5/20/2013
Sugarloaf Marathon
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Took the 5-hour drive north to Sugarloaf on Saturday to compete in my first marathon. I decided to make it a solo mission so my 17-month-old wouldn't interrupt a much-needed night of sleep. Arrived around 4pm at Sugarloaf's beautiful main lodge, which overlooked the still-covered ski slopes. It was quite the beautiful setting even in late May. Many people were making the steep 300-yard hike up to the half-pipe for some snowball fights, but I didn't want to waste any precious energy for tomorrow's run. I headed over to the runner's spaghetti dinner and sat down next to three other gentlemen who also looked like they had made the trip alone. It turned out that these three had 220 marathons completed between them, and I sat captivated for 3 hours by their stories and sage advice. Tim, Tim and Dave never once acted in the least bit annoyed at my constant stream of questions. In fact, I was quite the novelty to them as they waxed nostalgic over their first marathon experiences. Their advice and passion for running helped me a great deal in Sunday's race.
I would like to thank my son Miles for training me to wake up like a champion at 5am. Two years ago I would have arrived at the starting line a complete zombie. The morning was cold, foggy and overcast; perfect running weather. I slammed a 500 calorie breakfast and headed down to the hotel lobby for the shuttle bus. There I met up with the 2 Tims once again and their continued stories calmed me down a bit. I guess I looked a little nervous.
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The bus dropped us off at the starting line around 6:15am and all the runners had to wait outside the next 45 minutes in the 39-degree weather. To pass the time I talked to a few gregarious Marathon Maniacs. They are an extreme running club (for lack of a better term) in which potential members must complete one of their "maniac" feats. The easiest "Bronze" feat is completing 2 marathons in 8 days. The toughest is called the "Insane Asylum" in which you complete 50 marathons in 50 states in one single year!!! This 26.2 miles I was about to attempt now didn't seem as daunting...
The Race
As mentioned in previous posts, I've been training the past 16 weeks with one single goal in mind: to qualify for Boston by finishing in under 3:05. This equates to a 7:03/mile pace. I beat most of my training goals, but am pretty nervous at the starting line with a couple lingering injuries and zero experience.
Miles 1-2
Everyone had the same advice: start out slow for the first few miles. If you feel like you're going slow, go even slower! Every second under your goal pace in the first few miles will add 15 seconds to your finishing time.
The gun goes off at 7am sharp and everyone sprints past me. Let them go. My eyes are glued to my Garmin watch as I run my 1st mile in 7:26 and 2nd in 7:07. Perfect
Miles 3-6
No one would pass me for the next 21 miles. I start to pick it up a tad, but am still in warmup mode. My sore hamstring and groin are still reminding me that they're there. My splits for these 4 flat miles are 7:01 7:04 6:56 6:58. Feeling alright. I take my first GU gel at Mile 6 as the uphills start.
Miles 6-10
The uphills start, but it's all downhill after mile 10.2. Besides my 1st mile, I plan on these being the slowest of the race as to not waste too much energy on these big hills.
I finally reel in a large pack that I've been chasing the past 4 miles and get into a nice groove while drafting and creepin' on their conversation about how having cats is a much better choice than having kids. This banter loosens me a little bit until I look down and see that we're running at a 7:30 pace. Crap! I pass them and get to the highest point of the race at Miles 10.2. Feeling a little winded as expected. My splits were 6:51 7:04 7:28 7:15.
Mile 11
The toughest part of the course is over, but this next mile drops 184 feet! The winner of this race a few years ago did a mile-by-mile blog that I studied while preparing for this race. Against one's instinct, he recommended still taking it easy these next few downhill miles. Let gravity help your body recover from the uphills you just completed. I dial it back and the pack catches right back up to me. 7:09
Miles 12-21
The runners really start to spread out now and it gets pretty lonely out in the wilderness. I try to chat it up with each runner I catch up to, but not many take the bait. Is there an unwritten rule I'm unaware of? It just feels awkward to pass someone without any acknowledgement.
One of the downsides of this rural race is that the course is not closed to traffic. This section takes some pretty sharp turns and I feel like I'm risking my life by switching sides to shave off precious seconds. My half-marathon split is 1:32 for a 7:03 pace, which is a tad faster than I set out to do but exactly the pace I'd like to finish at.
At Miles 12 I take my 2nd GU gel and slowly pick up the pace. I don't recall much, if any, of these 10 miles. After the race, I drove home on this exact section of the course and nothing seemed familiar. All I remember was feeling strong, focusing on my form, breathing in for 3 steps/out for 2, and trying to stave off "the wall" for as long as possible. I rack up 10 consecutive sub-7 miles with an average pace of 6:48.
Miles 21-26.2
I've been stopping at every station for water, but now switch to Gatorade. Throughout my training I hydrated solely on water, but my muscles need electrolytes and I'm close enough to finishing that any ill effects should happen after the finish line. I also take my final GU gel and get quite the sugar high!
Incredibly, The Wall never hits. Just when I feel like I'm really slowing down, an older gentleman passes me on mile 23 giving me a small boost of energy. I look down at my watch and realize that I will qualify for Boston if I simply stay below an 8:00 pace! I finish the final 5 miles in 7:06 7:07 7:02 7:03 7:07.
I don't even remember crossing the finish line. Not only was I physically spent, but my emotional centers were depleted as well as I couldn't hold back the tears. After finally calming myself, I head back to the finish line to cheer on all the awesome runners that I met over the weekend. More than anything, this camaraderie is what I'll take away from my 1st marathon.
Race Recap
I finished with a time of 3:03:57 good for 20th overall place and 3rd in my division. My Garmin showed a distance of 26.33 miles with a 6:59 pace, but the official results of course showed 26.2 miles with a 7:02 pace. Many other runners complained that the course was over a 1/10th of a mile too long, so I'm glad I didn't just miss qualifying for Boston.
I would highly recommend this race. It was very well organized, scenic, and the water stops were extremely well run. Plus the course is pretty fast if you train properly on hills. Not sure what my running plans are now. I will probably run another marathon, but for now I just look forward to being lazy and eating horribly.
I finally reel in a large pack that I've been chasing the past 4 miles and get into a nice groove while drafting and creepin' on their conversation about how having cats is a much better choice than having kids. This banter loosens me a little bit until I look down and see that we're running at a 7:30 pace. Crap! I pass them and get to the highest point of the race at Miles 10.2. Feeling a little winded as expected. My splits were 6:51 7:04 7:28 7:15.
Mile 11
The toughest part of the course is over, but this next mile drops 184 feet! The winner of this race a few years ago did a mile-by-mile blog that I studied while preparing for this race. Against one's instinct, he recommended still taking it easy these next few downhill miles. Let gravity help your body recover from the uphills you just completed. I dial it back and the pack catches right back up to me. 7:09
Miles 12-21
The runners really start to spread out now and it gets pretty lonely out in the wilderness. I try to chat it up with each runner I catch up to, but not many take the bait. Is there an unwritten rule I'm unaware of? It just feels awkward to pass someone without any acknowledgement.
One of the downsides of this rural race is that the course is not closed to traffic. This section takes some pretty sharp turns and I feel like I'm risking my life by switching sides to shave off precious seconds. My half-marathon split is 1:32 for a 7:03 pace, which is a tad faster than I set out to do but exactly the pace I'd like to finish at.
At Miles 12 I take my 2nd GU gel and slowly pick up the pace. I don't recall much, if any, of these 10 miles. After the race, I drove home on this exact section of the course and nothing seemed familiar. All I remember was feeling strong, focusing on my form, breathing in for 3 steps/out for 2, and trying to stave off "the wall" for as long as possible. I rack up 10 consecutive sub-7 miles with an average pace of 6:48.
I've been stopping at every station for water, but now switch to Gatorade. Throughout my training I hydrated solely on water, but my muscles need electrolytes and I'm close enough to finishing that any ill effects should happen after the finish line. I also take my final GU gel and get quite the sugar high!
Incredibly, The Wall never hits. Just when I feel like I'm really slowing down, an older gentleman passes me on mile 23 giving me a small boost of energy. I look down at my watch and realize that I will qualify for Boston if I simply stay below an 8:00 pace! I finish the final 5 miles in 7:06 7:07 7:02 7:03 7:07.
I don't even remember crossing the finish line. Not only was I physically spent, but my emotional centers were depleted as well as I couldn't hold back the tears. After finally calming myself, I head back to the finish line to cheer on all the awesome runners that I met over the weekend. More than anything, this camaraderie is what I'll take away from my 1st marathon.
Race Recap
I would highly recommend this race. It was very well organized, scenic, and the water stops were extremely well run. Plus the course is pretty fast if you train properly on hills. Not sure what my running plans are now. I will probably run another marathon, but for now I just look forward to being lazy and eating horribly.
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Labels: boston qualifier, marathon maniacs, sugarloaf marathon
