Los Angeles Marathon - RunMarathon

This was my First marathon , I Was excited to try and run it . I was also cautious of starting too fast and crashing later. Starting at the back was due to us having to wait for the bathrooms for so long . Mainly it was a good thing as it meant my pace was held back and i would have juice left for the twenties. Was pretty fun and the monster field of runners were in great spirits. Many wearing the Student Run LA , La Leggers , And Team In Training colours. I Saw a Blue Afro guy and an Elvis in a white Las Vegas frock with a baby jogger filled up with a car radio amplifier and loudspeakers blasting the King's Tunes . Another guy was dressed in a Viking outfit. Many were running with ballons in their hair. A we crested the only hill of the course the road narrowed and the mob slowed to a walk . Then we headed into Hollywood and the downhill helped get people going. Its a part of the course I drive every two weeks so it was fun to run it. There was no chill in the air so i knew i would have to watch the heat and drink plenty of water and gatorade.
Brian Had suggested taking salt tablets with me in a small ziplock bag.
I took his advice and brought 10 or so. This was new for race day and sounded like good advice against cramps. I also had my 9 packs of my favorite GU on board to help replenish calories.
we continued down beautiful treelined Rossmore into Koreatown down pico into Normandie to the halfway mark . Into exposition Park and finally i spotted lots of portapotty with no lines . :) That was the only break i needed . Decided to walk 1 min after and adjust The remaining GUs from my back to my front pockets for easier access. Continued onto MLK and turned back towards Staples Center . Mile 18 or 19 .
Started to take a Gu every 2 miles in between the Gatorade stops . And aim for every fire hose that was on. Mile 20 . OK only a 10 k left . but my feet hurt from blisters , i am hot and every time i stop to drink it gets harder to get moving again. Mile 22 we hit a long incline up towards boyle heights and it seems everyone else is walking WTF , i continue to run but shorten my stride up the slight hill . It also seems like we keep going away from the finish line. Kind of discouraging. Through "scenic" Boyle Heights and turn back on another bridge . Now this is way better as we are now facing downtown. OK! HAng in there ! We are going home Gang. This running thing is hard. My pace keeps slowing and the heat keeps rising. My HR stays around 155 .
I try not to focus on the pace amd more on my mechanics : pull knees through, rotate heels back to get a good extension . Thoughts about that time "The more I run the quicker I will be done" . I have thoughts of picking up the pace but decide not to. Mile 24 : ephoria sets in , almost there , Mile 25 ; 10 more minutes . Upon sighting the banner for Mile 26 : Shade from the tall buildings , Another runner asks how much longer . I tell hime the finish is right around the corner . i have ZERO finishing speed left. The heat and distance have sapped me pretty good . I just try and smile and raise my hands up and continue jogging through the timing mats and in for the pictures :) Wow! i am done .
What a challenge. what an accomplishment. My Pace is Off 20 mins but i think running slower in the heat was the way to go. I Did not hit "The Wall".
Things just got harder as i went along. And my only minor pains came from my blisters which i shut out.

Do more long runs for endurance conditioning , pick a smaller event for the next one , run in cooler temperature.

A little dizy when i stopped , there no grass to sit down on, walked for 10 minutes , found the gang and rested , discussed the pros and cons of the new course with the other runners . Every one finished but was slower than expected , heard complaints about the heat and the hills in the second half. We then headed to the subway and then back to the cars . Subway was delayed because Another Marathoner got sick on the subway so paramedics were called and took him out on a stretcher. ;(


More experience and include more long runs for conditioning. Run in cooler temperature .
Get new shoes , Blisters slowed me down a little especially in the second half.


Enormous event , so lots of buzz , plenty of volunteers and abundant aid stations . but course is crowded and its hard to Run your best. It Would be nicer to finish In a big park setting with trees and grass to relax on.