were out in force chasing people and handing out tickets to runners that were trying to ditch behind peoples houses to pee. It was pretty funny. It reminded me of the chase scenes in the Benny Hill show:
Mark and I made it into our corral just as the national anthem was being sung. The clouds were lifting and the sky was clearing (not quite in time for the flyover though, which was a bummer.) With the sun breaking through, the temperature warmed pretty quickly. I flung my long sleeve and was ready to go. The race started and it was pretty cool to feel the mass of runners get underway. I woke up 7 hours ago and now the race was finally starting!! Because of the downhill nature of the beginning of the course you could see the thousands of runners up ahead, which was pretty wild.
Because I had to evade the police before the race, I had to pull up short and didn’t get to finish my business. Mark had to pee too since he never got the opportunity to go before the start. There were many runners ditching off into the woods in the first mile of the race. So we did the same and I was able to finish relieving myself. Ahhh, ok, now I was ready to run!
After the pee stop warm up first mile (8:10) we fell into a nice rhythm of 7:30 /mile pace. My hip felt ok. It was a little stiff, but it didn’t hurt and wasn’t hindering my running at all. So far, so good! Soon the spectators started to increase along the course. The energy from the runners, the spectators and the sun was incredible! What an awesome feeling!
As we cruised along I noticed that it was incredibly congested but that it wasn’t a problem. People weren’t tripping over each other. Everyone was a solid runner and was moving at a consistent pace. Pretty neat.
At around mile 12 a roar could be heard in the distance. As we progressed the noise got louder and louder. Soon we were passing by the cheering girls of Wellesley College. Wow!!! Talk about enthusiasm!! Simple description is this: We were the Beatles and they were excited out of control teenage girls!! I ran down the right side and high-fived about 250 of the girls. That was a lot of fun.
The first half went by in a flash. Mark and I hit the ½ marathon point at 1:38:24 (7:30 pace). I had no intention of going that fast and probably had no business going that fast, but I think I was in a euphoric zone, absorbing the spectacle of the race. It was fantastic!
I think high fiving the women of Wellesley took me a little out of my rhythm. I started to fatigue and slowed a bit to 7:40 per mile for the next 3 miles. Mark and I then hit the Newton hills and I slowed even more. I finally ran out of steam going up heartbreak hill. This is where I felt the effects of my lack of recent training. I’ve only logged 81 slow miles over the past 5 weeks. That’s a pretty wimpy 16 miles/week! (Not quite worthy of an ultra-runner-wanna-be-in-training!) Even though I had to take a walking break, the excitement of heartbreak hill was pretty cool. I didn’t feel bad that I was walking; I just tried to focus on keeping moving as quickly as I could. When I got to mile 21 I was pumped that it was just a 5 mile run to the finish.
But those 5 miles weren’t that easy. I had a couple of occasions where my legs cramped and locked up. So I had to stop, stretch, and massage them a few times. But I kept moving. Turning the final corner onto Boylston was awesome! The finish line in sight, the crazy loudness of the cheering spectators, the sense of accomplishment, the exhaustion… All good stuff!!
I'm right beneath the balloons
It was a little dicey towards the end with the cramping, but I was able to finish and complete the race in a respectable 3:34:27. (8:11 pace) Mark was able to hold onto our original pace, kicked butt and finished in 3:23:09. Nice work!!
Here are my mile split times. Can you guess when I hit heartbreak hill?
After going through the runners chute and getting water, food, heat blanket, my medal, and removing my chip, I met up with Mark, Shannon, Keith and Kourtney. We went over to the Prudential Center, put some dry clothes on, relaxed and grabbed a bite to eat.
Myself and Mark
Our last piece of business was to get back to Hopkinton to drop Mark off at his suburban. While we were getting our stuff out of Mark’s vehicle, a motorcycle cop pulled up behind us. Crap, they were coming to ticket me for public peeing before the race!! But that was not the case, the officer was just asking us how the race went and was looking to shoot the breeze. We chatted with him about the extensive task it is to clean up after the race and the amount of coordination involved in this amazing event. As he repeatedly spit out his chew he talked how he dreads this event each year…
And with that, the 2008 Boston Marathon is in the books.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Boston Update
Race was awesome!! What an incredible event!! Finished in 3:34.
Race report to follow in a day or two...
Race report to follow in a day or two...
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Baastin Marathon
Yesterday afternoon Shannon and I cruised up to the 112th Boston Marathon race expo and picked up my packet.
My race bib
Shannon made some posters
My mind might need to take over right from the start…
I’m fighting a stomach bug which isn’t helping my hydration and nutrition. (Alex was sick this week and I helped him eat an ice cream cone the other night. Bad move.) Last night my stomach felt stable enough to try some food for the first time in 36 hours. So after going to the expo we hit the P.F. Changs by the Prudential Center and I had a bowl of rice. 
The weather for Monday looks like it will be perfect: Upper 50’s and partly cloudy. The excitement of the race is already buzzing around the city. I’m psyched to be a part of such an awesome event! A great reward for all the hard work of training over the long haul!
I think I’ll take the advice of my fortune cookie from P.F. Changs last night: "Relax and enjoy yourself. "
My race bib At the expo
Shannon made some posters My mind might need to take over right from the start… I’m fighting a stomach bug which isn’t helping my hydration and nutrition. (Alex was sick this week and I helped him eat an ice cream cone the other night. Bad move.) Last night my stomach felt stable enough to try some food for the first time in 36 hours. So after going to the expo we hit the P.F. Changs by the Prudential Center and I had a bowl of rice.
It’s going to be the B.R.A.T. diet for me this weekend!
So my preparation leading up to Monday’s marathon hasn’t been ideal. (I wonder how many people’s blogs out there have a similar statement?) My focus has been to heal my ailing hip as opposed to training for a marathon. I must say though I am pleased that I’ve seen progress and that my hip hurts less each day. The physical therapy routine of stretches and exercises has been effective. I just wish I started it a month ago instead of waiting so long (and just hoping it would all go away.) Oh well. So although this wasn’t what I had in mind for Boston training, I am happy that I am physically ok enough to go ahead with doing the race!The weather for Monday looks like it will be perfect: Upper 50’s and partly cloudy. The excitement of the race is already buzzing around the city. I’m psyched to be a part of such an awesome event! A great reward for all the hard work of training over the long haul!
I think I’ll take the advice of my fortune cookie from P.F. Changs last night: "Relax and enjoy yourself. "
Monday, March 17, 2008
Sham Rock On
Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Yesterday my cousin Kasia, my brother-in-law Keith and I completed the Shamrock Marathon in Virginia Beach, VA. This was Kasia and Keith's first marathon and they both "sham rocked" it! Both finished just inside 4 hours! A huge congrats to both of them!!! I think they're now hooked and are joining the dark side. :-)
My plan was to not chance further injuring/re-injuring myself so I ran a steady 8:30 pace and finished in 3:42. The asphalt and concrete still ended up taking its toll on me as my hip hurts like a mo fo. I'm looking forward to running more on the trails! The Shamrock course was scenic as it took us through the Camp Pendleton, along the beach boardwalk, through the Fort Story Army installation, by the Cape Henry light house and finished at the neptune statue. The finish line festival was very cool with bands playing and Yuengling beer flowing. (Ahhh... memories of college in PA) It was an awesome weekend and worth the 10 hour drive. (Although next time we're flying!)
Yesterday my cousin Kasia, my brother-in-law Keith and I completed the Shamrock Marathon in Virginia Beach, VA. This was Kasia and Keith's first marathon and they both "sham rocked" it! Both finished just inside 4 hours! A huge congrats to both of them!!! I think they're now hooked and are joining the dark side. :-)
My plan was to not chance further injuring/re-injuring myself so I ran a steady 8:30 pace and finished in 3:42. The asphalt and concrete still ended up taking its toll on me as my hip hurts like a mo fo. I'm looking forward to running more on the trails! The Shamrock course was scenic as it took us through the Camp Pendleton, along the beach boardwalk, through the Fort Story Army installation, by the Cape Henry light house and finished at the neptune statue. The finish line festival was very cool with bands playing and Yuengling beer flowing. (Ahhh... memories of college in PA) It was an awesome weekend and worth the 10 hour drive. (Although next time we're flying!)
Monday, February 11, 2008
Email From BAA
It's official, I'm in:
Dear Scott Turco,
This is to notify you that your entry into the 112th Boston Marathon on Monday, April 21, 2008 has been accepted. You can verify your acceptance into the field by searching the 112th Boston Marathon "Entrants" database on the B.A.A. web site, www.baa.org/2008/cf/Public/EntryLists.cfm. Additionally, an acceptance postcard will be mailed to you via US Postal Service mail. In early April 2008, an official Number Pick-up Card and extensive information regarding the B.A.A. Boston Marathon and related race week activities will be mailed to you via US Postal Service first class mail. If you do not receive your Number Pick-up Card (required to claim number) and brochure by April 11, please contact our Registration Office at registration@baa.org. Registration related inquiries may also be directed to 508-435-6905. Note that bib numbers will not be distributed on Race Day. Your travel arrangements should take into account picking up your number at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston on Friday, April 18 from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., or Saturday, April 19 or Sunday, April 20 from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. We look forward to seeing you in April! Best of luck in your training!
Sincerely,
Boston Athletic Association
Dear Scott Turco,
This is to notify you that your entry into the 112th Boston Marathon on Monday, April 21, 2008 has been accepted. You can verify your acceptance into the field by searching the 112th Boston Marathon "Entrants" database on the B.A.A. web site, www.baa.org/2008/cf/Public/EntryLists.cfm. Additionally, an acceptance postcard will be mailed to you via US Postal Service mail. In early April 2008, an official Number Pick-up Card and extensive information regarding the B.A.A. Boston Marathon and related race week activities will be mailed to you via US Postal Service first class mail. If you do not receive your Number Pick-up Card (required to claim number) and brochure by April 11, please contact our Registration Office at registration@baa.org. Registration related inquiries may also be directed to 508-435-6905. Note that bib numbers will not be distributed on Race Day. Your travel arrangements should take into account picking up your number at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston on Friday, April 18 from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., or Saturday, April 19 or Sunday, April 20 from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. We look forward to seeing you in April! Best of luck in your training!
Sincerely,
Boston Athletic Association
Thursday, January 31, 2008
2008 Miami Marathon Race Report
Pre-Race:
The 12 hours prior to the start of the race were a little chaotic. Shannon and I shacked up Saturday night by the Miami airport. That afternoon, we decided to take a “dry run” and head into the city. The objective was to get a little more familiar with where we would park in the morning, as well as give Shannon an idea where she could hang out during the race. We also wanted to check out and get a bite to eat in the Bayside marketplace. Our drive in was pretty easy and we found the parking garage listed on the Marathon website as a race morning option. We then continued on to the marketplace and before long it was a zoo. Not only was there the marathon runner crowd but there was also a Miami Heat basketball game downtown. As I was trying to find a place to park, a guy motioned that there was something wrong in the front of my vehicle. I looked out and noticed I had a flat tire on the rental car. Nice. So I pulled into a bus parking zone to change it. After getting the spare tire on, we parked and had dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe. Shannon and I aren’t necessarily fans of theme restaurants and were hoping to get a taste of some local flavor, but we didn't have time to spare. Dinner at Hard Rock was good however and we felt comfortable with where we needed to go in the morning. So we headed back to our hotel and made plans for Avis to meet us there at 8:30 PM and provide us with a new car. Avis unfortunately didn't show up until after 10 PM! They sent over flat bed truck with a new rental. I figured they would a dude drive over a new car and drive mine back. Instead it was a major production in the parking lot with rotating lights, a beeping truck and a cuban dude yelling "Avis no give me inforn-mation!" So after getting that taken care of I finally headed off to bed. However, the jumbo jets that just about scrapped their landing gear on the hotel roof made it difficult to ease into a tranquil relaxed state. If you watch the TV show Lost, it was like the opening scene of the series played over every 15 minutes.
Here’s how close the planes were to the hotel:
In addition to the air show outside, there was a presumably large individual stomping around all night in the room above us. The hotel was clean, the upgraded suite we had was awesome, the proximity to the race was great, but now I know why the room rate was so cheap! So Shannon and I rested in bed for a few hours, but wouldn't exactly call it sleep. Shannon said to me "Heck you slept in a sack suspended between trees in the woods before the VT ultra. This shouldn't be bad for you." Good point.
At 4 AM on race morning we received our wake up call, got ready and headed out. As we approached the street we needed to turn onto to get to the parking garage we had scouted out, we noticed the road was blocked off. Uh oh, we can't get there from here! We noticed some runners parking on the street, so we looked over to scope things out. As Shannon looked out her window she got a full view of a skinny, pasty white, guy's ass. Nice! Dude was changing right there by his car. As Shannon worked to remove that visual from her brain, we followed the traffic which routed us away from our planned parking area. Immediately there was gridlock and confusion as nobody looked like they knew where they were going. So I asked a cop how to get back to the garage listed on the race web site. "You can't!!" he yells back. Ok, thanks douche! The traffic was jammed up trying to go straight so I ditched off into the right lane and went the way no one else was going. It was a great decision. It took me right to a parking lot next to the Bank of America tower. It was perfect. It was only a 10-minute walk to the start and just a few blocks away from the finish. It also was right next to the on ramp to the highway. We really couldn't have planned it any better.
The Race:
Finally, Shannon and I made our way to the start and I lined up in the first coral behind the seeded runners. The race started right in front of the American Airlines Arena which looked pretty cool in the dark lit up with neon lights.
It all came together for me in this race. I trained hard and came into the race well prepared. The weather provided perfect running conditions. I had Shannon as an excellent support crew. I didn’t start out to fast and kept things in check throughout the race. I utilized the aid stations and kept hydrated. And then Bruce (the 3:20 pacer), sacrificed a gel for me and provided some words of encouragement to finish strong. As they say “Every dog has his day.” This past Sunday in Miami, it was mine.
The 12 hours prior to the start of the race were a little chaotic. Shannon and I shacked up Saturday night by the Miami airport. That afternoon, we decided to take a “dry run” and head into the city. The objective was to get a little more familiar with where we would park in the morning, as well as give Shannon an idea where she could hang out during the race. We also wanted to check out and get a bite to eat in the Bayside marketplace. Our drive in was pretty easy and we found the parking garage listed on the Marathon website as a race morning option. We then continued on to the marketplace and before long it was a zoo. Not only was there the marathon runner crowd but there was also a Miami Heat basketball game downtown. As I was trying to find a place to park, a guy motioned that there was something wrong in the front of my vehicle. I looked out and noticed I had a flat tire on the rental car. Nice. So I pulled into a bus parking zone to change it. After getting the spare tire on, we parked and had dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe. Shannon and I aren’t necessarily fans of theme restaurants and were hoping to get a taste of some local flavor, but we didn't have time to spare. Dinner at Hard Rock was good however and we felt comfortable with where we needed to go in the morning. So we headed back to our hotel and made plans for Avis to meet us there at 8:30 PM and provide us with a new car. Avis unfortunately didn't show up until after 10 PM! They sent over flat bed truck with a new rental. I figured they would a dude drive over a new car and drive mine back. Instead it was a major production in the parking lot with rotating lights, a beeping truck and a cuban dude yelling "Avis no give me inforn-mation!" So after getting that taken care of I finally headed off to bed. However, the jumbo jets that just about scrapped their landing gear on the hotel roof made it difficult to ease into a tranquil relaxed state. If you watch the TV show Lost, it was like the opening scene of the series played over every 15 minutes.
Here’s how close the planes were to the hotel:
In addition to the air show outside, there was a presumably large individual stomping around all night in the room above us. The hotel was clean, the upgraded suite we had was awesome, the proximity to the race was great, but now I know why the room rate was so cheap! So Shannon and I rested in bed for a few hours, but wouldn't exactly call it sleep. Shannon said to me "Heck you slept in a sack suspended between trees in the woods before the VT ultra. This shouldn't be bad for you." Good point.
At 4 AM on race morning we received our wake up call, got ready and headed out. As we approached the street we needed to turn onto to get to the parking garage we had scouted out, we noticed the road was blocked off. Uh oh, we can't get there from here! We noticed some runners parking on the street, so we looked over to scope things out. As Shannon looked out her window she got a full view of a skinny, pasty white, guy's ass. Nice! Dude was changing right there by his car. As Shannon worked to remove that visual from her brain, we followed the traffic which routed us away from our planned parking area. Immediately there was gridlock and confusion as nobody looked like they knew where they were going. So I asked a cop how to get back to the garage listed on the race web site. "You can't!!" he yells back. Ok, thanks douche! The traffic was jammed up trying to go straight so I ditched off into the right lane and went the way no one else was going. It was a great decision. It took me right to a parking lot next to the Bank of America tower. It was perfect. It was only a 10-minute walk to the start and just a few blocks away from the finish. It also was right next to the on ramp to the highway. We really couldn't have planned it any better.
The Race:
Finally, Shannon and I made our way to the start and I lined up in the first coral behind the seeded runners. The race started right in front of the American Airlines Arena which looked pretty cool in the dark lit up with neon lights.
I decided my race strategy would be to hang for awhile with Bruce, the 3:20 (7:37 Pace) pacer, and then break from the group, pick up the pace and go for a 3:15 (7:26 Pace) finish time. The temperature at the start felt comfortable in the mid 60’s. It only took me 30 seconds after the gun went off to cross the starting line. With over 10,000 runners it was crowded the first few miles of the race. Starting out in the dark at 6:15 AM was pretty cool. The beginning of the race routed us past the Port of Miami where many cruise ships were lit up and provided nice scenery. The first mile was casual at an 8:15 pace. I picked it up after that and hit the 10K point in 47:23 for an average pace of 7:37. Around mile 8 Bruce said he had to make a bathroom stop, so he handed me the stick with the balloons used to identify a pacer. I must’ve picked up the pace a bit because I heard a runner in the pack say “He’s not running the pace!” I guess they were correct, because from the 10K point to the 13.1 mile point, my average pace was 7:19. Bruce caught back up, took back the stick and we pushed on. At 10.5 miles there was an ING fan cheering zone. For a quarter mile, there were spectators all dressed in orange, waving pom poms, clanging cow bells, banging thunder sticks, screaming and cheering. It was awesome and provided a boost! I crossed the half marathon mark at 1:37:49 for an overall average pace of 7:27. I was only 38 seconds behind a goal of a 3:15 finish. I saw Shannon at the halfway point and gave her reassuring thumbs up. 
I felt good but wanted to ensure that I stayed that way so I eased up a bit. At mile 15 I missed snagging an energy gel. There were so many people grabbing for gels at the same time my hand didn’t come out of the scrum with one. Bruce however, noticed I didn’t get one, so he sacrificed his and gave it to me. Thanks! Perhaps I slowed up a little too much over this stretch, since my pace over the next 5.5 miles was only 7:33 per mile. So after reaching the 30K mark in 2:19:43 (Overall pace of 7:29), I was now 1 ½ minutes behind the 3:15 finish goal. Uh oh, time to pick it up. At mile 25.5 there’s an incline up this small bridge. It was just enough to break my rhythm and cause a struggle. As I hit this point Bruce caught up to me and provided some much needed words of encouragement. (I’m not sure what happened to the 3:20 group he was pacing?) He stayed with me and made sure I continued over that crest and finished strong. As I came around the final corner and had 100 yards to the finish, I saw Shannon cheering on the side. The look on her face was priceless. She the expression of "Holy crap he did it!" I think she was more excited than I was. I ended up running the final 7.5 miles at a pace of 7:17 and crossed the line in 3:14:46 for an overall average pace of 7:26. Overall I finished in 117th place out of 2,714 runners. Finishing in under 3:15 is a PR for me and qualifies me to run the Boston Marathon. I registered today!
It all came together for me in this race. I trained hard and came into the race well prepared. The weather provided perfect running conditions. I had Shannon as an excellent support crew. I didn’t start out to fast and kept things in check throughout the race. I utilized the aid stations and kept hydrated. And then Bruce (the 3:20 pacer), sacrificed a gel for me and provided some words of encouragement to finish strong. As they say “Every dog has his day.” This past Sunday in Miami, it was mine.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Running Flick
I just got back from the local movie theater where I enjoyed the showing of the documentary “Spirit of the Marathon.” It was excellent! Tonight’s showing was perfect timing to provide that last bit of inspiration heading into this weekend’s marathon. Here’s a trailer from the movie:
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Past Marathons
The Miami marathon will be my fifth road marathon. As I get ready for Miami, I thought I’d reflect on the four that I’ve previously completed.
Marathon #1:
Back in 2003 I cycled quite a bit with my friend Mark. We consistently hammered out 4 solid rides a week: A criterium race on Tuesdays. A 25-mile group ride on Wednesdays. 50 to 75 mile rides on Saturdays and Sundays. On the other days of the week I’d swim a few times and run once or twice. I directed all this training towards completing a few triathlons. Mark directed his training on making me suffer and towing me around the state. (Mark is a former Florida state cycling champ.) The biggest and coolest race I completed that summer was the 2003 Timberman Half Ironman in New Hampshire. I was in pretty good shape that year, so I figured I’d give a marathon shot. I signed up for the 2003 Marine Corp Marathon. As a training run, 3 weeks prior to the MCM I did the Hartford Half Marathon. I felt great and completed it in 1:35:28 (7:17 Pace.)
On October 26th, 2003, I confidently lined up with 16,000 other runners in Washington, DC and set out on my first marathon. I saw my family at the 2-mile mark, smiled, waved and let out a “hoorah!” At that point I thought the race was going to be a blast. But I don’t remember having anymore more fun after that point. By the time I got to the halfway point I was running out of gas and was knocking on the door of severe pain. I heard about hitting some “wall” thing, supposedly at around mile 20. I believed there must’ve been some kind of mistake because the wall seemed to be placed in front of me a bit too early. Wtf? I realized at that point I had no business trying to run a marathon. Doubling the furthest distance I had run to that point was a lot tougher than I thought. I saw my family again at about the 14-mile point and was extremely hungry. I had not paid attention to the food stations and didn’t know where they were ahead of me because I didn’t anticipate I’d need them. I figured I was just going to “suck it up” for a few hours. How hard could 4 hours of running be? I had battled through 6 hours of a half-ironman triathlon. I figured a marathon couldn’t be harder than that. Wrong answer!! I can’t believe how stupid I was. So I desperately asked my family to get me some food. The course looped around the National Mall, so I saw my family again a few miles later where they had a snickers bar and a bottle of Gatorade. I downed the food/drink and walked a bit to catch my wind. The next 6 miles were walking and shuffling, walking and shuffling, a miserable death march. It was terrible. When I crossed over the bridge back to Crystal City, there were Jersey barriers that I couldn’t resist stopping and sitting on. I really did not feel like continuing. I never felt so exhausted or experienced that much pain while running. I was completely depleted of energy. When I crossed the bridge I was very close to the hotel where we were staying. I thought to myself “The hotel is only a half mile away and the finish line is 3 miles. Thoughts of lying on my bed were difficult to get out of my mind. My family was waiting for me at the end so I figured I needed to finish. I dragged myself through the rest of the course and finished in just under 5 hours (Officially 4:58:22 (11:22 Pace).) The only consolation I had was that my time was pretty competitive in the Female over 65 age group. I would’ve placed third.
After the humbling MCM I wasn’t that eager to run 26.2 again. Actually, my wife and I had two kids and the focus turned away from athletic endeavors for a few years.
Marathon #2:
In 2006, I started back into working out and also talked my cycling partner Mark into giving the marathon a try. I wanted someone else to join in my suffering. After actually completing some long runs in my training and being a little more prepared with a race plan, I finished the 2006 Hartford Marathon in 3:36:22 (8:16 Pace). I had much better results in my second marathon attempt but it was still painful and very much a struggle. Mark displayed his incredible tolerance for pain and gutted out a 3:19:47 first marathon. Incredible! With a much better performance than at the 2003 MCM I was now hooked on the distance and looked forward to more races.
Marathon #1:
Back in 2003 I cycled quite a bit with my friend Mark. We consistently hammered out 4 solid rides a week: A criterium race on Tuesdays. A 25-mile group ride on Wednesdays. 50 to 75 mile rides on Saturdays and Sundays. On the other days of the week I’d swim a few times and run once or twice. I directed all this training towards completing a few triathlons. Mark directed his training on making me suffer and towing me around the state. (Mark is a former Florida state cycling champ.) The biggest and coolest race I completed that summer was the 2003 Timberman Half Ironman in New Hampshire. I was in pretty good shape that year, so I figured I’d give a marathon shot. I signed up for the 2003 Marine Corp Marathon. As a training run, 3 weeks prior to the MCM I did the Hartford Half Marathon. I felt great and completed it in 1:35:28 (7:17 Pace.)
On October 26th, 2003, I confidently lined up with 16,000 other runners in Washington, DC and set out on my first marathon. I saw my family at the 2-mile mark, smiled, waved and let out a “hoorah!” At that point I thought the race was going to be a blast. But I don’t remember having anymore more fun after that point. By the time I got to the halfway point I was running out of gas and was knocking on the door of severe pain. I heard about hitting some “wall” thing, supposedly at around mile 20. I believed there must’ve been some kind of mistake because the wall seemed to be placed in front of me a bit too early. Wtf? I realized at that point I had no business trying to run a marathon. Doubling the furthest distance I had run to that point was a lot tougher than I thought. I saw my family again at about the 14-mile point and was extremely hungry. I had not paid attention to the food stations and didn’t know where they were ahead of me because I didn’t anticipate I’d need them. I figured I was just going to “suck it up” for a few hours. How hard could 4 hours of running be? I had battled through 6 hours of a half-ironman triathlon. I figured a marathon couldn’t be harder than that. Wrong answer!! I can’t believe how stupid I was. So I desperately asked my family to get me some food. The course looped around the National Mall, so I saw my family again a few miles later where they had a snickers bar and a bottle of Gatorade. I downed the food/drink and walked a bit to catch my wind. The next 6 miles were walking and shuffling, walking and shuffling, a miserable death march. It was terrible. When I crossed over the bridge back to Crystal City, there were Jersey barriers that I couldn’t resist stopping and sitting on. I really did not feel like continuing. I never felt so exhausted or experienced that much pain while running. I was completely depleted of energy. When I crossed the bridge I was very close to the hotel where we were staying. I thought to myself “The hotel is only a half mile away and the finish line is 3 miles. Thoughts of lying on my bed were difficult to get out of my mind. My family was waiting for me at the end so I figured I needed to finish. I dragged myself through the rest of the course and finished in just under 5 hours (Officially 4:58:22 (11:22 Pace).) The only consolation I had was that my time was pretty competitive in the Female over 65 age group. I would’ve placed third.
After the humbling MCM I wasn’t that eager to run 26.2 again. Actually, my wife and I had two kids and the focus turned away from athletic endeavors for a few years.
Marathon #2:
In 2006, I started back into working out and also talked my cycling partner Mark into giving the marathon a try. I wanted someone else to join in my suffering. After actually completing some long runs in my training and being a little more prepared with a race plan, I finished the 2006 Hartford Marathon in 3:36:22 (8:16 Pace). I had much better results in my second marathon attempt but it was still painful and very much a struggle. Mark displayed his incredible tolerance for pain and gutted out a 3:19:47 first marathon. Incredible! With a much better performance than at the 2003 MCM I was now hooked on the distance and looked forward to more races.
Me and Mark after the 2006 HM.
Marathon #3:
Through the winter of 2006 into 2007 I stepped up my training and was focused on improving my time and giving a shot at qualifying for the Boston Marathon. I was in great shape and the weather was as good as you can expect for February in the northeast as I toed the line for the 2007 Hyannis marathon. I was very confident that my goal would be achieved. In the first half I was joking with other runners and having a good time and hit 13.1 miles in 1:33:25 (7:07 Pace.) And then, as I’ve experienced before, a freight train blindsided me and I struggled to keep pace. At the 20-mile mark, a steamroller came by and finished me off. I struggled my way in and finished in 3:40:22 (8:24 Pace) I was disappointed that not only did I not come close to a BQ but also that I couldn’t improve on my 3:36 at the 2006 HM. After yet another humbling experience, a 3:15 marathon seemed (and still does) like it was going to be a monumental challenge. Mark ran this race as well and was able to keep pace after I faded. Impressively he pushed through and finished in 3:15:02. I admired his endurance, focus, toughness and ability to just simply get it done.
50 yards from the Hyannis finish.
Marathon #4:
In between the Vermont 50 and the Stone Cat 50 I completed the 2007 Hartford Marathon. I was nursing a groin injury so I had no expectations. The plan was to just run based on how I felt. Based on how much effort I was expending during the first few miles of the race, I knew that I wasn’t going to PR. I did however end up in the same range as the previous two marathons with a 3:36:58 (8:17 Pace.) I was happy to do well and get another 26.2 under my belt. And Mark again finished consistent with his previous marathons and knocked out a 3:15:52. Amazing for a guy who has a body more like Rocky Balboa than Ryan Hall! :)
So here I am getting ready for my 5th marathon. It’ll be an epic battle for sure…
Monday, January 21, 2008
Miami Countdown
The Miami marathon is less than a week away. I’m looking forward to race day! I’ve stuck with my training plan and have logged almost 300 miles in the past 6 weeks. I’ve mixed it up with interval, tempo, recovery and long runs. An average just shy of 50 miles per week in the months of December and January was pretty good for me, since most of those miles were run either in frigid temps, in the dark or indoors on a treadmill. Not the most ideal conditions. But I’ve enjoyed the training and am hoping that my hard work pays off and I can harness some of that Miami “magic” and pull off a PR finish time and qualify for Boston! As my friend Amy said to me, “YOU WILL BE running the Boston marathon. You have to believe it to achieve it!!” We’ll see. So this week I’ll be tapering, carbo loading and finalizing the logistics of our weekend in FL.
“A great soul with a great purpose can make a weak body strong and keep it so.” - Mark Twain
“A great soul with a great purpose can make a weak body strong and keep it so.” - Mark Twain
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Karno
In the summer of 2006 I picked up a copy of Dean Karnazes’ book: Ultra Marathon man. Reading the book was my first real insight into ultra marathons. The chapters about the Western States 100 Endurance Run seemed absolutely crazy. I was amazed that people could run 100 miles through the mountains in under 24 hours! In the fall of 2006 I ran the Hartford Marathon. It turned out that Dean Karnazes also ran the marathon as the 28th leg of the Endurance 50 (He ran 50 marathons in 50 days in all 50 states!) It was pretty cool to see him during the race. Afterwards he autographed my book, and posed for a pic with me:
“Run when you can, walk when you have to, crawl if you must, but never give up.” – Dean Karnazes
Thursday, November 8, 2007
It Ain't Over 'Til It's Over
Check out the incredible finish to the women's race at this year's Chicago Marathon:
http://cbs2chicago.com/video/?id=36199@wbbm.dayport.com
http://cbs2chicago.com/video/?id=36199@wbbm.dayport.com
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Hartford Marathon (10/13/07)
I started out following the pace group which was targeting a 3:15 finish time which is equivalent to a 7:26 min/mile pace. Our group cruised through the 10 K mark in 45:11 (7:17 pace) and knocked off 10 miles in 1:13:06 (7:19). At about mile 16 I faded from the pack and hit the 20 mile point at 2:30:39 (7:32). After mile 20 I hit the wall and schlepped my way in for a finish time of 3:36. I placed 372nd out of 1,571 runners.
Here I am leading the race... just kidding.
Here I am leading the race... just kidding.
Approaching the 10 mile mark
Almost finished
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