Splits:

mile1: 7:35--oops, not the planned 8:18

mile 2: 8:01--yay! back on plan

mile 3: 7:44 little fast but okay now

mile 4:7:59 not sure what happened there. Aid station I think

mile5: 7:48

Mile 6: 7:37 too fast

mile 7: 7:48

mile 8: 7:43

mile 9: 7:34 feeling like a rockstar!

mile 10: 7:38

mile 11: 7:37 --realize I need a potty so I pick it up since I know I will lose time.

mile 12: 7:39

mile 13: 7:36

Mile 14: 8:52-- minute plus in the potty. :( too long. But could not be avoided. Legs are not feeling great so I have a gu. I think I was running sub 7 which is why legs were not happy. I have gu and pull back some.

mile 15: 7:34 trying to make up for slow 14 and catch Joe and Kate. I see Joe, not too far ahead. Kate is further ahead. I catch Joe. So proud of myself!

Mile 16: 7:54 Dying a little. Joe says we are fine and can run slower. he takes my arm warmers. Why do I bother with these things. I am always hot and they just end up annoying me. Butterfly arm warmers look nice on Joe.

Mile 17: 7:41 fuck going slower. I feel good. Let's catch Kate! Joe is not down with this plan since we can't see her at all. But me? I like having something to chase. Rip the bandaid off I tell myself. Let hurt and make it quick.

Mile 18: 7:37 I see kate! She seems far away though. But I like chasing her. I don't really want to talk but seeing her gives me a focus. It is all I can think about. I want to catch her but I don't want to catch her. What I want is to chase her all the way in.

Mile 19: 7:48 Kate is closer. Uh oh. She might be slowing.

Mile 20: 7:54 I catch Kate. I am happy to be with my friend but sad that the chase is over and I can see she is having a hard time. She says she is mad. Her legs are done. I feel bad and try to rally her. I think I hand her a gu. I have extras. I've been offering to anyone who needs one. Kate fades back from me. I look over my shoulder. I keep going and figure she will catch me anyway when I blow up. She is younger and a much better runner than me. I know her legs are tired from working but I am convinced she will rally and catch back up. I am still on pace for 3:25. I don't think sub 3:25 is going to happen and I am a little unhappy how hard I am going to have to work to get a pr (sub 3:28). I do the math and figure so long as I keep the last 10k under 8:30 avg pace I will have a pr. 8:30's are totally reasonable but I know if I get a calf cramp all bets are off. My calves are twitching so while I don't feel tired cardio wise I know my legs are getting fatigued. I am limited by my legs how fast I am going to beable to run. The cardio can go forever and faster but the legs are not going to let that happen. Stupid legs.

Mile 21: 8:06--we turn on the highway. Bit of a hill. But the news isn't the tiny hill but the 20mph headwind. I see a very muscular black woman ahead. A good bit ahead. She looks amazingly powerful, not your usual distance runner physique. I wonder if I can catch her. She becomes my new carrot.

Mile22: 8:04 --wind is hideous and I am fighting hard for this pace. I can see 3:25 slipping away and I make the descion to ease the pace. I rationalize that I need to go for effort. sub 8's are effort wise (in this wind) equal to sub 7:20. I decide that will be a losing battle and aim to keep the pace under 8:30 and hope that I can drop it when this turn on the highway of hell ends. I know it will end at the mile 24 marker (I saw it earlier in the race) but I keep hoping I am wrong about that and it will end sooner.

Miile 23: 8:27 Ughhh. It is so awful! An 8:27 mile just felt like an eternity. I so want this to end. I so want to walk. Walking will make it last longer. Don't walk. The mile 23 sign is about to rip apart due to the wind. I am rallied because I see everyone is struggling. I like when everyone is suffering like me. I can handle suffering when I am not alone in it. I can even rise above and realize, I am, in fact, doing better than most because I am passing people like crazy. I try drafting off taller men that I come up on but this is no good. Their pace is slower than mine and there are just not enough of us to make any difference. I press on.

Mile 24: 8:22 I see the clock and I have lost over a minute and am now over the 3:25 pace. I know I can't make that up at this point. My calves are borderline ready to cramp. The wind has completely done me in. I know I can't cruise it in for a pr but sub 3:30 is in the bag. Without arguement I make the descion to fight for my pr.

Mile 25: 8:11 ugh! Go faster stupid legs. I really don't even remember this mile. I must be stuck inside my head. I see a sign that says 2k to go. I am so puzzled over this but realize that this is the distance that youngest xc runners run each week and decide that I can do this. It is hard to pass people. The half marathoners have most of the road and the full is squeezed over. I am stuck behind this woman and man. I want to pass them but I just don't have the energy to go around. Suddenly they part and let me through. I am surprised and happy and decide I should make a good showing for their nice gesture. I drop it as much as I can.

Mile 26: 7:57. Finishline! Finishline! Where is it! I see my carrot and I try to hammer. I think I am going to run out of miles before I can pass her. But I will not stop trying.

mile 26.2 1:36. I pass her in the final stretch! She slowed down. Everyone slowed down. I must have passed 15 people in the final .2 Who slows down? Finish big! Sheesh.

So happy! 3:26:33 on my watch Chip time is 3:26:29. I did it! PR!!! 15 marathons in 6 1/2 years and I ran a pr! It has been 5 marathons since I run under 3:30 and 6 since I last ran a pr.

I can't complain. My goal was a pr which was anything under 3:28: 27. 3:25 was my perfect day land of dreamy dreams race. Most certainly, my land of dreamy dreams marathon does not include menstrual cramps, a minute plus potty stop and 20mph headwind. I am proud of myself for not giving up and fighting for my pr the whole freaking time.


Uhm, not be a girl?
Have a tail wind instead of a headwind?

Really, I think I did everything right given the day. While I let the things I could not control get in my head prior to the race; I was able to not let the things I can not control ruin my race. So I was triumphant there. I feel like I dealt with the day I was handed as best as I possibly could have. I have no regrets.

I almost ran myself over the vomit line. A friend of mine finished right after me so we walked together for a bit. I made my way to bag check. Got my bag. Freaked that my phone had died and I didn't know where any of my friends were. So I wandered around a bit mumbling about my red swingline stapler. Not really but I felt like that is how I probably looked. I made my way back to the finish and saw Steph finishing! So happy. No longer alone! We changed and after I got a beer all was right in my world. we stayed and watched our friends finished. It was about 3 pm when I finally got to sit down. Great race experience!


Being female and the wind.


Pre race sucked. Completely disorganized. Race and after were great.