Time: 3:27:58
Avg. Pace: 7:56/mile
Overall Placing: 49th of 563 finishers
Age Group Placing (30-34): 5th of 38
Successful behind-the-back tossing of water/Gatorade cups into trash cans: 4 for 12.
I couldn't be happier with how it all went. I wasn't sure how I'd do today given the 50-miler was three weeks ago (I know, I know.. I sound like a broken record) and my training was directed towards that. So I was really stoked to set a new PR, and on a course that is pretty insanely hilly to boot! Very, very happy (and tired).
Here are my splits and some brief notes. I'll post more details and pictures soon. General plan was to try to hit 7:55-8:00/mile pace until the halfway point, then evaluate how I was feeling and go from there.
Mile 1: 7:46 Too fast. Perhaps because it was cold and I wanted to warm up.
Mile 2: 8:00 Nice. Threw water cup behind my back and into trash can (1 for 1)
Mile 3: 7:59 Beautiful.
Mile 4: 7:38 Whoops, too fast. Missed behind back shot of water cup into trash can (1 for 2)
Mile 5: 7:52 Good.
Mile 6: 7:55 Very good. Missed shot again (1 for 3)
Mile 7: 8:22 Uphill.
Mile 8: 8:09 Nice. Missed again (1 for 4)
Mile 9: 7:46 Downhill.
Mile 10 and 11: 15:55 (forgot to hit lap button). Missed again (1 for 5). Took a Gu.
Mile 12: 8:04 Great views of ocean. No trash can at water station, so no official shot attempt.
Mile 13: 7:37 Way too fast. But decided to maintain overall pace since I was feeling good.
Mile 14: 7:58 Eastern side of the Somes Sound fjord. Very pretty. Successful swish (2 for 6)
Mile 15: 8:08 Feeling good here. Enjoying myself. Nobody passes me from here on out.
Mile 16: 7:32 Took a Gu. Missed shot (2 for 7)
Mile 17: 7:53 Great crowd support. Still feeling good. Passing more folks.
Mile 18: 7:44 Working the downhill. Made the shot (3 for 8) and exclaimed "yes!", but did so while passing someone and I think they got the wrong idea.
Mile 19: 7:59 Feeling good.
Mile 20: 8:02 Still feeling good, but the hardest uphills are coming. Took final Gu. Missed shot (3 for 9).
Mile 21: 8:12 Tough stretch uphill.
Mile 22: 8:10 More tough uphills. Cup goes in! (4 for 10)
Mile 23: 8:00 Able to work the lesser sections of uphills.
Mile 24 and 25: 16:06(forgot to hit lap button) Hills are wearing me out. Digging deep. Missed shot (4 for 11).
Mile 26: 7:32 Worked the downhill hard. Passed some more folks. Missed shot, but don't care (4 for 12).
Last .2: 1:36 Woohooooo!!!
6 comments:
You couldn't have timed that better if you tried again. You said you were going for PR and you did it (even with the 50 miler 3 weeks ago). Excellent job.
Particular good that you kept the lid on the pace in those early miles. Not only is the marathon unforgiving in the 2nd half, that course is murder after the half way mark. (How about that hill going up to mile 18?)
My least favorite part of the race is when you get that awesome view of Sommes Sound and then you realize that you have to run all the way around it.
Congratulations!
Very impressive to PR in the marathon 3 weeks after a 50 miler. Congratulations!
Dude, that's some good marathon there! very consistent!
Hey Jamie, I found your blog a few days before the race. Congratulations, looks like you ran a great race. I was there for my first marathon, same age group as you, I finished 10th with 3:34:47.
My goal was to run a 3:30 with somewhere around an even 8:00 pace, but allowing for some flexibilty based on the particular hills in each mile.
I went out slow, kind of on purpose, and ran a couple 9 minute miles, then brought it up to 8:00 for a few until I had to take a leak (which I timed at 60 seconds) around mile five. I then ran a ton of 7:45s with a couple 7:30s and a 7:15 in there, chipping that lost time away until I was back to an 8:00 average as I approached mile 20.
I let my pace slip down to 9:00 or so for a lot mile 21 to 25, and there went my 3:30, but it felt like the right thing to do with my legs threatening to cramp up more and more. The downhill at mile 25 is a godsend though.
I ended up duking it out in an all out sprint the last hundred yards with a guy who turned out to be in our age group, and won :) getting me just barely in the top ten.
Also, what an unbelievably beautiful day it was, huh? Just appreciating the day, and looking at scenery made my first 17 or 18 miles just fly by.
WTG on your PR! BTW, Andrew's comments makes me think twice about wanting to run MDI.
Great race Jamie! I liked how you kept things under control at the start but how the heck do you keep score? I can't even count past ten, let alone remember what happened at what mile mark. BQ-no problem!
Post a Comment