The Delaware Trail Marathon - RunMarathon


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Newark, Delaware
United States
Trail Dawgs
55F / 13C
Sunny
Total Time = 4h 51m 12s
Overall Rank = 36/92
Age Group = 40-49
Age Group Rank = 6/18
Pre-race routine:

Ate breakfast - bacon, egg & cheese and Clif bar; coffee, Gatorade, water. Hour ride to race. Got on my race clothes, Bodyglide, trail shoes.
Event warmup:

Stretched and general walk around. Listened to race orientation, national anthem, and prayer ("God bless these foolish idiots who are about to embark on this journey, may they all come back....")
Run
  • 4h 51m 12s
  • 26.2 miles
  • 11m 07s  min/mile
Comments:

Pace was a little slower than I would have expected, especially on the first loop based on my HR and perceived exertion. Got caught in a very slow crowd touring the forest at mile 9-10; broke free on creek crossing and tried to pick it up. Still took 2:20 for the first half marathon, which I was very surprised by; I was figuring 2:00-2:10. Felt really good from miles 10-17, started to have some pretty hard cramping in my thighs but ran through it. Felt really good up again till mile 22 or so; then hit the hard single track before the last creek crossing. Lots of walking up the steep parts; pretty painful over all the logs, etc. Crossed the creek for the last 3-3.5 ran for a bit and felt OK. After that though, I fell apart. Guess I didn't anticipate the mental collapse that would come with hitting the wall; probably took 35 - 40 minutes for that part of the race. At this poit though I would have crawled across the line. I did make it across the line standing up and running; I accomplished my goal of my first marathon on a beautiful, but tough course.
What would you do differently?:

3 things - (1) be more aggressive with my pace in spots to ensure not getting caught on the tight sections (limited by my lack of course knowledge); (2) do more long runs; I chose to do this race about 6 weeks out, and only got in two runs over 15 miles which contributed to my implosion at the end; (3) research and figure out how to address the cramping issues I've experienced in long races - I had salt crystals on my face and salt lines on my singlet
Post race
Warm down:

Walked around; got off my muddy wet shoes, called the boss to tell her I was alive. Ate like there was no tomorrow.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

The course contributed to everyone's slower pace. But in the end, overall marathon fitness was my downfall. After checking the final results, there were only 5 people under 4 hours so I feelpretty good about things.

Event comments:

This was a great experience; I always feel good after a trail run. The course was well marked, although a few people made wrong turns (including yours truly, who was saved by some boy scouts camping). I would definitely do this race again, or try to conquer the Triple Crown - half, 10k, and 5k all in one morning. Only suggestion I would have is to man the street crossings/water stops (at least the end ones) for another half hour to hour to accommodate more marathon fools. However, the change to self-serve at noon was clearly published.

This race was a blast in terms of the course, the natural beauty of the area, and the nice people running it. It was for a good cause as well. John Mac, you did a great job.




Last updated: 2010-04-22 12:00 AM
Running
04:51:12 | 26.2 miles | 11m 07s  min/mile
Age Group: 6/18
Overall: 37/92
Performance: Average
HR average was 150 based on my Garmin
Course: Two loops run in conjunction w/ a half marathon which started 15 min ahead. Beautiful scenery; hilly but not as hardcore as some other trail runs. 4 thigh-deep (FREEZING COLD!!!) creek crossings. Good opportunities to pass in most sections with the exception of one very hilly tight part at about mile 9 and 22; lost a lot of time there in the first loop especially. Rest stops every 3 miles or so at street crossings - my favorite was one blasting old Van Halen tunes - I only wish I could run as fast as I could in 1986! Course was well marked with chalk and pie plates; only a few sections where runners were going both ways. On the second loop it was positively lonely for a while as people got more spread out - I did a whole section of the course and saw 1 runner and a couple mountain bikers. Being a guy with a chaotic house and 3 kids, I would have to say it was welcome... I did feel bad for the fly fisherman; no fish intheir right mind would have been in that creek today.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 2
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 5