usandtoto-2@msn.com
This is my second Imperial Palace Marathon and its 99th edition. Its run almost every Saturday morning. (for a discription of the course, please read my RR from 7/10) Weather reports had 40 percent chance of rain, 10-15mph winds and highs in the low 80's with overcast. So I thought, maybe it won't be a an oven out there this time around. I was hoping for rain. Well, on the 90 minute train ride I saw the sun rise (this is the land of the rising sun). Where did the clouds go???? At least I was going to take the 6:30 am start vice the 8:00 am start. There were two of us there at 6:30, we started on time. I ran a steady 8:30 per mile pace, sipping on 50/50 mix of gateraid/water every mile (3-4 swallows). So round and round we go. By 8:00 we had another 10 runners and I had completed my 3rd lap. But, it was warming up. Went through the half in 1:51:30. Sweating like a roasting pig. Where was the rain? Not a cloud in the sky. Where was the wind. Not much more than a breeze. Oh, well, round and round I continued. My lap times were all in the 26-27 minute range for all 8 laps (each lap is just under 5K, plus the 2.4k out and back to start) 3:44:50 (second half 1:53:20). 42 minutes better than two weeks ago. As I waited and cheered the others as round and round they went the wind did pick up some. Temps ended up at 85 degrees. Its amazing the amount of runners, walkers and bikers doing this route. Things that made the time difference 1) ran 4 days after flying 10 hours and not sleeping well. very fatigued during the first one. 2) hydrated much better, both before and during 3) started 90 minutes earlier.. big difference. A few degrees means a lot more than I originally thought. Effects the dehydration rate. 4) 2 weeks acclomating in the heat/humid conditions, running almost every day. Next marathon in two weeks
Marathon Maniac #530 Mike (My Indian name is "Runs for Beer")
Renee the dog
Excellent!!!!!
No trouble finding the start this time, eh?
GOALS 2012: UNDECIDED
GOALS 2011: LIVE!!!
MM#209 / JapanJoyful#803
Mike -
nice, nearly hour jump in your Palace times but don't get too used to the heat/humidity over there as I showed up with about 5,000 other runners for the Swedish SummeRun 5/10K in Seattle this morning (sunday over here) at 65 degrees and was the only one wearing a long sleeve shirt.
erika - needing to be Swedish yellow to coordinate with the blue paper, . . . I mean lightweight trunks i brought over from the Korakuen Spa, it was one of the classy equinox ones with the black side meshing. Even got to pump some interested runners about this year's edition. thanks.
erika (2) - The Takebashi Imperial Palace Marathon Club started in September 2007 when the volunteer non-running head of the Global Running Association retired. Global had been doing monthly 5 and 10K fun runs and an annual marathon and 50K around (and around) the 5K perimeter of the Imperial Palace since the sixties. As a result, I enjoyed many of their events during a 1980's sojourn there.
The Takebashis, however, only offer weekly Saturday marathons, with odd weeks being official no-matter-what offerings and in-between ones necessitating at least three pre-registered runners. they've been written up in the Japanese running magazines are are well known to Palace joggers and around the country. In fact, I met runners from Hokkaido to Okinawa who fly to Tokyo every weekend for their marathon fix. However, they have no web page and disseminate information in handouts by their start/finish at Takebashi mini-Plaza across the street from the Mainichi News, word-of-mouth at other events, etc.
With pre-registration for all events, current chairman Nakamura (675 marathons) prepares a personalized packet for every runner with Finisher's Certificate, results of past marathons and schedule of upcoming ones. He needs pre-registration to prepare a lap list for each runner to make an ink stamp mark next to his/her name for each of the eighth laps (and 0.195KM mini-out-and-back). Based on their past results, sometimes they might only have three runners, e.g. 100 degree heat waves, typhoons, etc. but, most of the time, it's 8-20 with Nakamura and the other megas (e.g. Sato, 504, Kojima - 1,169, etc.) running every week
There are no bib numbers or support so everyone just puts their own nutrition/hydration on the start/finish benches, keeps track of their time, and pays 300 yen ($3.15) for Nakamura's administrative costs of printing programs, results, and certificates. Anyone can participate but a $500 yen ($5.25) membership registration fee (and permanent Takebashi number - I am #80) is requested after a second run.
ps - the events are, as is most running in Japan, counterclockwise but no problem to change directions on your own for a lap or two, . . . or all, maybe. It's pretty informal.
pps - sorry for reply longer than RR
"Enjoy yourself. Your younger days never come again." 100yo T. Igarashi to me in geta at top of Mt. Fuji (8/2/87)
Jon, Thanks you explained it better than I ever could. Yes, it is more of a social group with a running problem.
I will be doing this every two weeks that I'm here. Still have to train too. Right now I'm scheduled to come home on 8/14. So one more is in the future.
Marathon Maniac #957
Life is a headlong rush into the unknown. We can hunker down and hope nothing hits us or we can stand tall, lean into the wind and say, "Bring it on, darlin', and don't be stingy with the jalapenos."
Good job, rasmussenmp. It sounds like you have adjusted to Japan and are running well. Congrats on the big improvement in the 2nd marathon.
TomS