2011 WhistleStop full marathon

Even though I'm filing this under the 2010 Grandma's blog, I wanted to add notes regarding my 2011 WhistleStop Marathon, which I completed the day before writing this.
My training for this marathon was not nearly as intense as my preparation for last year's Grandma's. I consistently did weekend long runs, but was horribly inconsistent on mid-week runs. I have a new job with a long commute, so morning runs would be difficult and it was a busy summer which took up many weekday evenings.
I basically used Hal Higdon's mileage charts for weekend distances. I ended up doing two 20 milers with a 13 miler in between. I did the last 20 three weeks before race day.
I was a little worried about how race day would go. My 20 milers went fairly well, but I thought my lack of weekday runs would hurt me in the last 6.2 of the race. So I went into the race thinking I'll take it easy, aiming to be steady and finish healthy. I was confident I'd improve my PR of 4:48, barring any medical (back) issues which have plagued me in the past during marathons. I prepared for this by working Tylenol into my training to handle the pain that pops up after a couple hours of running.
Anne and I arrived in the Ashland area at about 4pm the day before the marathon. We picked up our packets and went to the cabin where we were staying to fix dinner. We had pasta with ground turkey meatballs and Newman's Own marinara, along with a salad and warmed up french bread. I had about 3/4 of a glass of wine and several glasses of water. I skipped the salad to avoid too many vegetables and had extra pasta and bread. There were seven of us at the cabin, and we watched a movie (True Grit) before hitting the hay at about 10:15pm.
I slept well and woke up before the alarm shortly after 5am. It was a great day for running, with temps in the upper 40's with a wind out of the west at about 20 mph - a great thing for a west-to-east race! I decided to bring several options to the starting area and make a game-time decision on what to wear when the gun went off.
We boarded a bus at about 7:15am to get to the starting area. I was very relaxed and was looking forward to the run. I joked the whole way with my friends John and Dave and a few other people on the ride up. When we got there, we ended up waiting for the start in a small bar. We bellied up and took it easy as 9am approached. It was nice because there were plenty of restrooms, and we got good seats in the bar to spread out our stuff and get everything ready.
The gun went off at 9am, and the weather was perfect. Mostly sunny, about 42 degrees, and a wind at our backs. I went out at a very easy pace, trying to stay calm and remembering all the miles that were ahead of me. Not fearing those miles, but respecting them (if that makes any sense). The marathon is mostly on a crushed gravel trail. It was well packed this year, but some areas get a little soft. If you don't watch it, you might step on a bigger rock or hit a soft spot and turn your ankle.
I was feeling great for the first seven miles or so. There were plenty of water stops, and plenty of room on the course. It never felt crowded (a far cry from last year's half marathon).
I decided to take a walking break at mile 7 for a minute or two. Not that I needed it, but I thought it would be good to get some rest in for later. On the spot, I thought that I'd rest at mile 7, then do it again 6 miles later, then 5, and so on. I picked out a tree about 75 yards from mile marker 7, and walked to it then started running again.
At mile 10, I took my first gel. I was feeling really good, like I was out on an easy training run. But as you'll see later, my pacing was pretty good (for me), faster than most long training runs.
My next walking break was scheduled for 13 (7+6). I walked for a little while and started up again, seeing the halfway point. I looked at my watch and it said 2:04. I'd have to do a negative split to hit 4 hours, but I was fine with not doing that. I figured I might be able to do about a 4:15 the way I was going.
I started running again and took a second gel at about 14 at a water stop. There were plenty of water stops, and all the volunteers (mostly kids) were terrific!
Just in case, I popped a Tylenol at about 14 since my muscles were getting a little sore. At this point I realized that I was feeling MUCH better at this point in the race than I had at any of my previous three marathons.
So my next scheduled walking break was at mile 18 (13+5). I actually felt really good at the 18 mile mark so I just kept going. I found myself wondering when the pain would arrive, as this was about where my shoulder and back pain started in the last two marathons. I think the Tylenol did the trick, since the pain never arrived! So I was going along pretty well but starting to get tired.
I didn't do any more extended walking breaks, but I did take a little extra time at each water stop. I don't remember where I took my final gel, but I ended up using three. I didn't take the last Tylenol I had, nor did I have to resort to the vicodin I had along just in case.
At mile 20, I was getting really tired and my feet were starting to hurt, but nothing really out of the ordinary. For some strange reason, I reached up an high-fived the 20 mile sign which was about 7 feet off the ground. Maybe I was thinking how horrible this point was for the last two marathons, and how happy I was to cruise right by it this year.
For the last 6.2, many people were walking. I passed several people through this stretch, and was feeling good about the fact that I still had a decent amount of energy while so many people were having a tough time (I know this sounds selfish, but I needed some positive thoughts at that point).
When I passed mile markers, I hit the lap button on my watch and looked at how long the previous mile took. I tried to keep them under 10 minutes, and started to calculate when I might finish. A sub 4 hour marathon was out of reach, but I realized at about 19 that a 4:10 was in reach. That number sounded good so I kept running with very few walking breaks the rest of the way.
As I neared the finish area, I could hear the crowd and the emcee over the speakers. The last half mile or so seemed to take forever as you enter the recreational area and wind through fields and buildings. I turned the last corner and saw Anne cheering me on. I made a little dash for the finish line, seeing the clock at about 4:10:05. I knew I crossed the starting line about 30 seconds after the gun went off, so I was sub 4:10! There was a cameraperson in the finishing area right as you cross the line so I had a big smile, raised both arms, and got my picture taken. I actually might buy that one if it turns out. It felt so good to finish!
I had some water, made my way through the food area, and met up with Anne and friends outside. I was walking very slowly for the next hour or so, as I picked up my sweat bag and got some more food.
Here are the splits:
1 - 9:42
2 - 9:12
3 - 9:26
4 - 9:14
5 - 9:25
6 - 9:14
7 - 9:20
8 - 9:48 (includes walking break)
9 - 9:18
10 - 9:26
11 - 9:10
12 - 9:05
13 - 9:03 (nice little 3 mile stretch here!)
14 - 9:58 (includes walking break)
15 - 9:15
16 - 9:14
17 - 9:25
18 - 9:28
19 - 9:04
20 - 9:51
21 - 9:43
22 - 9:52
23 - 10:25
24 - 10:04
25 - 9:31 (wow!)
26 - the last 1.29 miles didn't accurately register because I forgot to hit stop at the finish. It says 17:45 for this distance, which included walking around at the finish until I realized the time was still recording. I suppose I could add up the 25 splits and subtract from my finishing time - maybe later.
My official finishing time is 4:09:32.3. This averages out to 9:31/mile. I was 254th out of 477 finishers, 181/283 men, and 16/27 in males age 35-39. Not too shabby!
I am really happy about my result. After three painful marathon experiences before, I didn't know if I could make it through one without experiencing such major problems. But I made the adjustments and got it done - and had a lot of fun doing it!
After the race, we went back to the cabin to clean up and relax. I didn't take a nap, I was still pretty pumped up about the race. So I just took a long shower, relaxed with a magazine, and hung out until we went to dinner at about 6. We went to our traditional dinner place, Patsys, then went to the Blues and Brews festival in Ashland.
A great weekend all around! Already looking forward to next year, but maybe just doing the 10K or the half. Or...maybe the full? Who knows!