When you go all in for a race, sometimes it works out and you run an awesome race (1 minute and 20 second half marathon PR) and other times, you are taught rather harshly that there are risks. After signing up for the NCR Trail Marathon less than 24 hours before the start, I already knew I was going all in.
I kept my goal the same, which essentially, was to try for a 2:38 on even splits. In hindsight, I probably should have changed that to "just PR." Of course, then I would be sitting here regretting holding back!
I couldn't have asked for a better day, high 30s/low 40s at the start, very light winds, partly cloudy skies. Not only did I run this race last year, but I train on the NCR Trail all the time. The race is put on by the Baltimore Road Runners Club, and I was actually originally a volunteer (someone took my spot), and there were a few local runners doing the race who run around the pace I do.
As soon as the gun went off at the forgiving hour of 9AM (meaning I got to sleep in, and wake up in my own bed), I knew this day was going to be better. The first 1.5 miles are on roads, rolling hills, mostly down. I purposely didn't warm up in an effort to go out more controlled. It worked...
Mile 1: 6:03
I also felt 1000x better than I did last week. There was a pack of about 5 or 6 of us but eventually, it thinned out to 3; myself, a guy named Keith, and another guy with a Charm City Run singlet. Mr. CCR took an early lead as Keith and I stuck together and went through mile 2 a bit slow...
6:16
Of course, I got impatient. What I should have done was stay put right where I was and just ease into a quicker pace. But, I was feeling great and didn't want to fall off pace early. So I pushed forward ahead of Keith in an effort to catch Mr. CCR, but mainly, to stay on 6's.
Mile 3: 6:09
Mile 4: 5:36 (really?) I doubt it...
Mile 5: 6:08
Somewhere around mile 4 or 5 I caught and passed the CCR runner. We ran side by side for a bit, but he didn't stick around, and I was more interested in keeping it at low 6s. So now I was leading the freaking race, which was kind of shocking. I even had a lead cyclist (in fact I know him) to yell at people to get out of my way.
The next few miles could only be described as awesome. I felt invincible and a local runner was leading the local marathon.
Mile 7: 5:59
Mile 8: 6:03
Mile 9: 6:00
Mile 10: 6:09
By about Mile 10, the thought crept into my mind that maybe I had gone out too hard and made a bad judgement on what I was capable of doing. I tried to keep the thoughts out of mind and just kept pushing forward. I was drinking water at each stop, and diligently eating my stingers, so hydration-wise, everything was golden.
Mile 11: 6:12
Mile 12: 6:15
Mile 13: 6:29
Notice a pattern? I started falling off the pace rather dramatically. It was as if all of a sudden, my energy was sapped. By the half way point, Keith and CCR caught back up to me. Our half split was sub-1:20. We made the turnaround at 13.5 and that's when things began to deteriorate even more quickly.
I lost contact with those two runners, got passed at least one more time, and slowly started to feel more and more tired:
Mile 14: 6:14
Mile 15: 6:38
Mile 16: 6:44
If this were a 20 mile race, I could have gutted out the last 4 miles, but with 10.2 more miles to go, my thoughts went negative in a hurry. I started doubting myself, doubting the pace I tried to maintain, and actually wondered numerous times how I managed a 6:07 pace in 100% September humidity in a 20 mile race on this same trail.
Those are very, very bad thoughts to have in a marathon. The downward spiral of despair continued...
Mile 17: 7:04
Mile 18: 7:32
I was completely toast at this point. For some reason, it took FOREVER for anyone to catch me, but eventually the flood gates opened and I started bleeding positions and time like crazy. I finally, shamefully, had to walk at Mile 19...
9:49
To say I was unhappy would be an understatement. I already told myself I was finishing the damn race, no way I was going to DNF again. This was it, I was going to take whatever the final result was and just live with it. I actually ran mile 20...
7:44
But then walked again for part of 21...
12:11
Oh yea...12 minute mile....
At this point I was pretty fed up with myself. Even breaking 3 was looking to be unlikely if I couldn't get myself running. My legs were ok, though starting and stopping was actually making it worse because they kept tightening more each time I started up again. I was just completely exhausted.
Mile 22: 8:09
I remember saying to myself "wow even 8 minute miles suck, what the hell is wrong with me." I guess I finally got tired of feeling sorry for myself and decided to down any stingers I had left with me and just run the rest in without stopping (at least that's what I told myself). I started walking again and started eating. Just as I was nearly finished eating, I heard familiar footsteps behind me...
I've been dropping first names because it's easier to tell the story, and you can just look up the results and figure out who I'm talking about anyway. My rule is, I name drop if I actually know the person..
Anyway, another local runner by the name of Jackie caught up to me. She had just run the Philly Marathon last week in a 3:07-ish and was running the second half of the two person marathon relay. We've done some running together in the past. Without asking what was wrong, she yelled at me to follow her in. My first thoughts were "hell no." She looked back as she passed and asked again...
I didn't have much time to think, I was either going to have to turn it back on now, or keep wallowing in my own self-pity. So at what was probably my last chance, I started running again and tracked her down just in time. We were running sub-7 pace, and it was not very comfortable...
Mile 23: 7:51 (with some walking before I was beckoned to run again).
I'm not really sure who was pulling who along, but one thing was certain, I wasn't going to drop back now. We hit mile 24 in 6:50 and then turned off the trail back to the roads. 3 hills, and a dusty road stood in our way.
Mile 25: 6:43
25 included a nice little hill, but we powered over that and kept going. Mile 26 would prove quite tough, but I didn't stop and knew I would at least be able to finish with some dignity.
Mile 26: 7:38? I think it was a bit long, we didn't slow very much
Final time: 3:01:57. Jackie crossed one second behind me.
Up front, Keith ended up second with a 2:41. The win went to a runner from New York who came from behind to break 2:40 and run a 2:39. From what Keith told me, he was dropping some fast miles after passing me, but this other dude just passed him like he was standing still. Apparently Mr. New York opted for the negative split strategy while I opted for all out from the beginning.
Was this the result I wanted? Of course not...
Am I disappointed? Not as much as I thought. Once I finished, I was still content. I had given it my all, ended up going out too hard, and paid for it.
Had this race been earlier in the fall, or if I had had a slightly better October/November perhaps I could have held that pace. I'm thinking 6:10s-6:15s would have been perfect for this race. That would have meant a PR, but not sub-2:40. The marathon seems to require rather precise pacing. About 10 seconds per mile too fast will burn you out in a hurry.
Ultimately, it's time to close this chapter of training and move on. I've got solid ideas for the next few months and will get that all down on paper soon. In the meantime I'm taking a few days off because I think I need a mental break at this point.
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