Marine Corps Marathon - RunMarathon

It was a perfect day to race. Beautiful weather and just the right temperature. Ran for about a mile with the woman that was going for a 3:45 then lost her in the crowd. It wasn't as crowded as I remembered from last year though. Felt great right from the start. Wasn't sure how fast I was moving, but I knew I was a little behind the 8:20 pace I needed based on the chatter around me.

My goal for this race was to keep an even effort and not walk the last 6 miles like the year before. My "secret" goal, which wound up not being so secret was to qualify for Boston. I settled in a ran at an effort and pace that I felt I could sustain for 26.2 miles. Not sure that was the right strategy, but I felt like I had a great race.

Miles 1-8: Some hills, but not too bad. They're over before you know it. Felt a little winded going up the last hill, but I knew it was the last one so I pushed myself to get up it. Took my first GU out of my pocket around 55 minutes into it so I could start eating, but I dropped it. When there are that many people running, stopping and picking something up really isn't a good idea. I only brought three with me so I knew I was going to have to pick up a Clif Shot at the aid station. Blech.

Miles 8-13.1: Kind of uneventful. Just kept running, enjoying the course and the atmosphere. Coming around the corner near the waterfront, I saw a guy holding a sign that said "Don't Poop Yourself". I thought that was pretty funny. Reached the halfway point in 1:53:20. Knew I was still behind the pace I needed, tried to pick it up, but my legs and lungs would protest, so I settled back into the comfortable groove pace and kept going. Picked up a vanilla Clif Shot during this stretch so I could eat it at the 2 hour mark.

Miles 13.1-20: These all felt pretty good too. I was very well trained coming into this event. I think I did 4 20 milers and my legs handled the mileage just fine. Running through DC is awesome. Great crowd support. Really makes you feel like a superstar. High fived lots of kids and saw Shelly and Scott for the first time during this stretch. So nice seeing familiar faces out there. Apparently one of my old USAV teammates was out there too with her fiance. They saw me at mile 16 and tried to get my attention, but I didn't see them. She had a sign that said "Kayne says... I'mma Let You Finish.." haha. Too bad I missed it. Slowly ate the vanilla Clif Shot. I can't stand Clif Shots so this was a big accomplishment.

Miles 20-21: Before going into the race, I had a tiny negative thought in the back of my mind. During my 22 miler, I only finished 19.8ish miles of it. Kind of embarrassing to admit it, but I actually cried during that run because I felt like I was "stuck" in Maple Lawn and still had over 2 miles to go just to get home. No cell phone, no money, I was DONE. Not a great confidence booster. During the race though, that failure never came into my head. My legs were heavy and starting to hurt, but I was fine. Whew. I wasn't going to crack after mile 20. Steve also strategically placed himself on the bridge where I had trouble last year. He rode along side of me, told me I looked great, and gave me a water. The long stretch of the bridge was over before I knew it.

Mile 22: Here's where I started to hurt. The left side of my stomach was crampy and my back was aching too. Unfortunately for me, race day coincided perfectly with another monthly occurrence. I didn't want to take anything before the race and I think race day adrenaline wore off. In addition to heavy, aching legs, I also had a crampy body. Yipee! But, pressed on. Didn't walk....at all. That was another goal. I wanted to run the entire race and I did.

Miles 22 through 26.2: Just a push to get to the finish. Last year I noticed a lot of people walking. This year, I didn't pay much attention to the people around me, just did my own thing, and kept running. I use the term running loosely. Didn't feel like I was moving very fast and I felt a little lightheaded. Heard the music and the announcer. Knew I was getting close to the short uphill finish..... DONE!! :) 3:55:40. A little less than a 20 minute PR from last year. Not too shabby for a year's work, eh?

Made it to the finish line happy, healthy, and injury free. It's been a great year. I've done a lot of big events year and, with coach Rick's guidance, I had really good experiences at all of them.



Not much. I was very well prepared for this. *Maybe* pushed harder in the beginning? I was cooked at the end so pushing too early would've probably screwed me for the last miles. Pacing, nutrition, training for the event... all good.

Splits:
5K @ 27:01 (8:42)
10K @ 53:49 (8:39)
15K @ 1:20:42 (8:39)
20K @ 1:47:18 (8:39)
half @ 1:53:20 (8:38)
25K @ 2:14:10 (8:38)
30K @ 2:41:36 (8:51)
35K @ 3:10:12 (8:44)
40K @ 3:41:42 (8:55)

Obviously I'm a little disappointed that I didn't hit 3:40, but it just makes me want to work harder to reach that goal. I'll get it.

Tried not to fall over. Got my finishers medal and joined the pack of runners trying to make it out of the finish area. Kept looking for Steve and Rick, but didn't see either one of them. Slowly walked to our meeting spot and sat down on the curb until we were all in one place.


Nothing. Good race and I felt like I was 100% prepared for it.


This is a large, well organized race. There are plenty of aid stations and the course is beautiful.