Notes
Had good training leading into this but the two weeks prior just fell apart due to erratic schedule, travel, and vacation. Simply put arriving at Disney 5 days before a goal race isn't conducive to running fast. We didn't hold back and spent that time on feet touring parks and eating, drinking, and sleeping badly.
The night before the race I was already running a sleep deficit and barely got 4 hours. My lower back had been in bad shape for two weeks due to shoveling and lifting William (I never get a break) and I almost killed a tube of Ben Gay keeping it loose. This spread to my hips too so I lubed up with a ton of it before heading off to the race.
Pre race was unremarkable. I knew the routine from last year and followed it. Arriving at corral A I was surprised at how small it was compared to the others. B was almost twice the size, C even bigger, and the rest were really big. There were plenty of run nerds up there. It was kind of strange being up at the front of such a big race. I enjoyed the front row view to the stage as they brought up speakers and kicked the race off.
Disney starts with fireworks that blow off above the starting line. By the time I ran under I was being rained on by whatever was in the fireworks and some of it even got in my eye. That's not a normal race start occurrence for me.
The first mile or two were fine. I just ran my prescribed pace but felt a little heavy. I hoped it would just work itself out. The air was heavy from overnight rain, so somewhat humid.
The miles 3-4 didn't get any better. I felt like I was breathing soup yet it wasn't really that bad. The pace I was running should have felt like jogging this early in a race.
By mile 5 I was accepting that 6:50-53 pace just wasn't as easy as it normally was. There was no way I'd make it at that pace. I didn't think I had 15 miles in me at that pace so I backed off and stopped looking at my watch. I started just running to effort. I knew even PR was not going to happen but really thought getting a 2015 BQ would be within reach.
Miles 6-12 were steady but not really easy. They should have been at that pace. Right before the half split I figured I'd act on my urge and stop for a dump in order to finish the race as comfortably as possible. It's sad when I can see the deviation from the course for my bathroom breaks on my GPS tracks. They rarely had the porta potties within 30-50 feet from the course. Each time I came out I saw a noticeable gap grow on my gps vs. actual mile splits.
Coming out of the bathroom I hit my half split at 1:33 and tried to mentally focus on just going out for a 1:40 or better weekend half training run. I adjusted my effort according to that. Soon after the 3:05 pace group passed me. I didn't dare try to go with them.
It wasn't easy but I kept going. I knew if I kept my miles in the mid 7:20s it would be a decent run. Going through the ESPN sports complex was winding and boring but I did enjoy the lap we ran on the track. I love the surface of a good track for running. Unfortunately going around one of the corners on baseball field I clipped a steel rod holding the tape with my hip. This left a decent welt and small cut.
Interestingly as the race went on the weather got better. I didn't have any direct sun on me until about mile 17. By that time the air was cool and dry. Had the race started later in the morning the conditions would have been better. The 7-10 mph wind was noticeable at times when I didn't appreciate it but it wasn't a big factor.
By about mile 20 It really became work to keep at it. Entering the Disney Studios I saw the next pace group on my tail. I assumed it was the 3:10 group. I set a goal to keep them behind me until after we were out of that park. I knew if I did that I'd be able to give up a whole minute per mile and still BQ. I did hold them off but unfortunately it was the 3:15 pace group. I have no idea what happened to the 3:10 group. I'm sure I would have seen them. Perhaps they passed me when I was in the bathroom before the sports complex? I doubt it.
When the 3:15 group passed I worked to keep them close and I did. They were never more than 15-20 seconds ahead but I knew they started behind me, probably in the B corral. That meant I could finish slightly ahead of them and still not run my BQ.
With 2 miles to go my math told me that I'd miss the BQ by at least a minute. Still I carried on, not giving in. Despite running almost an 8 minute pace for the last 5K it was still work. At about mile 24 I could feel it in my quads.
I didn't enjoy the pancake flat course. When we had hills I worked them up and down like I do at home. That's what my legs know. Unfortunately I didn't have enough.
I ran strong and steady right to the end. There was no way I was going to not battle and not give it a good effort. Of the 9 marathons I've run never have I felt so tired and sluggish so early. It was as if I was some other runner, not myself.
Upon crossing I didn't feel any pain. I was just blank. It was a strange and peaceful feeling. Even more so because I was at a huge venue and there were so few runners around. Despite having finished over 16 minutes slower than my goal I was still in the top 200 of almost 20,000. The place was empty. Initially I was upset that my race didn't go according to plan but soon put it all together and into perspective. There was no way I would have been able to run my goal considering all the variables that had come onto play prior. Perhaps a different strategy might have gotten the BQ but that's not what I was running after. By the time I exited the finish area I was good to go, grabbed my bag and bought myself a beer. I went over and chatted with folks from the charity I run for and ate some food.
After that I went back to my room, took a shower, had another breakfast, and headed out for 11 hours of park hopping and booze drinking. That really did me in. The following day I was more exhausted than I can remember being in a long time.
I've got lots of lessons learned from this. First of them is to stop trying to run fast at Disney! Fortunately, I'm not injured and this is a hell of a lead in towards Boston. It only gives me more motivation to be prepared for that.