My goal was to run the first half at around 2 hours and then increase my pace for the second loop. The course was packed with runners and despite the wind and rain many people were cheering people on during the first loop which included some 3000 participants in the half marathon. The poor weather and the threat of a possible cancellation kept away hundreds - I believe between the half marathon, marathon, and marathon relay there were 5000 registered and there were not that many out there. My wife met me at mile 14 and I switched out my empty bottles on my fuel belt for full ones - and she passed me a Zico. My nutrition for the first half was on point - I ate at mile 5 (a Clif Bar) and 10 (a gel) and I had consumed 24 ounces of eFuel and 10 ounces of water. But that last 5 miles back to the starting line had a head wind and I knew that a 4 hour marathon, and a negative split was not in my future. I asked my wife to look for me in the 4:15 to 4:30 range and continued on. I continued at my first half pace until reaching the road with the war memorials where the road had become a small stream. Not like my feet were not 100% saturated at this point, but now it was bothering me. I never hit a wall per se but the mind games definitely started on mile 17 where there was the slight incline "the hill". I did not even notice it on the first loop but the second loop my calves responded first and then I started second guessing my intelligence in not wearing tights (I wore shorts) and here I realized if I closed my fists I could squeeze off a pint of water from my gloves. I switched to a run-walk at this point starting at run 5 minutes walk 1 ... and by the time I reached mile 20 I was down to run 3 minutes walk 3. The volunteers that were still out in the torrent (from mile 16-23 I experienced the heaviest rains all were thanked by me as I struggled to run - I stopped looking at my watch as it had decided to fog up and basically die on me (lasted 2+ years - my Timex Ironman) ... Headwind humbled me from mile 23-24 but I ran that one at an arthritic pace before getting a wicked cramp at the 24 mile marker. As I stopped (for the only time during the race) and grabbed my leg a polic officer asked if I was ok - I said something along the lines of "bad cramp' he asked me if I needed medical and I said I would crawl before I stopped or something like that and he told me something about it being a bad idea because I would not see any rocks or glass because of the depth of the puddles. Ugh ... I plodded on and eventually heard the finish and tried to run in - they were playing "party Rock" as I crossed my first marathon finish line ... happy to be done, content that I accomplished a goal but unsatisfied with my time so I guess I will have to do another one ...

I don't know if I could have crapped the bed much worse on the second loop. If I had just run from the start at an 8:20 and pushed to maintain that I think I could have gone to the same 17 mark where I fell apart, and have gotten there much sooner. I don't know - this was my first try at the distance and was using this as a mental thing more than anything. The next morning it was a sunny and clear 36 degrees on the cape ... if I could control the weather I am fairly certain I would have run considerably better.

I went into the expo center and my wife got me some hot chocolate and tomato soup. I think I knocked back one of each and then stripped off my drenched jacket, shirt and underarmor shirt. I put on a dry shirt and sweat shirt and had another soup and hot chocolate. My legs were like rocks and I started to shiver and could not stop. My wife went back to the hotel to get the car since she didn't think I could walk back - honestly I didn't want to so I was good with that. A paramedic came over and gave me blankets and told me to bundle up that it looked like I was suffering from hypothermia. I did as I was told until my wife returned then went back to warm up at the hotel.


I guess I was colder than I thought - I was out there longer than I had anticipated but while running I was never "cold" just wet and miserable. In training I ran in alot of cold - with often icy and snowy conditions but I have only run a dozen times in rain - never anywhere near this distance - and never to the point that the roads were flowing rivers. I guess I need to train more in the rain.


Very well run event - cannot hold the weather against them. The expo and pasta dinner were well done. Guest speakers Bill Rodgers and Greg Myers were both entertaining and informative - and I got to see one of them out on the course during the race. Volunteers were awesome to stay out there in dismal conditions and the Barnstable Police were extremely supportive.