Run
Comments: I started out with a great run. The goal was to hit 3:30. By the 1/2 way point, I was on track to do so with a few minutes to spare, which I knew I would need for the uphill section and the rollers. I was still on track for 3:30 by mile 21, when I started to slow just a bit due to some stomach and back cramping. I was still able to push through to mile 23 averaging 8:30's when all of the sudden I felt intense chest pain that radiated out through my left shoulder. I was feeling extremely dehydrated at this point and wondered if it was related (blood thickening?). I didn't want to mess with chest pain, so I immediately stopped. I walked for a few minutes and drank 3 cups of powerade at the next aid station, then tried to run at a 9:30 pace once the pain left. It immediately came back. I basically had to either walk or very slow jog from 23 to 25 until I was able to pick up the run for the last mile again. The chest pain didn't come back for the last mile or rest of the race, fortunately. While I feel good that I at least held on to finish the race, I am quite disappointed about the scary experience. In past marathons, I feel like I've been limited by my general fitness (usually legs just feeling dead at the end). My legs felt like they could have carried me the last 3 miles at a sub-8 pace to finish 15 mins or so faster than I did. What would you do differently?: I'm afraid that part of the problem is that I switched from the eGel that I was training with to the GU that they handed out on the course. GU has almost no electrolytes and caffeine. Both could have contributed to the hydration problems. Next time, I'll train with what I run with. Also, I'll wear shoes with more support, instead of my tri racing shoes. They did get a bit uncomfortable by the end of the race. Post race
Warm down: I sat on the grass and drank cup after cup of Powerade until I felt better. I then spent some time walking and chasing the children around. What limited your ability to perform faster: Chest pain. Dehydration. Event comments: Overall, I feel good about the effort. I am a bit disappointed about the time, particularly because I feel like what happened could not have been prepared for in any way. After spending months training, it's hard to accept the 15 or so minutes that I feel were out of my control. I had a good shot at medaling, but was roughly 3 minutes out of 3rd. The funny thing is that I actually crossed the 1/2 way point about 5 mins before any of the 1/2 marathon clydes finished. Last updated: 2006-01-28 12:00 AM
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United States
GOAL Foundation
70F / 21C
Sunny
Overall Rank = 255/964
Age Group = Clydesdales
Age Group Rank = 4/12
I lost my wallet at the hotel and was unable to find it. I was up past midnight ripping the room and car apart. I managed to get about 3 hours of sleep before waking up for good at 4:15 and getting ready. Mark and I took a cab to the shuttle bus location. We made it up the canyon about an hour before the race was supposed to start.
I did a brief (8 min) jog at about a 10 minute pace to get the legs ready for the run. It was quite cold at the starting point (~36 degrees), but the sun came up right before the race started. The race was about 30 minutes late because of an excessive amount of night-before registrants who needed to be shuttled. So the warmup was completed roughly 45 minutes before the race actually started.