Notes
"Running is about pouring your heart and sole into something and believing good things will follow." To most running is the worst part of their favorite sport, but to a few, running is the only part.
For me 2012 had three goals sub 5 mile ( 1600) @ marathon relay, sub 17 5k, and sub 3 marathon, but in practice, I would have traded all my good races during the year for one sub 3 marathon. During the year, I did any workout, any technique, took any advice(except of course to take it easy) it would take to make this happen.
My goal race was Boston. In great shape I was ready to kill it (after that winter wern't we all?) Then the weather came. 3:26
Ob well, there is always Vermont cities. Struggled carrying my marathon fitness an additional month past my goal race.3:06.
Now lets get serious. Signed up for steamtown.
My training cycle could not have gone better until the last 10 days before the marathon. What started as a slight twinge in my ankle was a pretty serious injury after 10 800s at sub 2:45 one week out. I was done. I couldn't walk without a significant limp and running was excruciating. I had to cancel my trip to lovely steamtown.
I fought vigorously to maintain my shape. I joined a gym for the first time since high school. I replaced all my running with miles of swimming and hours of elliptical. This made me appreciate HOW much I love running.
I followed up and "went for it" not fully recovered and having taken two weeks off prior at Hartford. 3:00 A solid PR but this was pretty reckless as it set me back another couple weeks to let me ankle reheal.
And more importantly I missed my goal.
I was registered for the free Vegas marathon (3:11) and monkey marathon (3:02) and figured I would just have fun running those the best I could (and wow did we have fun) but neither were a course where sub 3 was a reasonable goal.
After monkey, my foot was re-injured. Limping again back to the pool. But if monkey taught me anything it was if I can run 3:02 on that course I can surely run 2:59:59 on an easier course.
Meanwhile my buddy bash had his own monkey he needed to get off his back. He needed a new BQ and was going to Tucson to run a marathon on what he called a "business trip." Sully this isn't about fun. This is about taking care of my business. So I tentatively agreed to go as long as I could get my ankle good enough to put the band together one last time this year. Fifty state FIl was in as well. I took the complete week off following monkey and then started running.
First run was a minute thirty slower than my average pace on the year and it felt like hell. I kept telling myself its ok we have time.
I followed it up the next day with a run with bash. 13 miles, hill repeats 7:05 pace. By mile 9 I could barely run 7:40s and I quit the run at 11. So unlike me but with old age comes wisdom sometimes. The best runners kept telling me I just needed to be healthy and I'd be fine. No reason to push through anything until the race.
Then I followed it up with a tempo run at marathon pace. 1:28 half. Ok they were right foot started feeling better and I still had speed. Now I just needed to not do anything stupid.
With everything that has happened this year I needed a strategy for this race. Not just "ill just try to run 6:45s and see how long I can hold it". Historically I'd do this. Have a goal time for the half. Get through that with ease. Have a goal time for 20. Get through that just barely.then try to hang on for dear life. And fail miserably here. This didn't work for me ever. Time to change it up. J always talks about x number 5ks and he is hell of good at pacing but I can't handle mental math in the beginning of a race let alone when I'm delirious. Then I got a tip.
Break your race into five mile intervals. What do you want to run for each segment? For me it was about 33:30 to 34:00. After each segment reset your watch and do it again. I loved this. It allowed me to really focus on each Segment and stop thinking about how many miles to go what i have to run to get there in time. Because the truth was, I didn't know my overall time until I crossed the finish. At Hartford I was on pace through 20 And was In a good amount of pain and did some math and said ok you can run 7:20s and you still will make it. Those 7:20s ended up costing me. Here I had no idea just had to run 33:30 to 34:00. One five mile segment at a time.
My focus on this race was to run MY race. So when I went out people were passing me left and right and one of the top finishers female said " don't worry they'll come back to us" and I have heard baddawg say the same about Boston so I knew just let them go. Through mile 9 I was pretty steadily getting passed but ok. Then at 11 we did biosphere rd which was a 2 mile out 2 mile back switchback of rolling hills. This is where I made my gains. The guys who were running 6:20-6:30 earlier had all severely slowed down and I was continuing my race pace only slowing down by about 10 seconds or less per mile.
At this point I see bash heading out. Passing people and taking names. He looked good and well ahead of his planned schedule.almost gave him shit but why ruin a good thing. Then there was Fil. Mr. Consistency. Expected to see him pacing a bunny but no dice. Biggest surprise of the day.
15-24 was what Fil called the boring part. One road slightly downhill same view the whole way. Never ending. I still felt good through 22 but my experience with marathons is that the wheels come off fast. And when they do its over. Lots of self doubt running through my head here. More than usual. I filled my head with any motivational quote I could to "ignore the noise"
Dig deep.
Tonight we fight for that inch. (Any given Sunday)
In any fight its the guy willing to die whose going to win that inch. (Any given Sunday)
If we play 'em 10 times, they might win nine. But NOT this game. Not Tonight(miracle)
This is a business trip. (Bash)
Great moments... are born from great opportunity. And that's what you have here, tonight (Miracle)
Then around 22 the sky was looking brighter. I still had a lot of work to do no question. But the good news? I was still going through the miles at the same pace and I could tell I looked good and felt good. (Dayummmm he looks good, ha I regress) I knew at 24 there was a hill and then we'd be done.
Kept it strong up the hill and brought it in. Saw clock for first time and it said 2:55:5x and thought fuuuck. This is really going to happen. 3300 miles later, 6 marathons, 90 something half marathons, countless 20 milers (actually not countless but i aint counting 'em), and a ton of racing. And I got what I was looking for.
First thing I do is borrow a strangers phone to tell coco. Who else would put up with this crap? Hell she might have wanted it more than me.
Shortly after bash comes in for his bq 3:02 crushing that goal. He kneels down on the finish line head on the ground looking like death. Lady comes over... Do you need medical attention?? Before bash can respond I reply " nah he's good. He's good. He just killed this thing."
Then Fil. Passing about ten people down the shoot.
Hung out with bob from runningahead after. He had a 3 second pr. That's what you call legit pacing.
What a ride 2012. Can't wait for what's in store for 2013.
And then there were splits:
1 06:47.0
2 06:43.0
3 06:45.0
4 06:49.0
5 06:43.0
6 06:38.0
7 06:42.0
8 06:40.0
9 06:41.0
10 06:45.0
11 06:54.0
12 06:56.0
13 06:43.0
14 06:50.0
15 06:45.0
16 06:44.0
17 06:41.0
18 06:47.0
19 06:43.0
20 06:39.0
21 06:37.0
22 06:47.0
23 06:42.0
24 06:47.0
25 06:49.0
26 06:37.0
26.2 01:19.0