Marathons are crazy things, at least the way some people (i.e. me) run them. How you do in those two-plus hours is decided by and also passes judgment on a rather large chunk of your life during the previous four to five months. Most shorter races are these local affairs where you might show up the morning of, slap on a number, and sketch out a vague notion of a plan moments before the gun goes off, all the while knowing that if things don't go all that well, it's no big deal because another 10k is right around the corner. Their frequency and mundane nature allow you to avoid investing completely. A marathon is totally different, because it is undeniably the final and only product of months and months of blood, sweat, and more sweat. If you fail, there is no safety net, there is (for all practical purposes) no chance for redemption the next week, there is only tearing down and building it all back up six months later. And no matter how many good workouts you do, no matter what sort of training splits you hit, the only "indicator of fitness" that is really convincing is the clock at the end of the race. Given all the stakes in a marathon, I am more than happy with how Grandma's turned out for me, and am also ecstatic with how it turned out for PJ.
Going into Grandma's, the build-up had gone great. Relying on the mad genius of Pemberton in adapting a Hanson's-style plan into a rather compressed period, PJ and I did workouts that were more ambitious than anything I had done before. 11 mile tempos, 4 X 3 mile intervals, 2 X 6 miles, 9 X 1 mile, 26.2 km, were just some of the highlights. Based on these workouts, I thought that if things went well at Grandma's, I'd have a chance to run 5:55 pace through the race (2:35), which would be almost a two minute PR. The weather forecast called for perfect racing conditions. All systems were go...except for a cold, cough, and sore throat I picked up a few days before the race!
On the pre-dawn bus ride from Duluth to Two Harbors, my body was swimming with the snake oils taken to ward off the cold. Echinecea, 2000 mg of Vitamin C, B vitamins, Eye of Newt, on top of the usual cocktail of Ultra Fuel, gel, and bagel. I didn't feel great getting to the line, but I knew that race adrenaline can make a big difference in overcoming minor setbacks. And sure enough, while the cold caused a healthy river of mucous to run down my face (for ample evidence, just check out the race photos!) and some minor breathing problems, I'd say it was an annoyance but not a huge problem.
For me, the race divided into four major segments. The first was the 13 miles heading out of Two Harbors on a tree-lined Highway 61 ("...you can do want you want Abe, but, next time you see me you better run...") that I knew going in would have sparse crowds but great views of Lake Superior. Well, I don't remember too much of the lake, to be honest. What I do remember was thinking right after the first mile, when I had gone out in 6:03 (m1), 'man, there are a LOT of people running faster than me.' I spent most of this time running near the super fast Dot McMahon. It was a real kick to see the Hanson brothers (one of the big inspirations in our own training) tracking her progress and shouting out encouragement every couple miles. My splits over the first stretch: 5:53 m2, 5:51 m3, 5:54 m4, 5:51 m5, 5:50 m6, 11:39 m7-8, 5:55 m9, 5:48 m10, 5:56 m11, 5:51 m12, 5:53 m13. 1/2 Marathon split of 1:17:10 (probably a PR, not sure). A little quicker than what I had originally planned, but I didn't really feel like slowing down a couple ticks per mile was going to make a difference at that point.
The second segment of the race was from mile 13 to 18, which represented the last stretch of scenic Highway 61. From my scouting of the course the day before, I saw that starting around 19 or so (as we entered Duluth proper), there was a very slight but steady rise in the course that seemed to last a few miles. As a result, I knew that staying controlled over the second stretch would be key to getting over the next part unscathed, so I focused on fast but controlled running. By this point, McMahon was off in the distance, the result of her kicking it into 6th gear and dropping some 5:40's, but I still had plenty of other folks breathing down my neck and also strung out in front of me. My splits through this stretch: 5:43 m14, 5:50 m15, 5:46 m16, 5:50 m17, 5:48 m18.
The third segment of the race was from mile 19 through 23, which was the beginning of Duluth. We ran through some suburban neighborhoods and up a very slight incline, culminating in Lemon Drop Hill and Mile 22. The moderate incline actually felt great, given that it seemed to activate some other leg muscles that had otherwise gone unused. And Lemon Drop Hill was not too nasty or brutish but it was short. Meaning not too bad. Splits were: 5:46 m19, 5:53 m20, 5:54 m21, 5:55 m22, 5:54 m23.
The final stretch of the race wound through downtown Duluth. After cresting Lemon Drop Hill, I was still generally on pace, but was taken a little by surprise when two guys went roaring past me around Mile 24. Given the way I usually run marathons (with fairly even splits), I haven't run too many where I get passed in the second half. The thought occurred to me, 'wow, this is a REALLY good unseeded field.' I responded as best as I could and let their momentum tether me along for the next mile. (Mile 24: 5:54) Hitting Mile 25, we started winding back and forth along the Duluth waterfront and I was really starting to fade. The two guys who passed me were long gone, but I did see two others who were still in striking distance who seemed to be struggling. Deep in the tank, I remember a little negative thought creep in: 'do I really want to go after these guys and make the final half mile a do-or-die sprint? That is really going to hurt.' Summoning one last bit of willpower, I pushed the thought out of my foggy brain and decided to go after them. I closed on the first guy fairly quickly, and about 600 meters from the finish, I caught and passed him as decisively as I could (to discourage him from responding). I made the final turn and saw the last runner some 20 or 30 meters in front of me, with only 200 meters left. I gave one final push and with my...limited...version of a sprint, I managed to nip him just at the line. (Mile 26: 6:08 - those turns really took it out of me!, 26.2: 1:10. Final time: 2:34:03. Previous best: 2:36:52). A great way to cap the my best marathon so far, with an unprecedented (for me) successful sprint finish. I was stumbling around the finish area when PJ finished a few minutes later in 2:40, checking in himself with a huge 9 minute PR.
A big thanks to Alan for being the architect of my training plan, riding support on so many workouts, and generally fulfilling his role as our group's Yoda. Also, a big thanks to PJ, who pushed me in every hard workout this cycle. Looking forward to a big fall season training with Geoff, Chris, Brian, Richard, Sarah, Christine, and the rest of the Dojo crew. Look forward to seeing new members and injured members make their (re)appearance as we prepare for Philadelphia!
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