Screwed up big time today. After training with Darren for so long, I wanted to run with him today for as long as I could so we could enjoy the course together. Unfortunately, our first mile was done in 7 minutes. Mile 2 was in 7:20 with a walk break in there. By 2.5 I told him there was no way I could keep this up and fell back, but the damage was already done. I should have listened to you, Rick.

I had a 3:45 pace band on one wrist and a 4:00 pace band on the other. I was well ahead of pace for 3:45 for about 7 miles. By 9, I was pretty much at pace, but I was flagging badly.

I was running 10:1s to start, but at mile 10 I started walking for 30 seconds at the 5 minute mark as well as the 1 minute walk at 10. By the time I was 1/2 way down (13.1), I was down to only 2 minutes ahead of my 4 hour pace, and I could see there wasn't going to be much of a chance of hitting that. My legs were already toast, and the place was really turning into a furnace by then.

By 18, I was pretty much toast. I was looking lovingly at the discreet little exits at the aid stations pretty carefully. Just drive me to the finish line, forchrissakes! At this point, I was doing my 5:30s, 10:1s, AND walking the water stations. Pace had gone to hell and was not coming back.

By mile 20, I knew I was going to make it. I was tired, my legs were shot, and I was SO hot, but there was NO way I was going to quit with only 10k to go.

I was really carefull how I answered the first aid responders out there. They were picking people off the course right and left. I got pretty dizzy and queasy a couple of times, but I was lucky that it wasn't around them either time. Whenever they asked how I was doing it was a big smile and a thumbs up. You couldn't drag my rotting corpse off the course by this point!

By 23 I was walking almost as much as I was running. I was hydrating really well, and had the volunteers fill my water bottle right up at just about every stop. The ice and the showers were straight from God.

At 24, I was at the foot of the last hill and was sitting at 3:58 for time. I thought I might be able to push out a couple of 8 minuters and at least salvage a 4:15, but alas, a pair of 11s was the best I could muster. The sun was pounding me like a jackhammer at this point, and I could only manage about 3 or 4 minutes of running to a minute of walking. Just nothing left in the tank. Oh well.

Mile 26: heading into the stadium for the last 1/2 lap around the track. Thank God! I walked a good stretch coming up to the stadium so I was sure that I could run all the way inside the stadium. Nothing would have been worse than having to walk on the track. Anyways, I needn't have worried. Once I got in and heard the crowd I got a huge boost. When I saw my whole family in the stands cheering and waving, I just gave'r snot. I gave them a big wave and a smile, then turned on the burners for the last 200 yards. My right calf promptly seized, my foot rolled on the side of the track, and I was nearly on my ass in front of the crowd! Yeesh! Managed to reclaim my balance and fire down the chute at a slightly more respectable pace.

Got my lovely little finishers medal, my T-shirt, and went and found my friends for a race-breakdown.

Start SLOWER! SO stupid to have gone balls-deep right off the hop.
Try to find some hot weather to train in.
Sleep the night before.

Walked and walked. If I sat, I don't think Ida gotten back up. Went to the Pancake House for grub, finally.


The heat and my lack of training in it. Other than that, just my stupidity, really.


Why do they run out of popsicles for the full marathoners? I mean, there's 1/3 as many as the 1/2ers, go buy 1000 popsicles and stick them in a freezer til the fulls get in. Also, there were massages for the 1/2, but there was nothing for the full. I was a little choked with that. Otherwise, great race and organization.

Also, I learned a valuable lesson that I'm not soon to forget: Run your own race!!! I will definitely be starting slow and building next time.

All in all, although I was pretty disapointed with my time, I'm pretty pleased to have finished my first marathon. It was mentally and physically exhausting, and I'm pretty proud I was able to suck it up and stay the course. On such a hot day, I'm pretty pleased I managed to finish in the top 43%ile too, so I guess things could definitely have been worse.
I'll know better next time!