As I've pointed out in my previous post, my goal this year is to run at least 1 mile everyday of the year. So far so good! However, this past weekend I ran my third marathon (Cox Providence, RI marathon). I was almost certain that the streak was going to end on Monday. But with a couple of beers in me and some motivation from some friends I was able to drag my ass out for 1 mile.
Enough with the streak. Recap of the marathon. I did not have a public nor private goal in mind for this one. The last two marathons I have blown up fairly early in the race and I knew this one I really did not want to be in that kind of pain for more than 6 miles. This marathon meant a little bit to me. I wanted a respectable showing (meaning I needed a PR) and it was on my 26th birthday. I had to run smart. You might think it's crazy but I did not wear my GPS, rather, I wore a silly old TimeX stop watch. This means I have no idea what my mile splits were like. And you know what? I think it actually helped!
I made a few rookie mistakes. I didn't really study the course. I looked at the map a handful of times and didn't bother looking at the elevation. I believed the race director and course explanation that it was "mostly flat." That wasn't the case. There was a few more long(er) hills than I was expecting (miles 7, 9, 14, 16, 22, 23) and the last 5k was all uphill. The 2 last big hills I had to walk up (and down) because my legs were shot. That last 5k was unfair!
The start of the race was perfect - 48 degrees and overcast. I did look at the weather for the day and realized it was going to get warm in a hurry. I was really nervous that the sun was going to come out sooner than later and it was going to bake me. Luckily I was prepared enough and the heat didn't effect me too much. I did turn into a lobster, though.
I knew I needed to be patient at the start of the race. This was tough since I didn't have my GPS. I did take a peek at my watch after mile 1 and saw a 7:42 and I immediately backed off. I settled in nicely and found a few people to chat with, some of which ended dropping back at the end. We crossed the half in 1:39:XX and I was feeling great. Realizing it was halftime I grabbed some water and Gatorade, and focused on the next half.
Around mile 17 I took my last Cliff Shot and it gave me the boost I needed. Surprisingly I wasn't cramping yet but I knew not to get too excited. At mile 18 I knew I had a PR in the bag so I made a little bit of a move. This move might have cost me a few minutes because at mile 21 those cramps hit me. I felt them coming around mile 20 and took a quick stop to stretch the calfs real quick. That seemed to help because they weren't the cramps I experienced in Buffalo or Rehoboth. With 4 miles to go I knew I had to keep pushing. A few times I stopped to rub the cramp or stretch real quick but it wasn't too bad.
The last 5k was completely unfair. What I didn't realize was the last 5k was the same as the first 5k. This wasn't a good thing. The first 5k was mostly downhill (gradual). This means the last 5k was a gradual uphill (except the one nasty hill at mile 23 that I walked up). I was sort of angry but every time I glanced at my watch I knew I had less that 30 minutes to go. At this point of the race I was trying to do mental math and run by time not how many miles are left. It seemed to work.
Just before mile 26 we run over a little bridge maybe 50 meters long. It wasn't too hard because I saw that mile marker and knew I was home. As I heard the crowd around the corner I dug a little deeper. With 200 meters to go and hundreds of people cheering I felt great! I was looking for my wife and when I saw her it put a big smile on my face. As I looked at the clock, the gun time said 3:29:55. I knew I broke 3:30 and I was pumped. Time to find beer and take those shoes off!
With the official time of 3:29:44 I can proudly say I ran a 16 minute PR. Good things happen when you stay patient early. I still have quite a ways to go but I think I'm finally figuring out this marathon...well, sort of.
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