Notes
I had no idea the heat would slow me as much in the second half. The first 9 miles felt really good. Very comfortable start. No headphones because my iPod shuffle failed a while back (excess moisture perhaps). Although I purchased another one on Saturday, I could not get it set up although I tried up to the point of race-day morning. Actually, it may have been a blessing in disguise. It was nice to run with just the crowd and other runners and the beautiful weather and scenery. Well, until the second half, that is. Then all I was looking for was sprinklers.
Actually, I first noticed something was up at mile 10. My plan was to keep pace (7:10-15) through mile 15, but I noticed my pace had slowed at miles 10 and 11. I did speed up around Wellsley (no surprise) and there's a nice downhill just after that which allowed me to get back on pace for miles 12 and 13. I just couldn't hold it for miles 14 and 15. Mile 16 was a huge disappointment. That should have been the fastest mile up to that point, and it was well off my initial pace. (I was hoping for sub-7 at miles 16 and 19, but these were way off that.) Would like to know if I could have done that in less heat. Or if I simply need more training before that is reachable.
Having connected my Garmin and adjusted the final split for the 38 seconds following my finish until I remembered to turn it off, my heart rate shows that I gave up on my goal at mile 16, when I realized how far off pace I was. Here's a summary:
mile pace
10 7:21
11 7:28
12 7:12
13 7:16
14 7:32
15 7:48
16 7:27
17 8:50
18 9:06
19 8:54
Staying motivated was a challenge when I realized my goal of negative splits or even a balanced first and second half was long gone. Proper water intake was another: I knew I needed more than usual, but I did not want to get nauseous or bloated, and that nearly happened a couple times.
By mile 20 I started dousing my head and shoulders with all the water I could get. I was getting overheated, and this was becoming more of an issue than thirst or exhaustion. Legs never felt tested. This was the first marathon where I have not felt my quads or calves. I should say, though, that I might have had a problem with this on Boylston.
Turning at Hereford and coming up the slight incline to Boylston was a rush. I just wanted to finish so bad, the crowd was roaring, and I seemed to get a second wind. "Short stride, good form," I told myself, thinking of Salty, as I accelerated up the hill, past runners, hoping to finish sub 3:30. Then the turn onto Boylston sent me sprinting for a moment, and that's when I backed off for fear that I'd pull a hammy or cause my calves to cramp which has happened in the past.
I looked at my Garmin and could not believe that my lap pace was in the 6:30 range. It kept falling to about 5:45. (This was actually an error probably caused by the tall buildings, although I did get my lap pace down to nearly 6:00 by the finish.) The trip down Boylston was a blast. Like I say, I felt a second wind, the crowd was roaring, and the finish line was oh so welcome!