On March 9th, I ran in the Los Angeles Marathon. It was my second marathon. Here ya go...

Short version:

Time: 4:09:23

OA: 3225/21495

Gender: 2518/12372

AG: 302/1184

Longer version:

I only found out I was going to run this about two weeks ago. A friend got injured and he gave me his bib. Agree or disagree, but I did it. I knew I would win no AG awards or anything, I wasn't stealing and I harmed no one.

I didn't train for this specific race but I am training for a marathon on May 25. I had not done a run longer than 13 miles since my last marathon so I ran this race as if it were a long training run. My only goals were to run 20 miles at around a 9:00 pace (my GMP for May 25) and have fun. Another reason I did this was to experience a BIG race. In the Tucson marathon, there were about 950 or so runners. This one had 25,000 so it was a much different experience.

The race started at Dodger Stadium and it was nice and cool. A friend who was not running dropped of his wife and me at the stadium at about 6:15 am. It was crowded!! It was a pretty festive atmosphere and there were lots of Elvis runners, Superman, Wonder Woman costumes, etc...

After the start horn, it took me about five minutes to get to the starting line. If you saw the race on TV you saw how crowded the start was. Man, it was packed! The good thing was that is was nice and cool in the low 60s with some clouds to the west.

Along the course I noticed it was pretty hilly. Nothing major, but you could definitely feel them in your legs. When I run long, I am known in my running group as really being able to dial it in. Once I get on my pace, I stay there. In this race, I found it close to impossible to do this because it was just too crowded. It seemed like I was forever bumping elbows with someone, getting cut off, or steering clear of cups, bottles , and discarded clothes. So, I was never able to get into a good groove or rhythm. Then, it started getting hot...

I tried to bring my phone with me but I just could not figure out a way to carry it comfortably. I wanted to get pictures of Hollywood Blvd, Dodger Stadium and all the famous sites. Now that the race is over I can say I'm glad I didn't bring it; it was just too much trouble.

Back to the heat. Around mile 18, I started to tire. I think you can tell by my splits. Actually, I was tired after the halfway point but I cracked on. At mile 18, you could noticeably feel the heat. I was sweating my butt off and was stopping at every water stand for Gatorade. To put in perspective, in my last marathon, where it was 35 degrees, I stopped for Gatorade three times and was fine. In this race I must have stopped at least twelve times.  After mile 20, I was hurting. My hips hurt, my right Achilles was screaming at me, and my right ankle gave me pain for the first time ever. Now I started to walk. It killed me to walk, but I had nothing to prove and I knew I wasn't trained to race it. So, I would walk for one or two minutes and run for five or six, stopping at every water table. Anytime there was a cheer alley, I had to run because the kids in the crowd were having too much fun with the high fives (I liked that, too). At the turn for home on Ocean Ave, you could see the inflatable arch thing at the finish line because it was a long straightaway. The problem was that it was close to a mile away. Yes, this mile or so to the finish seemed like ten miles! I managed a little faster mile on mile 26 because there were thousands of people lining the streets. The cheering, fist bumps, high fives, and support really helped here. Even though mile 26 was a bit faster than the previous four or five, it was nothing more than a glorified death march to the finish.

After the race I met three friends and we waited for their wives to finish. I was sore, hot, and tired, but man, that beer we had was GOOD! While we were sitting there imbibing at the outdoor cafe, we could feel the heat and realized the problem. Even though we were about one hundred yards from the beach, there was absolutely no breeze or wind coming off the water. The air was completely stagnant and it was miserable. It was about 84 degrees, but at the beach that is HOT, especially when there is no wind. Believe me, I have been to Santa Monica many times, and there is always at least a breeze. Today, on the day of the marathon, there was nothing.  I felt bad for the runners who were still out there because it was only getting hotter as the day went on. I read in the paper today that about 2,000 people were treated for heat related problems. If you can't tell, I don't care much for the heat. Some people love, I completely loathe it. While some may say 83 is not hot, it is for me and it is certainly too hot for running 26 miles.

I'm glad I did the race. Even though I was in pain, it was still fun. Even better, I'm not as sore as I thought I would be so I hope this means I will recover somewhat quickly.

Thanks for reading.

Your split times may have wandered a bit, but your split distances are amazing  ! 

Apart from the crowds and heat, it sounds like a really fun event.  Too bad you couldn't at least have a nice breeze at the end.  I feel bad for all the Chewbaca runners.

Congrats on #2.. And you did it w/o much training...

Congratulations.  I remember how tough the course was when I did it last year.

Good job getting it done.  I hear it got hot quickly.  Oski's husband ran it and he is a strong runner.  The heat hit him at mile 20.  What can ya do?  You take what the day gives you.

 

Yep.  He had a 30K PR!  And then crashed and burned when the sun came out.

Good job out there in those conditions and last minute planning Jack!

Congrats on your second marathon! Way to dig deep.

At the turn for home on Ocean Ave, you could see the inflatable arch thing at the finish line because it was a long straightaway. The problem was that it was close to a mile away. Yes, this mile or so to the finish seemed like ten miles!

Longest.......mile.......ever........

Tough convergence of crowds, hills and heat. Good experience to have, so next time you deal with any of those things won't be the first time.

Great job toughing it out & just getting it done.

Thanks for the kind words and encouragement, everyone. Believe me, they help keep me going.

Baboon: Good question on the May 25 marathon. My answer is that is that when it was time to start training for it, I wanted to use the Pfitz 18/55 plan again because I had good results the first time.  Honestly, I wasn't ready for another 18 week cycle. After my first marathon, it took me a good two months to fully get my legs back. I think it was because it was my first marathon cycle and I'm no spring chicken anymore. Also, DW signed up for the May 25 race and it's her first. We have done several HMs together and she wanted to try a full. She found a 16 week plan that trains you for a four hour marathon and that's her goal, a sub 4:00. The plan is lighter than the Pfitz and doesn't beat you up as much, or at all. So, I'm training with her at her pace, and just between you and me, if she doesn't blow up after 20 miles, she might just have a BQ in her.