I won't go into great detail about the race. I hit the wall at mile 17 or so, and picked back up after 20 and then crashed again at 23. It was painful, but every time I do a new distance, its painful and kind of sucks, and then I do it again later, and its easier, and I get faster. I was painfully slow on this race, but next one (whenever it may be) I'll be shooting for sub-4:30, and don't really doubt I can do it. The hills (which may have contributed to the early bonk) weren't terribly steep or tall, but 3/4 or more of the course was entirely on them. Living where I do, I dont get to train on hills, its not something I'm able to incorporate into my training, so I had to deal with them as well as I was able to. The finish was the high point of the race. The competitors were so strung out that the announcer got to announce each of us, and over the PA as I finished I heard, "Here comes number 177, and sir, I have a special message for you, Nicki says she loves you." That got one of the few smiles out of me the entire race.

Have more marathons under my belt, not really something I can do differently. Just need to work and slog my guts out to gain that experience that gives me faster times at the other distances I've done.

Went into the post race area to find that there was nothing in the way of sustenance except baked potatoes. Having had no water for the past 2 miles, I was eager for liquid, but there was none to be found. So, my legs giving out, I found Nick and my dad and he forced a volunteer to get me water. Apparently, there were cases of bottled water, but after about 4.5 hours, they just started giving them away for people to take home by the case, leaving none for the later finishers. Which is one of the reasons I rated this race as below average.


Inexperience at this distance.