Hotter Than Hades

My plans for the Cleveland Marathon were vague at best. My friend and teammate, Lara, had invited me to room with her if I signed up. I never turn down a cheap marathon so I registered that very day with the blessing from my coach so long as I ran it as a training run.

The weeks leading up to the marathon were hectic. My job usually slows down during the summer but this year there's been no breaks. On top of that the weather has been swinging wildly, from snow and overnight freezes to baking 90* days with high humidity. Between work and the weird weather I didn't run much at all before the marathon. If I was smart I probably would have stayed home but I doubt there's much question at this point on my subjective intelligence where running is concerned.

On Saturday, I drove out to Cleveland and arrived at the expo right around 2:30PM. I knew Lara was arriving around the same time so I texted her. The reply came quickly and it happened that she was outside the expo with some other friends of ours, Bob and Jenny. I found them and we all chatted a bit before Lara and I headed back to our hotel room.

Saturday night was relaxing. Lara and I chatted, went to dinner at the Denny's next door, and then read quietly until lights out. I slept well after about an hour of tossing and turning and woke up ready to run. I had some small hope that I might accidentally PR because of the training effect of North Coast 24 Hour and my week of complete rest. The forecast called for 74* and slightly overcast so I wasn't too worried about the weather either.

I dressed in my INKnBURN denim shorts, my Altra singlet, and Altra Zero Drop Torins. I threw on an old long sleeve race shirt as a throw-away. We walked out to my Jeep and found that the temperature was already warm. By the time we drove into town, found breakfast, and parked I was no longer in need of long sleeve. I left it in my car and we walked to the starting line.

The Cleveland Marathon starts at the stadium which is great because there are a million INDOOR bathrooms which all have running water and no lines. There's also plenty of seating and places to plop down and rest, stretch, and wait. I wandered out to the starting line about 15 minutes before start time and lined up with the 10:07 per mile pace group. There was a father with a young son, probably about 9-10 years old, right next to me running the half. It raised my spirits a bit to see them chatting casually about pace and fueling. I wish more kids were into running!

Right before the starting horn there were some fireworks. I don't know who thought that was a good idea after the Boston bombings. A lot of runners jumped and a few let out shrieks. Once we realized it was just fireworks everyone calmed down in time for the national anthem but I'm sure it really messed up the concentration of some of the runners. The least they could have done was warn us!

The horn sounded and we were off. I popped in my headphones immediately. I just didn't feel like socializing. The first mile or two I was forced to walk or slow down often as I ran into walls of people who must have lined up too close to the front. I didn't mind too much as I wanted to go out slow and speed up later. I did end up adding about a quarter mile in this first section from swerving around people, however.

After 5-6 miles I realized I just wasn't hitting my paces and began to give up on a PR. I figured I could probably get in the 4:40's anyway so I kept pushing forward. And then the clouds parted and the sun shone down and the pavement began to take on the shimmering effects of a mirage....

By the half I was overly hot, had almost completely emptied my handheld water bottle, and just didn't care about time anymore despite being on track for a 4:40 or better. I walked a water stop to refill my handheld and drink a few cups of Powerade and cool water. I took a couple Shot Bloks (margarita flavor, YUM!) and wondered how Lara was making out somewhere way ahead of me.

At mile 15 or so I ran into a moving party celebrating Jim Tucker's 100th marathon. I decided travelling with them trumped continuing on my own so I jumped in and introduced myself. I met George and Robin who own Front Runner in Columbus, OH and a slew of other runners who were 'crewing' Jim by carrying signs, balloons, and gels. We kept running until around mile 16 and then we slowed to a fast walk. I didn't mind as I was enjoying the stories and lessons to be learned from such an experienced group.

As we walked I watched ambulances fly up and down the course loading heat exhausted runners into their doors and rushing off to the med tent or hospital. A woman joined us around mile 20 and she walked with us for quite some time. Around mile 24 she suddenly wobbled and looked quite ill. I quickly offered her my remaining water but it wasn't enough. Jim's amazing crew escorted her to a bus shelter on the side of the road and then ran ahead to the water stop to get help and water/Powerade. They then stayed with her until help arrived before running to catch up to Jim again. What an amazing group Jim's crew is!

As we neared the finish I didn't want to end up in Jim's pictures. It didn't seem right to have him look back at his 100th marathon finish photos and wonder who the random chick in jean shorts was so I sprinted ahead. I finished in 5:49:48, a personal worst, and about 30 seconds ahead of Jim. I got to hear the announcer cheer Jim in and tell the crowd about his accomplishment. Then I rushed forward to hug Jim and all of his crew. I enjoyed meeting them all so much and they really saved what could have been an awful day for me. I never thought I would have so much fun running my slowest marathon ever.

After I crossed the line I found Lara at the bag check and then we began the long walk back to our parking garage. We happened upon the woman who had dropped from Jim's group at mile 24 and I found out she had finished after taking some time to recover on the side of the road! We hugged and she thanked me for helping her when she needed it. I felt really good about her finish because I had been distraught at the thought of her being forced to drop at 24 miles. I'm so glad she pushed through and finished without any lasting effects.

As for Lara and I, we went back to the hotel where I quickly packed and left for home. I was saddened that we couldn't spend more time together but I had finished so late that it would already be dinner time before I could get home and I had to work first thing Monday morning. We hugged goodbye and I made an uneventful trip home.

Minus some sunburn and a sore left hip I had no ill effects from my 7th marathon. As disappointing as my time was, I still had a great day and made a lot of new friends. I am also grateful that I didn't end up in the med tent. The news reported that over 200 people were treated for heat related illness on site and over 20 more were taken to the hospital. Conditions being what they were I'm just glad I finished upright and healthy.

And sorry for the lack of pictures but I really can't justify buying my race photos for a personal worst time where I walked most of the last half and looked like a broiled lobster to boot! ;)

Calibration Celebration

Have you ever thought, "10 minute miles on the treadmill feels so much harder than outside." Or, "Why am I huffing and puffing at recovery pace on this hamster wheel?" Or maybe even, "Wow! This feels so much easier than the same pace on the road!" If so you've probably wondered if your treadmill's calibration could be off. So here's how to find out.

Disclaimer: I didn't figure this out myself or even locate the procedure myself. However, I did decide that it would be nice to have it laid out step by step with some pictures.

Step 1: Gather the necessary supplies: Tape measure (preferably a soft one), bright colored duct tape, a notepad, a pen or pencil, a stopwatch, and a calculator. Or you can do what I did and use your iPhone/smartphone as a stopwatch, calculator, and camera.

easy peasy

Step 2: Measure your treadmill belt using the tape measure. I found that it worked best if I folded my treadmill up and then wrapped the tape measure around. Record your measurement in inches. (Mine was 112.75")

Step 3: Place a piece of brightly colored tape on the treadmill belt.

Orange worked well

Step 4: Set your treadmill to your normal running speed while you stand on the side rails or off to the side. (My treadmill takes a minute to get up to full speed so I waited to start timing until it was humming along nicely.)

10 minutes/mile according to the treadmill

Step 5: Wait for the tape to come around again and then start your timer. Start counting on the next appearance of the tape at the starting point (one rotation) and continue counting until you reach 50 rotations of the belt. Record the time it took.

Time to reach 50 rotations

Step 6: Do some math. The speed of your belt in MPH = (50 x length of your belt in inches x 0.0568) / the time you recorded.

(50 x 112.75 x 0.0568) = 320.21 

320.21 / 51.3 = 6.24 MPH

So the 6 MPH button on my treadmill actually causes the belt to spin at almost 6 1/4 MPH! I conducted the experiment again at Shane's average running speed (8.0 MPH) and found that actually runs at 8.1 MPH! 

So now I can either adjust my time/distance for what I know the actual pace is or I can remind myself that a 10 minute mile pace outside feels easier because it's ACTUALLY a 10 minute mile pace instead of 9:35 per mile. I'll probably stick with recording the treadmill's distance and time readout since I'm lazy but it's nice to know I'm not just being a baby about the hamster wheel!

Farmer's Inn

As Sandy moves in to attack the coast people are scrambling to buy generators, stockpile food, and fill up with gas. Shane and I aren't really the type to panic though. We made it through a weeklong blackout last winter by cooking on our propane camping stove and sleeping (dogs and all) on the pull out bed in the living room. In the end, all that mattered is we all survived no worse for wear (minus one hamster). So instead of spending our weekend worrying we decided to run instead!

Shane was already registered for the Farmer's Inn half marathon today but he was worried this wouldn't count towards him becoming a Half Fanatic. See you need 20 registered runners and at least 15 finishers for a race to count and, at last check, the Farmer's Inn had 16 registered. Shane decided that the best remedy was to sign me up and pray that 3 more people showed up this morning.

We woke up at 4am and got ready to drive the 2.5 hours to Sigel, PA. The Farmer's Inn is a neat little place with lots of different animals, mini golf, playgrounds, Amish furniture, a leather shop, a gift store and a restaurant. Any other time we would have had a great time exploring and shopping but today it was cold and raining and we were already exhausted from the Apocalypse 5k yesterday.

Staying warm in the car

I know what you're thinking... Steam Punk shirt plus butterfly arm warmers? Who taught you how to dress? The answer, of course, is 4am did. Coupled with the fact that I have exactly two sets of arm sleeves at present... butterflies or hearts. Oh well.

At 9am the race director sent us off with an air horn, all 24 of us. I took off as fast as my poor little legs could carry me and enjoyed the downhill portion of the first two miles. I had been warned that this course is 'rolling'. I think that's a misnomer. At 2.25 miles you start a climb from 1,300 feet up to 2,000 feet by mile 8. The remaining 5 miles are rolling if you're legs aren't totally destroyed. Unfortunately for me that wasn't the case.

Elevation profile

 

By the 10k mark I was just in it to finish. By mile 8 I was wondering if it really mattered anyway. The wind and misting rain were picking up and I couldn't feel my fingers, toes or nose. If I had been able to work the zipper on my SPIbelt I might have just called for a ride. As it was I just kept plugging along as best as I could manage. Running was the only way I could stay somewhat warm so I was forced to maintain a steady clip on all the manageable hills.

 

At the 10 mile mark there was an unmanned water stop (1 of 2 on the course). I carried my handheld so I didn't need water but there was a directional sign there. The arrow appeared to be pointing left so I turned onto a dirt road. About a quarter mile up the trail forked and there was no indication of which way to go. I looked at the ground and realized I didn't see any other footprints in the mud. I almost cried realizing I must have gone off course. I made my way back to the water stop and looked up the road. I could see a few empty bottles on the side of the pavement and realized I was supposed to go straight. I don't know what was wrong with the arrow or if someone thought it was funny to switch it but I lost a lot of time here and probably would have quit if there would have been a volunteer at the stop.

 

As I pulled myself out of my funk and continued to chug along I got colder and colder. My hands were swollen, my feet felt like bricks, and I couldn't even zip up my jacket. All I could focus on was the hot buffet waiting at the end, free to all runners. Half a mile from the finish I spotted a bright yellow hoody coming my way. Oh Hallelujah! It was Shane and he'd come out to find me and get me to the finish. I checked my Garmin for the first time in many miles and realized I could still beat my slowest half time (2:29). We jogged up the lane and I crossed the mat in 2:27:12.

 

I was 22nd of 23 finishers and 2nd in my age group (out of 3). I would have had to run a 2:05 to place today and that just wasn't going to happen with the elevation of the course and the condition of my legs. Overall, I'm just glad it's over and Shane and I can qualify for the Half Fanatics if we so choose.

 

 Finisher's Trophy

 

Shirt

 

Shane goofing off

 

So for a final recap of October:

10/6 - Central Elementary 5k - 24:27 (new PR), 2nd woman

10/13 - Baltimore Marathon - 4:36 (new PR)

10/20 - Runner's World 5k & 10k - 27:39 & 59:30

10/21 - Runner's World Half - 2:20

10/27 - Apocalypse 5k - 26:26, 4th woman, 1st in age group
10/28 - Farmer's Inn Half - 2:27, 2nd in age group

Final summary: OUCH! :)