Houston Chevron Marathon RR (book): Sorry about the length.

Back story: I was a smoker for 13 years until my 2 yr old son walked up to me in the backyard one afternoon holding a twig and acting as if it were a cigarette. I quote cold turkey and used running to get back into some sort of decent health. Within a couple of months I was looking forward to my runs, albeit on 2-3 per week at 2-3 miles each. I signed for a 5K and thought it was all I could do to maintain. Little did I know. Mileage and distances increased over the next 4-5 years and I ran a couple of HMs. My pursuit of the FM actually started in 2012 when using HH Int to train for the 2013 Houston FM. 4 weeks before the Houston FM I managed to crack the big joint in my big toe on my right foot. Arrrrg. As it turns out and in hind sight, I was not prepared to run the marathon at the time. I deferred and had an auto entry into 2014.

Training (Hanson’s beginner): I spent the first part of 2013 re-building my foot strength and the next few months (May – August) trying to build a decent MPW base. September 16, 2013 was the official start of Hanson’s beginner MRT, even though it didn’t seem any different from what I was already doing due to the Hanson base building phase. So, I threw in some progression and tempo runs to help acclimate early. The week of Oct 21 is when the REAL fun started. I absolutely enjoyed the speed workouts, so much so that I plan on using them throughout 2014. I also enjoyed the tempo workouts but they weren’t as challenging. The “easy” paces seemed to be a tad slow (insert Marciano’s HRM comment) and would leave my legs feeling like they were using unnatural, to me, movements and muscles. I liked that Hanson caps his long runs at 16 miles (I ran an 18 miler) and feel that it was plenty with the cumulative fatigue factor. The only part of the plan that was difficult to manage for me was that it requires a 6 day/week commitment. As a father of three young boys and whose work requires me to travel, this can be a tough task to maintain. T minus 4 weeks. My right ankle decides to throw a fit and introduce a strong dull pain in a strange location. I tried to stretch it out and used a couple of other ploys to work through it but the body wants what the body wants and it seemed that rest was the answer. So be it. 6 days later I was back at it and BOOM, I am the recipient of the a batch of TAMIFLU. Screw it I am still going for it. The donuts were a large part of my decision to not throw in the towel. LARGE part. I used a cutback week to get my legs back then worked in a tempo or two over the next week and a half. Taper. Well, you were all there for that teenage drama show. Thanks and sorry. Friday was my last run and my ankle left me full of doubt because it started to hurt at 3.5 miles. Oh great.

RACE DAY BABBBYYY: January 19, 2014 – Race day/my bride’s birthday. I gained permission prior to redeeming my deferrement (sp?) BTW. She said that it was actually kind of neat to be there on her birthday for my first full. Okay, let’s do this damn thing yo! I started to carb load on Thursday but not in huge quantities just throughout the day. Not much sleep the night before. I woke up and did my early run routine which is pancakes and coffee. Cliff bar on the way there and one more while in the convention center during final preparation. We were all shuffled out into the humid/foggy 50deg F air and into our corrals. I managed to place into corral A. My nerves were oddly calm at this point and I was praying for my ankle to get me through a majority of the race so maybe I could tough out the last few miles. It was never an issue. Prayers answered.

So my Garmin tells me that I am running 9:05 – 9:07/mm until the last couple when I decided to go for the fast finish. Evidently not but I am still very happy with the results.

Mile 1-5 : Thanks to being in corral A there was not much congestion at the start. Humid to the point that my shirt is soaked by mile 2, which is unusual for me in 50 deg F temps at these paces. I am feeling great and thankful that the ankle is strong. Started to see timing mats and thought to myself, I wonder/hope the donut shop is open and watching - : ). A part of my game plan is to stay on the right side of the roads because the camber helps my ankle.

Mile 6: First hill. No big deal. I shorten my stride and it’s over. Still feeling good.

Mile 7-10: Mile 7, Gu #1. Mile 8, first and only port-a-can stop (hence the 9:16 split). I had to peeeeee. Whew, glad that’s over. Mile 9 is the first time I see my bride and it brings a smile to me face instantly. We exchange hand held hydration bottles without stopping and I yell back to her “Happy birthday”. Strange looks come my way from other runners. At mile 8 we split from the HM runners and the field lessens but noticeably. Feeling a little more confident.

Mile 11-13: Mile 13.5 was the second hill and I remember thinking to do the same thing as mile 6. Done. My next thought was, I hope those are over with. Feeling like I could step up the pace but decide to wait until after mile 21. I begin telling myself the “manage”.

Mile 14-20: I am looking forward to seeing my wife at mile 15. We did the hand held exchange on the fly and I remember thinking how lucky I was to have such a supportive wife, especially since she admittedly didn’t understand the running thing but was happy to do this for me. Mile 14 is time for another Gu. The miles seem to be ticking away effortlessly. The ankle is holding strong but I can feel a twinge or two and I focus on the road camber aiming for flat or right side cambering. At mile 19 I see a lady next me that seems to be struggling. I inquire as to her well being and she informs me that she is out of gels and is in need of some calories. I offer my last one which is a honey stinger. I did this knowing I would see my wife at mile 22 and get more Gu however this was my only honey stinger, which seems to help with short bursts of energy. I planned on using the stinger around mile 24ish. Oh well, she needed it right then so I hope it helped.

Mile 21-24: I start feeling the emotions creep in and the word that I kept replaying over and over until the end of mile 25 was “manage”. I repeatedly kept telling myself to manage, just manage. Don’t speed up yet and don’t give in, just manage. A runner goes down and medics are needed a little ways in front of me. I hope she is okay. Don’t succumb to it, just manage. Mile 21 I realize I need a gu or stinger suddenly and ASAP. Starting to feel the fatigue somewhat. Mile 22.5 and I find my wife. A new handheld of cold water and a GU. Woooooohooo. Manage, stay the course. There are plenty of small hills at this point and I return to the shorter strides hoping they will end soon. I decide not to increase my speed at mile 21 because of the gel situation and I decide to re-evaluate at mile 24. At mile 22.5, immediately after taking the Gu my hammy starts to feel as if it is going to curl up and not want to let go. I focus on shorter strides and try to extend on my forward reach as to stretch on the go. By mile 23.5 the potassium and sodium in the salted caramel Gu seems to be helping with the hamstring. I decide my ankle is in it for the long haul and decide to make mile 25 and 26 memorable.

Mile 25-26.2: My back instantly starts to feel as if it is on fire. Manage… damn it! MANAGE!!! Listen self, the donuts are watching. Act like you’ve been there and run this fucker. Mile 25 was 8:45ish. Mile 26 started similar to 25 but I can now feel my body rejecting the notion that I can finish. The mantra of “manage” at this point is just annoying me mentally. I feel a bit panicked as I feel the finish getting further out of reach. So what does my pea brain come up with? Run faster. I read a quote once that said humans are the only species that runs faster when we are lost. Where is the effin’ finish line!!!! Emotions are choked back with the roar of the impending turn up ahead. It reveals a roar of a few thousand people cheering and the finish becomes within reach again and surreal. I can no longer feel my legs. Mile 26 is complete at 8:16/mile. . 2 miles left. There is a guy with a microphone calling people’s names as they come into view of the finish and I hear…….”DONUTS????” and then “DONUTS!!”. A quick smile gets me .1 closer and I see the clock. The next thing I know is that I suddenly joined a group of people on Earth that have tackled a marathon. It was so worth it. I plan on rejoining the ranks again next year.

Thanks for reading this. I hope it wasn’t too cheesy.

Not Cheesy.  Good stuff!  You da MAN!

Great job!  Can't wait to see what you do in the next one!  3:45 maybe??

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roll - congrats !!!!! I knew you'd do it !!!!!! thanks for posting the race review here.  I know we were both training hard last year so it's good to hear about your race.  That was nice of you to help the other woman.  Nice even timing too and a slight negative split too I believe - sounds like you managed it well ! so question - when did you first see the finish line timer and were you doing the mental math at that point to beat 4 hrs in the last 0.2,etc ? your time was so close and you did it ! well done ! also, I may have missed it, but what were the weather conditions like - I think you said 50 but was it overcast too or partly cloudy, etc

 

Docket, mdawg and Indy - I know I'm not on FB but good to hear from you all - hope you are all doing well and wish you the best in your running goals this year.  Mdawg - I thought I recall you wanting to do Boston this year ?

 

Docket - I know I'm out of the loop now, but I see you have surgery coming up. I hope you are ok and hope the best for you.  I was checking your blog out and was wondering if its related to your breathing issues,etc.  Hope you are feeling ok.

Hey DTF! How are you? The weather was 50-F in the beginning and 60ishF by the finish and not a cloud in sight. I didn't see the clock until after, mental game. Kind of a chase the rabbit type game. My Garmin had me at 9:05 - 9:07 miles until the last two so I thought I was closer to the 3:38 mark. Thank goodness my port a poty break wasn't any longer. How are things going with you? any new races in sight? I used Hanson's beginner and had to cut the last 3.5-4 weeks down by half to accommodate an ankle injury, but would recommend that to anyone with a 35+ mpw base going in.

Would you reconsider Facebook if you only came to the donuts page?