Marathon Analysis

So as many of you know by now I successfully completed my first ever marathon. I thought I could use this post to give an analysis of the race. I hope that you've already noticed the handy-dandy map above. I thought it would be helpful when I'm talking about the various sections of the course, feel free to zoom in and out on the map and follow along.

The start of the race begins at Clinch Ave heading west, look for the green circle with the triangle in it.

Pre-Start - 10K

On race day, I woke up at 5:30am and immediately ate my bowl of Cheerio's, had a glass of water, and put on my lucky spandex. I did all the preparatory work necessary for a marathon (i.e. putting Band Aids on my nipples and applying lube where the sun don't shine). Once this was done I ate a protein bar and had another glass of water. The time now is about 6:30am. Josh and Holly picked us up at 6:45am to head down to the starting line.

Traffic was nuts and I was a little anxious that we would be late for the start (7:30am), so we got out of their truck and walked to the convention center where a mass assembly of runners awaited. Normally before races I like to make sure that I use the bathroom. Today was no exception. When I saw the line to the men's bathroom, I prepared myself for the worst. Let me just say that going to the bathroom after several hundred other runners was an experience in itself. The smell was atrocious. I don't get queasy very often but when I entered my stall, I gagged.

Once that was done, we headed towards the start. They corral you according to your anticipated time. I was in the 4 - 4:30 hour corral. The gun went off and people began moving west up Clinch Ave. It was a good 2 - 3 blocks until I was able to get into my running stride. I had passed the first mile marker in the UT campus without realizing it. Part of my strategy was to take walk breaks at each mile. A runner to my left informed me that I had missed it so I walked shortly there after. I forgot to mention that there are Pacers in the marathon. How this works is a person, the pacer, will have the time they are expected to finish in on their back. Their function is to help you accomplish your time goal (if you have one). Any ways, when I took my first walk break, the 4 hr pacer went right past me. It was all that I could do to resist chasing him. I knew I had to keep discipline with the walk breaks if I wanted to enjoy the experience. I stuck to my breaks and caught up shortly afterwords.

(at mile 11)

The next significant event took place around mile marker 6 or near the 10K point. I'm running in Sequoya Hills or Cherokee Blvd, and I notice a group of older ladies on the sidelines drinking enormous Bloody Mary's. I heard one of them saying, "We're doing this for you". They seemed like a fun group. My 10K time was around 55 minutes, which meant that I was on track to finish the marathon in just under 4hrs.

From 10K - 15miles

My legs were feeling great at the 10K mark and beyond. Noelton (mile 7ish) is the street with the dreaded hill. It's not the longest hill, but it's one of the sharpest inclines on the whole course. There were lots of spectators cheering runners on. I met a guy on this hill who is from Rodgersville, TN and we ran together from this point until about mile 11. He was really nice and this was his first race in Knoxville. He was running the half marathon and looking for somebody to keep pace with. Another person I ran with for a short while was the Mayor of Knoxville, Mr. Bill Haslam. He's also running for Governor for TN this year. I didn't make any small talk with him because I didn't know what to say; I regret that decision.

At about mile 11 or 12 there was a group of very drunk college students dressed up in all sorts of costumes. The one I most remember is the guy dressed up as a Hot Dog. I later found out that Mr. Hot Dog was taken to the hospital by ambulance because he overheated and had way too much to drink. That combination led him to pass out and hit his head on the ground. I hear that he's doing fine. I admire their dedication of cheering on runners. The magnitude of the race set in once the marathoners and half marathoners split to go their separate ways. I clocked in at just under 2 hours for my half marathon time, and I was still ahead of the 4hr pacer. However a couple of miles later the pacer past me at mile 15. I would never again be ahead of the 4hr group.

16miles - a rain storm - 25miles

In the Parkridge neighborhood (Winona St. and Caswell Park) I rejoined a runner I had met prior to the start. Mile 17 is when I met up again with a Salt Lake City native who was running his 21st marathon; by looking at him I'd say he was in his 70s. He started running when he turned 50 and runs a marathon or two each year. His goal is to run one in each of the 50 states. I wish him the best of luck. I kept pace with him for about a mile or so and then he took off like a flash when we approached a downhill. "I need to let it out on the downhills. I'm too old to do anything on the up hills. Good luck," were his last remarks to me.

My wall, or the point where I could care less if I finished, happened at about mile 20 or 21. I was on James White Parkway and I remember my legs feeling really heavy. My stride was more of a shuffle at this point. James White connects south Knoxville, and it's very exposed. I could see what the next 4 miles looked like for me and it just seemed to go on forever. I was still in between the 4hr pacer and the 4:15hr pacer. My breathing never bothered me, it was just that my legs felt so heavy.

I conquered James White and headed into Island Home (mile 22 Island Home Blvd). Halfway into the neighborhood it poured down rain. The rain felt good at first but then I became really cold. And my feet were now soaked. Prior to the rain, my face was a salt lick and my eyes burned at first when the rain came. The rain was a good motivator to pick up my pace and get this race over with. It rained on and off until I finished, but never a down pour.

I knew I was on the homestretch when I was crossing the Gay St Bridge. This was a much welcomed sign. I knew that the rest of the course would be mostly flat and there were no major hills left. At mile 25 my watch timer read: 4hrs. I had 15 minutes to run 1.2 miles to reach my goal.

The Finish - 26.2 miles

(I'm in the center)

A smile broke on my face as I saw the 25 mile marker. It's almost over. I was kind of sad at the same time. I mean, I really enjoyed myself and I met so many wonderful people. My legs were tired but I knew I had the 1.2 miles left in me. I spotted a guy wearing a yellow jersey and kept my pace with him until the finish. He really helped me pull through in the end. In fact I passed him with .2 miles left. But he ended up passing me at the finish line. I didn't care; he did his job. I finished at 4:13:50. The feeling was incredible and it can't be described only experienced. I was given my medal and fancy runner's hat and a space blanket to help me warm up.

(My bloody toe)

It was great to see Rachel in the stands cheering me on in the end. We both finished our races without any major issues. I would really like to run another marathon again but not anytime soon. I can tell that my body needs the rest and I would like to do other things besides run all the time. I'm still a little sore but not that bad. Below are a few pics from the race and I hope to find more soon. I'll recap the training experience here sometime soon. Take care.

Number 515

Each person has their own unique number that is assigned to him or her and I'm number 515. It's a palindrome, or a number that is the same forwards as it is backwards. For some reason I think this is really neat. Today Rachel and I took in the marathon expo that was held at the Holiday Inn. It's mandatory that everyone visit if they wish to race because your bib number and timing chip are located there.

Before we even got to the registration table we ran into a friend of ours at our church. Paul, our friend, is a volunteer and he told us that around 6,000 people had registered for the race and that, "it's a half marathon race, so most of the people are signed up for that". I found out that about 630 people are singed up for the 26.2 category. After catching up we made our way to the registration table and we got our number. We quickly moved left to get our goody bag (i.e. lots of flyers, box of Wheaties, other trinkets, and the official race t-shirt).

Once all the essentials were gathered in our new plastic goody bags, we made a plan of action to see all the venders. Most of the local running stores were there as well as the vitamin / health food shops. There were lots of people selling t-shirts and stickers (I guess to show that you were here) and yes I bought a sticker. I didn't want to succumb to the schmuck that proudly proclaims all of his accomplishments on his car so I'll proclaim them on my water bottle.

I was really struck by how friendly everyone was to us. I had the assumption that I would run into the ultra serious runners. You know the type that gives you a quick up and down and then rushes to judgements about how seroius of a runner you really are. Well, I didn't find any (thank baby Jesus). We did meet a woman from Anchorage, AK who is running her 10th marathon this year! I'm not sure if she meant calendar year or since 2010, but I know that I don't want any part of that. The only thing more difficult than running 10 marathons is maybe delivering a baby sideways, or so I've been told.

Lastly, thank you for all the support and comments people have made these past few months. Really thanks. It really means a lot to me. I'll be putting my good foot forward tomorrow and I hope you will too. Look for the post race recap.

Well, I should really get going because we're having people over for dinner. I've got meatballs to cook.

72 Hours and Counting.

Holy crap, there's only 72 hours standing between me and the marathon. My mind has been racing all week. What should I eat, how much more do I need to run, what's the weather looking like, what should I wear... These are all questions that have been processing. I thought it might be helpful to try and answer some of these questions. I think I mentioned this in one of my earliest posts that I've been reading Jeff Galloway's Marathon: You can do it! and I'll be referencing that frequently in this post.

1) I need to keep positive. Jeff also strongly emphasizes this point. Being positive has been very helpful throughout my training. When my knee was acting up, the positive thoughts helped. Along with being positive is mentally preparing yourself for the race. Knowing that I will cross that finish line and that my legs will not fail me is a great motivator.

2) Avoid the dehydrating elements. This is straight out of Jeff's book. So things like alcohol, caffeine (opps already had my coffee this morning), and salt are things to look out for. Jeff goes on to suggest that salt "is probably the leading cause of dehydration for most marathoners. Becasue it's used so widely in most restaurants, you're likely to consume large amounts of salt without realizing it. Try to avoid restaurant food during the 24 hours before the marathon". Jeff also warns about the pasta parties the night before: "watch out for the sauce and teh garlic bread! (Just nibble on the pasta and digest the conversation)". Salt is going to be hard to cut out but, we'll be conscious of this when we cook or go out to eat.

3) Dress for the weather. On Sunday, they're predicting 40% chance of showers and the high will be in the upper 50s. I think this sounds like ideal weather. It would be nice to have some sunshine. I'm planning on wearing what I've worn durning my long runs (my favorite pair of spandex with a comfortable t-shirt). I would love to wear a goofy outfit that you sometimes see at marathons, but comfort and familiarity trumps being noticed.

4) Don't over due it. I've put in a lot of work to prepare for this day so my training schedule has been pretty light. I ran 3 miles at a very comfortable pace yesterday and I'll do the same today. I need to get my body focused on running 26.2 miles and not on how much I should run today.

It's almost here. I, or should I say we are really excited about this race. Some of our friends that are also running (Josh and Holly and little Lucy) are coming over the night before to eat some carbs and just enjoy each others company before the big day. I'm hoping to wash away some of the anxiety with friends. Till next time.