Notes
The best and worst marathon I have ever done.
The race started out well. Josh and I were good from the start and put in a 6:30 first mile. Second mile was 7:15 and the third was right on the money at 7:00 pace. I got a small stomach cramp but it passed after a mile or so and I thought nothing of it.
At mile 5ish I felt the sudden urge to go to the bathroom. At just before mile 6 I couldn't hold it and I ended up going in some lady's front yard. She saw me and I told her I was sorry and explained my predicament. Ironically there were porta-potties maybe a half mile up the road.
The run from 6 to 13.1 went fine - Josh and I were both in high spirits and good form! Then I had to go to the bathroom again. I stopped in a porta-potty at the halfway point and was in and out quick. I passed through the half marathon in 1:33:30 while feeling pretty good. (this includes poop time so I was right on pace)
At mile 14 my calves started to cramp very mildly which worried me but I was able to keep a good pace. I started to feel my energy wane but that was to be expected.
At mile 15 or so my calves felt better but my thighs and left groin were hinting at cramping. By mile 18 this had become a reality. I began taking walking breaks to prevent full lockup of my quads (and potential injury). I limited my walking breaks to 30seconds and I would only stop when my legs began to cramp up again. I also began to walk the water stops and make sure that I was getting 1 cup of gatorade and 2 cups of water per stop. This didn't stop the cramping but I'm sure it helped somehow.
As the race went on the frequency of these walking breaks continued. I went through mile 22 in 2:50 - the same as my training run 3 weeks ago. I finished the race in 3:38:57 which means I completed the second half in 2:04 gahhh. I had to stop 3 times in the last 400 meters.
Generally I think my race preparation was somehow flawed. - Not my training but my nutrition and taper and sleeping and stretching etc. There had to be a reason that I had both diarrhea as well as was low on electrolytes (presumed cause of cramping) even though I was running in a cool environment with relatively low sweating.
Overall my feelings towards the race are still positive. It was a beautiful course, just the right size (and length), and I got to spend a good hour and a half with Josh having fun! Mike was a wonderful sidekick as well.
I hope to run this race again someday and not have a terrible time!
Now I just have to rest up, train up, and do another!
Started out at 55 degrees and clear with 35% humidity. Finished at 75 degrees with higher humidity. The max temp and humidity that day were both 82. Twas hot.