Marine Corps Marathon - RunMarathon


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Arlington, Virginia
United States
USMC
65F / 18C
Sunny
 		Total Time = 4h 02m 5s
Overall Rank = 4963/20936
Age Group = M 30-34
Age Group Rank = 617/1838
Pre-race routine:

I stayed at a friends house in Gaithersburg Saturday night and drove to the New Carrolton Metro station at 5:30. Took the Metro to the Pentagon Station and got to the baggage drop off area around 6:45. Ate most of a peanut-butter and jelly bagel and continued to hydrate.
Event warmup:

The walk from the metro to the baggage drop off and then the walk from baggage drop off to the start was a pretty good warm up.
Run
  • 4h 02m 5s
  • 26.2 miles
  • 09m 14s  min/mile
Comments:

My goal for this race was a 3:30. I was on pace until about the 30K mark and then my cramping caught up with me. I don't feel like I hit the wall too bad, but I really need to get my cramping resolved. My feet cramped so badly they angled in towards my center. Sort of difficult to run like that! I was disappointed that I missed my goal, and by a lot, but I felt stronger longer than I had in previous marathons. I also really enjoyed having a pace group to follow. I barely looked at my watch while I had them in sight and it made the time go by quickly.
What would you do differently?:

I need to take care of my cramping/electrolyte issues. More fluid intake as well. I think I did well with nutrition intake until close to the end, but I need to do well throughout.
Post race
Warm down:

Warm down was stretching once I founds space to do it. Long walk to the family meeting area. Half a banana and some Cheerios and Gatorade.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

I was slowed down at the water stations because of people stopping early on. Some of the hard turns turned into slow shuffles. I had major cramping in my calves and feet starting around mile 21. Didn't hit the wall too hard cardiovascularly, but cramping was bad.

Event comments:

I think maybe one or two water stations could be used. The post-race activities were OK, but it was a mad house trying to get anywhere. Rosslyn Metro station was a joke and the shuttle bus to Crystal City Metro got lost and we were on there for at least 30 minutes.




Last updated: 2009-01-15 12:00 AM
Running
04:02:05 | 26.2 miles | 09m 14s  min/mile
Age Group: 617/1838
Overall: 4963/20936
Performance: Average
Course: I thought the course was pretty scenic and the limited hills didn't pose too many problems. This was the largest race by far for me participant-wise and I felt it was crowed at times. The water stations were definite choke points that slowed me up.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Not enough
Post race
Weight change: %2.33
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
Good race? Ok
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? No
Post race activities: Below average
Race evaluation [1-5] 3