Long Island Marathon - RunMarathon

My first standalone marathon. They say the goal of your first marathon should be to finish so I'm happy that I made it to the finish line. They also say that you should be conservative in your pacing. I planned on running 10 minute miles all the way through. All was going according to plan until the dreaded WALL at mile 20. I hit all of my planned splits (62 minutes for 10K, 100 minutes for 10 miles, 130 minutes for the half way point and was even holding on for 205 minutes at 20 miles) but then I hit the wall and the wall fell on top of me, buried me, and filled my shoes with bricks. After running 20 miles in 205 minutes it took me 85 minutes to run the next 6.2 miles. Lots of walking. It felt like the Wantaugh went on forever (and there was very little shade from the now strengthening midday sun). I finally made it off the parkway and headed to and into the park where the prospect of finishing gave me some new strength for the last mile and I finally made it to the end, got my medal and met up with my family. Most of the spectators and other runners had already left the park so there was a nice quiet calmness in the finish area (as compared to what I remembered from last year when I ran the half and finished with the bulk of runners at just under the 2 hour mark). All in all a great day for a race, an excellent event with lots of support from the volunteers (but absolutely no "fans" at the side of the course for the entire Wantagh Parkway portion - over 12 miles), and a good learning experience.

This being my first standalone marathon, I should have been more conservative in my pacing (and I really thought I was). I had checked the Macmillan running calculator and used my half marathon time to predict my full time and pace. I guess the calculator is off (unlikely) or my conditioning wasn't where it needed to be for a 26 mile race. In any event, using 10 minutes per mile as the floor (don't run a mile at less than 10 minutes per mile pace) instead of a target (run each mile at about 10 minutes a mile, give or take) is probably what hurt me in the end. The seconds I saved in the beginning really cost me at the end. Other than that, I did the best I could given my current fitness level and was a drastic improvement over my marathon in last years Ironman Lake Placid (I beat my marathon time by over an hour - apples and oranges but still). One thing I like about these endurance events is that I learn something new every time and there is always room for improvement.

I was really tired. I walked to the swag tent with some help from a volunteer (thanks), got my fleece and goody bag (tapioca pudding - really?), and met up with my family. Sat down in the grass in a shady spot behind a giant inflatable dog (?) and shared a snowcone with my kids. Went home, took an "ice" bath, cleaned myself up and rested for the remainder of the day.


As always, general conditioning and lack of experience. I'm working on both of these issues.


For a local race minutes from my house this is excellent. No, it is not the NYC Marathon or Boston Marathon. But it is a well run event with a community feel (something I think Long Island needs more of). The organizers work hard to put on a quality event, the volunteers work hard (I was amazed at how hard they all were working to pass out water, clear up the cups, and make sure that the runners were aware of the twists and turns on the course). For my first marathon I was really happy that there is zero added stress, no hotels to stay at the night before, no travel plans to arrange months in advance, and a very reasonable entrance fee. I highly recommend this race and the surrounding events to everyone on Long Island interested in participating in a running event at any level of ability (the top women's marathon finisher qualified for the Olympic trials). One of the best things about living on Long Island.