2010 Goal of Sub 3:00 marathon (Read 8721 times)

Nice job, dcv, that's a solid effort.

I think I can officially be called a plodder. As you can see in my splits, I was rather surprised how easy the 6:2x's were comming from miles 7-13. Even After the hill in mile 15, 6:31's weren't that difficult. I was thinking to myself, I couldn't even run this stuff this fast at all during training....

Now if I could have had ccowden's finishing speed.

 

 

+1, your crapola racing/training looks pretty impressive to me!

flovesparko - Thank's again for being my pacer for 20 miles - Although I know you were pacing a friend who lost his race around mile #20 or 21.  It was what you were there for, but tough on a day when you know you could have blasted a sub 3:00.

I feel a little bad about putting your result down ... but my rule has been you can tell us you modified your goal, but I try and keep the original goal down and put the result down also - I think it really helps potential sub 3:00 people understand how sometimes shit happens and sometimes it just does not happen.

 - Nice to meet you and thanks again.

I also just realized that Milwaukee's eek under 3 - helps me manage to keep my streak of consecutive years with a race under 3:00 - Now at 7 years.  Starting with 2004 Twin Cities 2:56.

How about everyone else?  I am sure others have more consecutive sub 3 years going ...

bpurcell

Jeremy262

If you are out there - PLese give us a short report

We ask when you post  a goal here that we share the good - the bad - and the ugly to help us all learn.

Eddy is on tomorrow then another big weekend with

Eddy - 10/05/10  Loch Ness Marathon , Scotland England 

Geo Runner - 10/10/10 Chicago, Chicago, IL

BoilerTom90 - 10/10/10 Chicago, Chicago, IL

NeedACleverName - 10/10/10 Chicago, Chicago, IL

Chances141 - 10/10/10 Chicago, Chicago, IL

el-jeffe - 10/10/10 Royal Victoria Marathon (Sub 2:50)

Chaloo - 10/10/10 Hudson Mohawk , Albany, NY

Tmorin - 10/10/10 Hudson Mohawk , Albany, NY

daubenspeck - 10/10/10 Portland Marathon, Portland, OR

Good time of year - May your weather be as perfect as my Milwaukee Marathon weather!

 

I was the weirdo on the bike.    You looked exactly the same as you do in your photo here.  I figured I'd cheer for you by name.  Even if it was weird I thought it might take your mind off the race/entertain you.  At the very least it would entertain me.

 

You ran a very impressive race.  What did you think of the course and the race? 

 

I'm sure I saw DCV multiple times but I have no idea what he looks like. 

Ha! Well I didn't think you were a weirdo, but I was like "who IS that guy?" I did appreciate the cheering by name and support regardless. It definitely broke up the mental game each time!

This is the 2nd time I have run Wineglass as the full marathon. One other time as a relay, and I have done two training runs on the course of the last 24 miles. So I am quite familiar with the course and have learned how to pace it pretty well. I love the course and race. But I also like the smaller races for many of the reasons that dcv mentions he did not. But knowing the course really well and having run there before, makes a big difference.

My original goal for Wineglass was to just go under 2:55. But within the last 3 weeks of training, and after running a 1:21 half, I decided that I would just lay it all on the line and go for what I was "capable of on paper." After all, I felt 100%, everything was going perfect, and who knows if it would ever line up like that again. All the predictors had my solidly at 2:51, so that became my goal. (6:31 - 6:32 pace)

My plan of attack was to break it up into 5k's, just biting off 3.1 miles at a time, and pacing each one of those rather than worrying about 26.2 miles and overall time and pacing. I figured I would go out just a little under goal pace for the first mile, then settle into goal pace by 5k. Then hit each 5k split from there and pace each portion. The nice thing about my Garmin Forerunner 110 is that when you hit the lap split, it resets your average pace for the current lap. This was originally not a feature I liked because I wanted to know my overall average pace thru entire training runs, but for this racing plan in the marathon, it was perfect. It kept me much more in check for smaller chunks of the race and helped me stay very consistent and even. I was right on target at every split and it seemed that 6:30 - 6:31 pace was where I was settling in pretty well.

I felt really great thru the first half and was right on target. This gave me a big confidence boost. I enjoyed the next few miles. At about mile 16, I started to let a little doubt creep in. I could feel my legs getting tired and the 6:31 pace became slightly more effort to maintain. Still nothing major, but just those late mile doubts. But at mile 18, we hit the last relay exchange point and there was a big crowd cheering and lots of activity, so I fed off that energy and said, "Ok, you have come this far. Don't give up on it now," I got a bit of a second wind and had a really strong miles 18 to 20.

At mile 20, I knew it was time to work. THE LAST 10k! This is the place where the marathon makes or breaks you. So, I hit the split at 20 miles and said, "Just 2 more 5k's. Just one 5k at a time." I knew I could dig deep and hold my pacing for at least one more 5k. This is where it really helped to just be biting off 3.1 miles at a time. Menatally, it was an attainable goal and I knew I could do it. And I did. With 5k to go, I was still right on pace.

I hit my split with the last 5k to go and now it was work. My legs were feeling really heavy and I wanted to slow up. I was fighting everything when I hit mile 24. I looked at my watch and saw 6:33 on the pace. For the first time in the race, I had slipped over 6:32 pace on my watch. And it might not sound like much, but let me tell you, at that point my brain said I was done. I knew I could back off and "coast in" for the last 2 miles and still come away with a great race for me, and I really wanted to do just that. That one little second on my watch was so much more than that. I imagine the only people who can understand what I mean are marathoners.

Right when I was ready to let my pace slide and back things down, conceding that this was the best I was gonna do for today, my friend Emily, who had been biking the course along with us for support, came up alongside me. I remember telling her I was hurting and I thought about backing off, and she said "Don't do that now!" And that was it. Those four simple words from a friend at mile 24 were what I needed. It clicked in my head, and I said to her, "No, I am not going to back off at this point. I have worked too hard for this." And that's what it took. The extra push from her, to make me not concede that those last 2 miles. I dug deep for every ounce I had left and was able to get my pace back to 6:32 average for that last 5k and finish what I started.

I crossed the line in 2:50:24, right on 6:30 pace and 13th overall. Things had gone exactly to plan, and I could not have asked for a better race. Everything I had worked so hard for had paid off. It all came together when it needed to and I am really, really happy with this one.

Going back and analyzing my splits/pacing, this is what they were for each 5k and the half and 20 mile points:

20:15 time - 6:32 pace

20:18 - 6:32

20:09 - 6:29

20:12 - 6:30

1:25:17 half marathon - 6:30

20:08 - 6:29

20:02 - 6:27

2:10:02 at 20 miles - 6:30

20:10 - 6:29

20: 20 - 6:32

1:25:17 first half

1:25:07 second half

ccowden - i actually caught almost back up to you right at the half. Right at the water station. There was a bunch of us (I was off the back). I took my gel and water and zoom you were off. You definitely looked comfortable. I wonder if I had caught you maybe I would have made the effort to stay with you guys.

Funny how our tastes our different about races. I hadn't memorized where the water stops were. So when you had a pre-determined gel schedule it kind of throws it off. I think I took gels at 7.5, 13+, 19+ and like 23? I usually do 6, 11, 16, 21.

GregRowe -

1. there were only 35 port-a-potties at the start. There were long lines 5 minutes before the start. People were going in the cornfields, etc. etc. Yes about 30-35 minutes before the start there was no line, but it seemed everyone waited until the last minute. It isn't that bad for males but for females a little offputting.

2. I actually drove the course the day before (courses look tamer when driving than running. ccowden was right in his video, more rolling than it appears). Didn't get to drive the end of the course on the bike path etc. I didn't have any problem with following the course, but my problem was not knowing whether we should have stayed to one side of the road or followed the tangent of the road etc. People where running on both sides of the course, cars would come at you (though they were courteous and I had no problems with any vehicles). It just was different. Garmin measured 26.31, but maybe more due to the tunnel we ran through.

3. Bicyclists - it was that there were too many, but there were a couple of times where they would zoom by in silence and you don't realize it when running. Also, had a couple come towards me where i had to move slightly to left/right.

4. Awards - I had to check out of my room at 12pm. The female runner we were with (who came in 5th) also came back with us. We took a shower, got checked out, cleaned up and got back to the awards at 1230pm. They were already doing M's 45-49....

Am I saying its an awful race. Not at all. If I were to rate it from 1 - 5. I would give it a 4. If I didn't live 320 miles away, I would consider it again. Lots of nice swag and if you get nice weather lots of scenic driving to do while not racing. Corning is a cute little town.

Oh, they need to get rid of that steep downhill after mile 21 into the park. That hurt...

Hey Dopple Bock,

Knowing I could go sub three was the hardest part yesterday. I felt strong all day, I pretty much knew I had the aerobic engine but only doubted before the race that my legs had a possibility to cramp since I didn't have many miles this year. Yesterday felt like I was out for a slow fun run. It got tough around 16 miles because I just wanted to start running fast but my friend was still was running strong and on pace for sub three.

I told myself before the race that if he couldn't hold pace at 17-18 miles I would go. He stayed strong until mile 20 and then he just faded quick. I couldn't leave him at that point because I thought I could get him back on track. I got him back around 22 miles and he still had a slim chance but by 24 he was just toast. I did everything I could to encourage him for six miles that I got tired of hearing myself talk for six straight miles.  He missed again by three minutes. Great job by the way, I had no idea you were right behind me for so many miles until someone yelled out your name and then I think I heard you say your weight and I knew instantly it was you.  



Fantastic job CCOWDEN, DCV, GREAT TIMES!!!!!!!   ALSO TO  MIKEYMIKE FOR HIS 1:19 HALF and WIN, I always like when I see a fellow 40 plus guy run fast. 

http://www.railstotrailsrace.com/Marathon.html

looks like they are now running it in reverse - 1st 1.5 our and back then the 11.5 out and back ... this will mean the last 3 are downhill to the finish ...  Still you will run 10-12 seconds per mile faster for mile 6-14.5 tha you run for 14.5 - 23.