M.U.M.'s The Word!

Today was my last big race of the season, Marshall University Marathon. What a crazy year it's been! This was my 30th race for 2012 and my third marathon this year. After just missing my goal at Baltimore last month I really wanted to take another crack at 4:29:59 or better. I had no illusions that it would be easy, however. In the 4 weeks between Baltimore and Marshall, I ran two 5k's, a 5 mile, a 10k, and two half marathons. My legs are pretty much destroyed and I've been battling what seems to be bronchitis or an upper respiratory infection since Baltimore. I was going to find out just how tough I really am today if I wanted a shot at a PR.

On Saturday I made the 4.5 hour drive down to Huntington, WV and picked up my packet. This race is awesome in that you get a shirt and a jacket if you register early. I got both and was pleasantly surprised, except that the small shirt is still too big for me!

Shirt

 

The jacket is actually a dark forest/hunter green but my iPhone won't pick it up.

I didn't have the foresight to make hotel reservations for such a small marathon. Wouldn't you know I couldn't find a room to save my life? I ended up in a fleabag dump about 20 minutes outside of town. It didn't even have a name, the sign just said 'MOTEL'. The room was painted puke green, there were holes punched in every wall, the bathroom counter was pulled free of the wall, the smoke detector was missing, and there were what appeared to be blood stains on everything. I practically begged my husband to drive down and stay with me to save me from the huge, loud men stomping up and down the stairs, slamming doors, and screaming all night. Of course, he stayed home. I curled up on top of the comforter and fell into an uneasy sleep. I woke up every hour or two when a door would slam or someone would start yelling. I was so happy when my alarm went off at 4:30am and I could get the heck out of dodge!

My personal hell

 

I drove around and finally found an open gas station. I got a coffee and a donut and then drove to the stadium where the race started. The lot was practically empty so I enjoyed my breakfast and sorted out my gear. I decided to wear my INK n BURN shorts and camisole with a $5 Walmart throwaway and some cheap gloves. It was around 45 degrees at starting time.

 

One of the big issues with this race was a lack of communication with the runners. According to the website the starting line was at one intersection but it actually turned out it was about 2 blocks up. I was standing with a huge group of people when they made an announcement that we all needed to run to the real starting line before they started the race. I made my way up to the back of the pack at the true starting line and it was only a few minutes before we were off. I didn't start my Garmin with the horn because I assumed there would be timing mats at the start. I was wrong and, therefore, my watch was off the entire race.

 

As soon as I started I was pretty much on pace. I wanted to start out more conservatively this time in hopes of not bonking or at least not too hard. I wanted to stay within 10 seconds of my goal pace so 10:00 - 10:20 for an average of 10:10-ish.

 

Mile 1: 10:17

Mile 2: 10:09

Mile 3: 10:35

Mile 4: 10:36

Mile 5: 10:04

 

By the third mile I was starting to feel the effects of the past few months of extreme racing. I had weird aches and pains that would pop up and then disappear again a few hundred feet later just to be replaced with something else. First it was a pain deep in my groin and then it was my shin. Eventually my feet and ankles and even my lower back decided to protest too. I began to just ignore the aches knowing that one would disappear and another would arise soon. I finished the first 5 miles right about the 52 minute mark so I made it my goal to finish each 5 mile interval in 52 minutes. I figured that would get me a 4:26 - 4:29 finish.

 

Mile 6: 10:29

Mile 7: 9:57

Mile 8: 9:57

Mile 9: 10:14

Mile 10: 11:00

 

I'm not sure what exactly happened at mile 10. I was carrying my handheld so I wasn't stopping at water stops. I took my nutrition every 4 miles or so. I took a GU at mile 4, 2 Shot Bloks at miles 9, 13.1, and 17 plus another GU at mile 22. I tried to keep my walk breaks to take my GU or Shot Bloks under a minute.

 

Mile 11: 9:45

Mile 12: 9:55

Mile 13: 10:03

Mile 14: 10:35

Mile 15: 10:53

 

In the second half the temperature started to rise quickly. It was right around 72 degrees by the time I finished. At mile 15 I stopped to have my handheld refilled and I also started taking Gatorade at several aid stations. I was feeling surprisingly strong though. The aches were still there but I didn't feel like they were affecting me too much. One thing that was really irritating was the lack of scenery on the course. Downtown Huntington is just not pretty and I had nothing to look at besides the back of the person in front of me.

 

Mile 16: 10:22

Mile 17: 10:07

Mile 18: 10:03

Mile 19: 9:51

Mile 20: 9:56

 

At mile 20 I was feeling confident that a 4:29 was in the bag. I was taking a 30 second walk break every mile or mile and a half and it was keeping my legs happy. I never had any cramping or bonking. I started trying to see how hard I could push. I wanted to leave everything on the course and either succeed in epic fashion or blow up just as well.

 

Mile 21: 10:19

Mile 22: 10:29

Mile 23: 11:23

Mile 24: 10:29

Mile 25: 11:28

 

In mile 23 I stopped for a cup of Gatorade and the volunteer handed me water. I had to loop back to get the right cup and then walk long enough to get it down. I knew I lost some time but I hoped the last little bit of hydration and electrolytes would see me through since my water bottle was empty again. However, it didn't happen. Shortly after mile 24 my left knee hit me with a sharp pain. I ended up walking for about 90 seconds to relieve it and that cost me any chance of my 4:29. I told myself I had to still try though and I picked it back up.

 

Mile 26: 10:29

Last .42: 9:44 average

 

Stadium

 

This course is USATF certified so I'm not sure why I got such a long reading. I almost always get a 26.3 Garmin distance on marathons. This was by far the longest course I've ever run. Every mile marker was consistently a quarter mile past where my Garmin said it should be. I'm wondering if the starting line debacle didn't end up adding that distance?

 

Anyway, the last little bit of this race is what makes it worth running. You run down a ramp into the stadium (OUCH!) and onto the football field. You run to the far goal post, make a U-turn, and then run across the field to finish in the end zone. A little boy handed me a football as I made the final turn (to commemorate the football team killed in the plane crash) and so I tucked it and sprinted. I actually managed to catch and pass one woman in this final 100 yards. According to my Garmin I got down to a 7 minute mile here.

 

Catching another woman at the last second... literally

 

 

I stopped my watch and saw 4:33:45. Not the time I wanted but a PR nonetheless. I happily collected my medal and then sat in the turf to drink a bottle of water before heading home. However, my official time is now posted as 4:34:05. I am really unhappy that the lack of starting mats means I now have a 4:34 PR instead of a 4:33 PR.

 

Medal

 

 

5 marathons done and six states down!

 

 

Hills, Hills, and More Hills

I ran my fourth marathon this weekend at the Baltimore Running Festival. This was also Shane's second half marathon but I want him to write his own RR so that's all you'll hear about his experience for now! I had run the 5k there in 2009 (pre-blog) and so I thought I knew what I was in for. The 5k was what I would call rolling, small inclines that seemed evenly distributed between up and down. It was one of my worst 5k races ever because of the fact that I was sick as a dog with a cold. I was determined to really get to enjoy the beauty of Baltimore this year and also run a great race at the same time. I'd also made a pact with my friend, Mike, to run every step of the way together. I knew he could rock a sub-4:30 marathon easily (4:42 PR) so I had plenty of motivation to train. My PR going into this was 4:49.

My training this cycle was perfect until week 13 of my 18 week plan. I never missed a run, or a mile, and then BAM! My job went absolutely crazy. I was working 55+ hours every week and flip-flopping between night and day shifts and going out of town on short notice at least a couple days every week. My mileage went from the 170's per month to something like 43 for the month of September. To add to the insult I spent a few days working in a really nasty environment which led to a sinus infection/cold, just like in 2009. I told myself it didn't matter and I was going to PR this race or die trying.

Elevation profile... call it foreshadowing

I took the day off work on Friday and Shane and I spent the morning frantically packing. I had managed to get the girls luggage ready for them to go to my mother's house but I had no idea what I was going to wear or want this time around. I checked the predicted weather and saw a low of 42 and high of 53 so I decided to go with my Ink N Burn Run or Die Roses camisole, denim print shorts, and a long sleeve throwaway. I threw some clothes and PJ's on top of my running gear and called it good. Shane went to run some errands and drop the girls off while I loaded the car and we were on the road by 11am or so. The 4+ hour trip went by without any issues and we made it to our hotel in plenty of time.

An artist drew out this chalk mural at the finish line

In 2009 we stayed at the Holiday Inn in the Inner Harbor. It was nice but really expensive so this year we decided on the Radisson Lord Baltimore. What I didn't know is this hotel doesn't have it's own parking so we were forced to use a valet which was $31 per night (plus a tip!). Then it turned out they didn't have late checkout for the runners so we were forced to pay a late checkout fee too. The only good thing was the fact that the hotel put out a marathon buffet on Friday night for $13.95 per person. Shane and I stuffed ourselves with steamed veggies, pasta in a white sauce, spaghetti, and bow tie pasta as well as garlic bread, salad, and a range of yummy desserts from cheesecake to cookies.

At the expo rockin' my afro

The expo was a total cluster. Runners started on the first floor and got a goody bag. From there you had to walk through a row of tents/booths of vendors who were heckling you to try their crap or sign up for something. Most of it wasn't even running related. There was a guy trying to sell people windows for Pete's sake! Sorry but I don't buy windows without, you know, measuring mine first. By the time we made it to the second floor our patience was already wearing thin. We were told to go left to get our bibs and once again we were forced to walk through all of the vendors (this time the running related ones) until we reached the far end of the building where we picked up our bibs. Then we were told we had to go to the complete opposite end of the building to get our shirts! Corrigan Sports and Under Armour must not realize I did NOT want to walk 10 miles to get my stuff before the race! We finally got our shirts and decided there were a few things we wanted from the expo. We each got a Baltimore Running Festival Sticker for our cars and I got us cheap throwaway gloves for $1.50 a pair (these come back into the story later). I also picked up 2 packs of my favorite Shot Bloks.

Back at the hotel we laid out our gear and got right to sleep. I think I was out by 8:30pm. I woke up to my alarm at 6:15 and felt ready to go except for being extremely congested and having a big knot in my stomach. I was more nervous for this race than I was for any of the others (except maybe my first marathon) including my last 50 miler. I think I knew how much pain I was going to have to endure if I wanted a PR. I felt pretty sure that a PR was very possible but I also really wanted to finish in under 4:30. A 10:18 average pace just sounded terrifying to me but all of my recent races predicted I could do even better than that. I dressed, put my hair in pigtails (it's too short for anything else), ate a Larabar, drank 2 cups of coffee and headed out the door.

In the elevator I started talking to a woman named Gerry (if I misspelled that, I apologize!) and we decided to walk to the start line together. It turns out it was her first marathon and she just wanted to finish in under 5 hours. I felt a lot better walking over with someone who wasn't a Boston Qualifier or just a heck of a lot faster than me. We found the bathrooms together and lined up with the 4:45 pace group together. Shortly after my friend, Mike, found us and lined up next to me. His girlfriend, Holly, wished us well and promised to see us around the course.

Before I was ready for it the National Anthem was sung and the announcer started the race. I didn't realize that having the marathon start an hour and 45 minutes before the half would mean I wouldn't be hanging out for a half hour after the official start. I crossed the line roughly 3 1/2 minutes after the gun! I choked back the lump in my throat, gave Gerry my best wishes, and told Mike, "Let's do this." We started out slowly to get warmed up. The first mile ticked off in 10:49. My breathing was a little ragged and my nose was running like a faucet (those throwaway gloves were a GREAT idea!). I was already starting to doubt my ability to reach my goals but I didn't want to disappoint Mike either so I kept that to myself.

Mile 1: 10:49
Mile 2: 10:40
Mile 3: 10:16

Step for step with Mike

Mile 3 is where I started to find my groove. We were running up a tree lined incline and the sun finally came out. As I warmed up my breathing settled and my nose cleared a little. I threw my long sleeve shirt and one glove. I kept the other one tucked in my top as a handkerchief. I'm sure I have a uniboob in all of my pictures but keeping that glove was a life saver! Mile 3 is also where we entered the zoo. This was absolutely one of my favorite parts of the race! I saw a raven, a screech owl, a duck and a penguin all just hanging out with their trainers/keepers right next to us. It took my mind off what was in front of me and the knot in my stomach finally disappeared and I relaxed and began to enjoy myself.

Mile 4: 9:41
Mile 5: 9:30
Mile 6: 9:58

Somewhere in the sixth mile we came out of the zoo and Druid Hill park and back onto city streets. I appreciated that miles 7, 8, and 9 were pretty much a straightaway. Every other marathon I've run it seemed like I was constantly switching directions. Being able to just run helped me keep the pace pretty well. Holly jumped out onto the course to give Mike a hug and a kiss around this point. Seeing someone I 'knew' gave me a mental boost too!

Mile 7: 9:45
Mile 8: 9:54
Mile 9: 10:01

Chugging along.

My overall effort level felt even for most of the first 17 or 18 miles. I think the difference in splits has more to do with elevation changes than poor pacing. I tend to really let loose on downhills and totally fall apart on uphills. Mike is exactly the opposite so we balanced eachother out really well. I pulled him downhill and he pulled me uphill. We were both carrying water so we avoided the pile ups at each water station and stuck to our plan to take a GU or Shot Blok every 5 miles. I took GU at 5 and 10 miles and Shot Bloks (margarita flavor) every 5 miles after that.

Mile 10: 9:59
Mile 11: 10:14
Mile 12: 10:12
Mile 13: 10:17

chatting away the miles

We hit the half in 2:13 which was probably a little fast but we were still feeling good. My right knee was a little tender and Mike has been dealing with IT band issues but neither of us had any worries yet. I was confident I would blow 4:30 out of the water. Holly also popped up again right around here. Seeing an excited face helped to keep me in the game and Mike picked up his pace too.

Mile 14: 9:49
Mile 15: 10:16
Mile 16: 10:16

Still smiling

By this point we were slowing a little as we started back into the second major uphill portion (mile 15 - 20). We still had a large cushion of time to make our 4:30 goal. I believe at this point our average pace was 9:59 or 10:01 per mile. I don't remember too much about these miles except for just chugging along and chatting with Mike about next races, our friends, etc.

Mile 17: 10:23
Mile 18: 10:44
Mile 19: 11:04

This is the point where we started going, "Oh shit!" Our average pace had crept up to something like 10:08. We lost a LOT of time on the 5 miles of uphill and we had also gotten ourselves worn out. It was going to come down to pure mental toughness (and some luck) on whether or not we could get to the finish in 4:30. Miles 20 - 21.5 the course runs around Lake Montebelo. It's perfectly flat and very beautiful. I really appreciated the chance to run on the flat for a little bit and try to make up some time. Yes, I said try. My splits don't show it. However, from the lake to mile 24 or so the course is uphill again.

Mile 20: 11:21
Mile 21: 11:16
Mile 22: 12:03

I could still fake a smile though

By this point I was spent. Mike was pausing to rub out his IT band every half mile or so and my hip flexors were shot. Trying to run uphill was impossible. I kept dragging my toes by accident because I couldn't fully lift up my legs and it would send pain coursing through my hips. I never cramped up though which I am really happy about. I had one cramp start somewhere around this point in my right quad. I squatted down and stretched it and massaged it and it disappeared for good. Thankfully the course turns downhill around mile 23.5 with a short uphill in mile 25. That last uphill section was the one and only time we walked for longer than a step or two which was a victory all in itself. This is the first time I can truly say I RAN a marathon!

Last dash through Camden Yards

 

 

Mile 23: 10:59
Mile 24: 10:44
Mile 25: 12:23
Mile 26: 10:47
Last .2: 9:42 pace

My official time was 4:36:51, a 13 minute PR! The race actually showed as 26.38 on my Garmin so we didn't do a great job of running the tangents but it wasn't awful either. Mike managed to out-kick me and finish a few seconds ahead. I crossed the line right on his heels. We shuffled through the medal line, the water line, the banana line and finally got to get our finish pictures taken. Then it was time for a quick hug and heading our seperate ways. I wasn't even sure it was possible to run step for step with someone for an entire marathon but it turned out to be one of the best race experiences I've ever had. I definitely hope he'll be up for it again in the future!

Apparently he couldn't believe we still PR'ed either!

 

 

Overall, I'm pretty happy. I completely underestimated what those hills would feel like in the last 10k. If I had completed the rest of my training plan and not been subjected to a hectic work schedule I feel like 4:2x would have been completely possible, a 4:1x wouldn't have been outside my reach either. I made the mistake of racing through my taper and taking second place in a 5k just a week before this race. I definitely felt some residual fatigue and aches towards the end. On the good side, I had no cramping and no stomach issues so my training, fueling and hydration is spot on.

The medal. It says, "What hills don't kill you make you stronger"

 

Five of 51 states (including D.C.) down!

Now I just recover as best I can and get ready for marathon number 5 at Marshall University Marathon on 11/11! Sub-4:30 is definitely in my reach there if I run smart!

Furthering My Edumacation

It's going to be a fun semester! And I'm honestly not sure if I mean that in a sarcastic way or not yet! There's just so much going on and some of the classes I'm taking are ones that I never would have guessed existed so I have no idea if I'm going to enjoy them or not yet.

My schedule for this semester is Functional Kinesiology (okay, I will love this class!), Business Aspects of Fitness, Sport Marketing, and Legal Aspects of Sport. I already have a business degree so most of the marketing and legal-ese is nothing new but I never really enjoyed it either. I just hope relating it to something I do love (fitness!) will help make it easier and more fun.

Either way, I have a lot on my plate this fall! Besides school, I have 6 weeks until the Baltimore Marathon! EEK! I've recovered really well from the Baker 50 Miler and I'm going to do some short races for fun this weekend. Then next week it is back to work on marathon training! It's even more important because....

I signed up for marathon #5 in November! I'll be running the Marshall University Marathon on November 11. I'm debating on finding one to squeeze in between Baltimore and Marshall too. However, I'll wait and see how Baltimore goes first I think!

Then there's a few shorter races that I'm really excited about. The first, of course, is the Pretty Muddy which you can read all about in yesterday's post. The second one that I'm dreaming of is the Runner's World half marathon in Bethlehem, PA on October 21. I'm a huge fan of RW magazine and frequent the Runner's World Online forums so this seems like a great way to do something with the staff get my picture in there!

This weekend my husband and I are doing the For The Love Of Lindsey 5k which we did last year too. Then on Labor Day we'll be doing the Kellersburg Labor Day 5k run. I feel like I've barely raced this year, which is true since I did 33 races last year compared to only 16 so far this year. I'm really looking forward to just doing some races for fun this weekend. I've been so focused on performance and goal races that I have skipped a lot of the smaller local 5k's that we usually support. I'm excited to remedy that over the long holiday!

Have any recommendations for another marathon or ultra that I can squeeze in? How many races is too many? What are your Labor Day plans?