My 13th marathon was my 2nd fastest- Went out too fast but got it under control as the first 6 miles are a nice decent then the course flattens out for the next 5 or so miles then a nice drop into Beaver Dam. At the halfway mark I was sitting at 1:34 and right on schedule, 1 minute ahead actually. Then the work begins on the race. The next 7 miles are hills, flats, gentle down and steep downhills. They beat you up real good. I kept moving to the top of the hills at mile 20 without any walk breaks...yeah! That is where Bigfoot and Wildbull tried to help me keep the pace to the finish. Problem was I didn't have much left in me. My feet were hurting but I wasn't going to let them destroy my attempt of a Boston Qualify time. They alternated miles and ran me in barking at me and encouraging me the best they could. Thanks to them I barely made the BQ. I would have crashed for sure without their help. I won my age group and 17th male, 21st overall with a time of 3:29:31. I had mild cramping in the left calf but not so bad---- more later after I get some lunch! SPLITS: 6:15/ 6:33/ 6:35/ 6:46/ 6:55/ 6:58 / 7:07/ 7:52( this included a potty break of 1 minute)/ 7:26/ 7:36/ 7:53/ 7:50/ 7:31/ 8:18/ 9:09/ 8:31/ 8:23/ 7:38/ 8:55/ 9:25/ 8:43/ 8:27/ 9:35/ 8:03/ 9:15/ 9:12/ 8:25 7:59.46 average pace Looking back: What could I have done better? Not need a potty break 7 miles into the race. (1 minute) Been better prepared for the hill section, lost too much time in this area, did remain running through there just a bit more training to pick the speed up 15-20 seconds. (2 minutes)
Had more electrolytes- ran on water and that was not enough to hold off the cramping- they weren't bad but it did affect my overall speed in the last 5 miles. Hope for not head wind at the finish next time-( lost at least a minute) I do feel like I can eventually break under 3:25 but I need everything to be perfect for that to happen. Running with someone who is a much better runner than I at the end proved to be a great motivation for me even if I was weak. I certainly should have pushed harder when I had this help, I just was out of gas and the quads were barking loudly with every step. Well Boston 2013- I hope my time is good enough to get in!
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