A Tale of Two Marathons
STrooper
Posts: 659 Member
So, I did it. I completed two marathons on consecutive weekends. But my feeling/reaction between the two were completely different.
A couple of months ago I asked about running on consecutive weekends on this forum and got some useful advice. I signed up for the Hilton Head and the Myrtle Beach marathons that were held on February 7th and 14th, respectively.
First, I am 61 years old and this is my second year of running marathons (or any distance for that matter since 1985). Second, my main race goals are to finish the race the same day I start and not die either on the course or shortly after finishing the race. Third, I do have a step-wise set of time goals but compared to the youngsters here, I am not fast. And lastly, I have gradually increased my running to a point where I am running about 40-45 miles per week.
Both courses are relatively flat. Hilton Head has four bridge crossings and the slight uphill grade in the last couple of miles of the course. Myrtle Beach has a long slow rise along the beach run and a couple of short, localized climbs, but it was the flatter of the two courses. For me, where my typically daily runs have between 300-600 vertical feet of climb and my long runs have 1100-1300 feet of climbing, these courses count as flat. The hope is that for February marathons you end up with decent weather and temperatures. Given the number of coastal storms that have formed this year, there is nothing certain about that. When I ran Hilton Head last year in their inaugural marathon it was cold (40°F) and rainy from mile 3 to mile 23.
Although I was getting faster in my shorter runs, my simulator run in cold, windy conditions did not go well. It told me two things, I was neither ready to go out as fast an average pace as I thought I could and to not go out too fast at the beginning. I knew the latter already. But 9 minutes per mile really wasn't in the cards (yet). With that, I reset my goals.
For Hilton Head, I did not sleep well the night before but that didn't seem to be an issue when I finally got up and about. It was cold and frosty with a temperature of 32°F at the race start. Although the temperature was projected to be around 50°F by the time I finished, I had learned in the City of Oaks marathon to keep my legs warm. I took a lightweight breathable jacket but had to shed that and wrap it around my waist by mile 12.
I went out at a 9:50 pace and then slowed that a bit after mile 2. My heart rate was staying down and I felt good over the first two bridge crossings. I settled into about a 10:15 pace. At the midway point I was running to a 4:26 finish. The only complaint was that the Gatorade I planned to consume along the course with my Gu Gels did not show up at the first few water stations and I had to quickly recalculate my carb intake pattern. The course changed a little from last year and the course included some "open field" running at a location known as the "Honey Horn." Can't say I was fond of that portion because that South Carolina grass can be clumpy and I felt I needed to be pretty cautious not to turn an ankle. At the end of that stretch, I made a quick pit stop and then ran on to the last bridge crossings. When I completed the third bridge crossing, I was feeling good and had settled in among a group of people running the same pace.
I stepped it up at mile 20 and through mile 23 and left them behind as well as overtaking a number of people who had been in front of me. But all of a sudden, I couldn't sustain the run. I found the wall. I made it to the end of the race and none of those people I been running with at mile 20 or passed caught me before the end, but I was disappointed with a 4:50:23 finish. I felt spent at the finish even though I did manage to run across the finish line.
I rested and walked for the first few days after the marathon. I ran a short recovery run on Wednesday and a short interval run that covered 6 miles on Thursday before driving to Myrtle Beach on Friday.
It was even colder and an earlier race start at Myrtle Beach. The temperature was 25°F with a windchill of 19°F. At least the wind was coming from the southwest which meant that it might help warm the course later in the race. I left the jacket at the hotel even though it was colder. The only thing I changed was the addition of some arm warmers under my thermal shirt. Turned out that was enough to help keep my hands and upper body at the right temperature.
This time, I went out even slower for the first two miles and allowed my body to fully warm up before dropping into my desired running pace. A new experience for me....the ice that formed on the pavement from water around the water stations. A dicey proposition for runners and volunteers alike. I was running a very consistent pace and in among the highrise hotels along the beach run, there was a lot of wind swirling around us. Sometimes a tailwind, sometimes not. I crossed the halfway point at 2:16:30 and was on pace for a 4:33:00 finish. A little slower than Hilton Head.
We made the turn at mile 17 and that bit tailwind we were experiencing (shielded by trees and buildings) suddenly became the headwind that many of us worried about in the hotel lobby. From here on out all but about one mile (total) would be facing a progressively stronger headwind and the course was fully exposed by mile 23. And unlike my race in Hilton Head, I simply kept running at what felt like a constant effort pace though the actual pace slowed a bit.
When I reached the 23 mile marker and I was running into 25 mph winds (gusts to 35 mph) it was simply time to pick up my pace to the end. And each mile was progressively faster. I passed so many people in that last 3.2 mile stretch. And as I was running along, the fatigue in my legs had a familiar feel...this is how my legs felt in those interval runs and those hill repeats where I was pushing the Zone 4 or Zone 5 pace.
This may sound crazy, but unlike the sensation of not being able to get my legs to move the week before, it was kind of comforting to have that familiar feeling. I told myself that I know this feeling and it will be over in a few minutes and I was right. I finished with a new PR (4:34:02) and a feeling of redemption.
My coworker, who runs the marathon in less than 3:20, veered off at the 10-mile split point and decided to call it a day with a half-marathon. There were lots of things going on for him and he probably made a smart choice to bail that day.
There was a guy that I met in the hotel who had just aged into my age group and he was doing this marathon as his BQ race. He thought he'd make the 3:55:00 with some time to spare based upon his previous marathons and his most recent training. He came in about 5 minutes in front of me and told me that when he reached the 20 mile mark, the combination of the cold, the winds, and just going too fast just had the last six miles not be any fun after he hit the wall.
Thankfully, we did not have to run the race on the 15th when the temperature started at 27°F and didn't rise much above freezing along with a northwest wind of 25 mph with gusts to near 40 mph. It would have been a great tailwind at the end, but a painful run up the beach.
After a week rest, partially enforced here by snow and ice, I'm ready to get back out there.
Oh yes, I will be applying for membership with the marathon maniacs.
A couple of months ago I asked about running on consecutive weekends on this forum and got some useful advice. I signed up for the Hilton Head and the Myrtle Beach marathons that were held on February 7th and 14th, respectively.
First, I am 61 years old and this is my second year of running marathons (or any distance for that matter since 1985). Second, my main race goals are to finish the race the same day I start and not die either on the course or shortly after finishing the race. Third, I do have a step-wise set of time goals but compared to the youngsters here, I am not fast. And lastly, I have gradually increased my running to a point where I am running about 40-45 miles per week.
Both courses are relatively flat. Hilton Head has four bridge crossings and the slight uphill grade in the last couple of miles of the course. Myrtle Beach has a long slow rise along the beach run and a couple of short, localized climbs, but it was the flatter of the two courses. For me, where my typically daily runs have between 300-600 vertical feet of climb and my long runs have 1100-1300 feet of climbing, these courses count as flat. The hope is that for February marathons you end up with decent weather and temperatures. Given the number of coastal storms that have formed this year, there is nothing certain about that. When I ran Hilton Head last year in their inaugural marathon it was cold (40°F) and rainy from mile 3 to mile 23.
Although I was getting faster in my shorter runs, my simulator run in cold, windy conditions did not go well. It told me two things, I was neither ready to go out as fast an average pace as I thought I could and to not go out too fast at the beginning. I knew the latter already. But 9 minutes per mile really wasn't in the cards (yet). With that, I reset my goals.
For Hilton Head, I did not sleep well the night before but that didn't seem to be an issue when I finally got up and about. It was cold and frosty with a temperature of 32°F at the race start. Although the temperature was projected to be around 50°F by the time I finished, I had learned in the City of Oaks marathon to keep my legs warm. I took a lightweight breathable jacket but had to shed that and wrap it around my waist by mile 12.
I went out at a 9:50 pace and then slowed that a bit after mile 2. My heart rate was staying down and I felt good over the first two bridge crossings. I settled into about a 10:15 pace. At the midway point I was running to a 4:26 finish. The only complaint was that the Gatorade I planned to consume along the course with my Gu Gels did not show up at the first few water stations and I had to quickly recalculate my carb intake pattern. The course changed a little from last year and the course included some "open field" running at a location known as the "Honey Horn." Can't say I was fond of that portion because that South Carolina grass can be clumpy and I felt I needed to be pretty cautious not to turn an ankle. At the end of that stretch, I made a quick pit stop and then ran on to the last bridge crossings. When I completed the third bridge crossing, I was feeling good and had settled in among a group of people running the same pace.
I stepped it up at mile 20 and through mile 23 and left them behind as well as overtaking a number of people who had been in front of me. But all of a sudden, I couldn't sustain the run. I found the wall. I made it to the end of the race and none of those people I been running with at mile 20 or passed caught me before the end, but I was disappointed with a 4:50:23 finish. I felt spent at the finish even though I did manage to run across the finish line.
I rested and walked for the first few days after the marathon. I ran a short recovery run on Wednesday and a short interval run that covered 6 miles on Thursday before driving to Myrtle Beach on Friday.
It was even colder and an earlier race start at Myrtle Beach. The temperature was 25°F with a windchill of 19°F. At least the wind was coming from the southwest which meant that it might help warm the course later in the race. I left the jacket at the hotel even though it was colder. The only thing I changed was the addition of some arm warmers under my thermal shirt. Turned out that was enough to help keep my hands and upper body at the right temperature.
This time, I went out even slower for the first two miles and allowed my body to fully warm up before dropping into my desired running pace. A new experience for me....the ice that formed on the pavement from water around the water stations. A dicey proposition for runners and volunteers alike. I was running a very consistent pace and in among the highrise hotels along the beach run, there was a lot of wind swirling around us. Sometimes a tailwind, sometimes not. I crossed the halfway point at 2:16:30 and was on pace for a 4:33:00 finish. A little slower than Hilton Head.
We made the turn at mile 17 and that bit tailwind we were experiencing (shielded by trees and buildings) suddenly became the headwind that many of us worried about in the hotel lobby. From here on out all but about one mile (total) would be facing a progressively stronger headwind and the course was fully exposed by mile 23. And unlike my race in Hilton Head, I simply kept running at what felt like a constant effort pace though the actual pace slowed a bit.
When I reached the 23 mile marker and I was running into 25 mph winds (gusts to 35 mph) it was simply time to pick up my pace to the end. And each mile was progressively faster. I passed so many people in that last 3.2 mile stretch. And as I was running along, the fatigue in my legs had a familiar feel...this is how my legs felt in those interval runs and those hill repeats where I was pushing the Zone 4 or Zone 5 pace.
This may sound crazy, but unlike the sensation of not being able to get my legs to move the week before, it was kind of comforting to have that familiar feeling. I told myself that I know this feeling and it will be over in a few minutes and I was right. I finished with a new PR (4:34:02) and a feeling of redemption.
My coworker, who runs the marathon in less than 3:20, veered off at the 10-mile split point and decided to call it a day with a half-marathon. There were lots of things going on for him and he probably made a smart choice to bail that day.
There was a guy that I met in the hotel who had just aged into my age group and he was doing this marathon as his BQ race. He thought he'd make the 3:55:00 with some time to spare based upon his previous marathons and his most recent training. He came in about 5 minutes in front of me and told me that when he reached the 20 mile mark, the combination of the cold, the winds, and just going too fast just had the last six miles not be any fun after he hit the wall.
Thankfully, we did not have to run the race on the 15th when the temperature started at 27°F and didn't rise much above freezing along with a northwest wind of 25 mph with gusts to near 40 mph. It would have been a great tailwind at the end, but a painful run up the beach.
After a week rest, partially enforced here by snow and ice, I'm ready to get back out there.
Oh yes, I will be applying for membership with the marathon maniacs.
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Replies
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Wow. Great job. Congrats.0
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Wow! Outstanding! Congratulations.
And I've learned a lot from your story, so thank you.0 -
Wow! That's an impressive feat, and some great times! Thanks for sharing
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There was a guy that I met in the hotel who had just aged into my age group and he was doing this marathon as his BQ race. He thought he'd make the 3:55:00 with some time to spare based upon his previous marathons and his most recent training. He came in about 5 minutes in front of me and told me that when he reached the 20 mile mark, the combination of the cold, the winds, and just going too fast just had the last six miles not be any fun after he hit the wall.
I just went back and checked the posted times. They now say my official chip time was 4:33:58. Okay, I'll take it. Gun time was 4:35:22.
The guy I was telling you about came in about 2 minutes in front of me, not 5 like I quoted above. His chip time was a little over 1 minute (1:06) faster than mine. I can now see why he was so disappointed.
He passed the 10K mark at 58:45. I passed that timer at 1:08:26, almost 10 minutes behind him.
He passed the 13.1 mile mark at 1:57:27. At that point it really was going to be close for him to meet the BQ time. I passed that timer at 2:16:28, just over 19 minutes behind him.
At the last timer (18.3 miles), he crossed at 2:43:53. He was still going to be close on time, but he had not fallen off, either. I passed by that timer at 3:10:55, just over 27 minutes behind him. He told me that things went badly after mile 20.
Over the next 7.9 miles, I closed to within 2 minutes of him. His average pace fell from 8:57 through 18.3 miles to a 10:24 for the race. He ran the last 7.9 miles in roughly 110 minutes or roughly 13:55/mile. And if things didn't come unglued until mile 20, the last six miles must have really been brutal for him. I just had to survive three miles in Hilton Head
I ran that same distance in about 85 minutes or roughly 10:42/mile over the last 7.9 miles.
Well, that is what the marathon can do to you. It is a bit sobering.0 -
Wow. Thank you for sharing! Absolutely amazing. :flowerforyou:0
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Congrats! You should be proud. Thanks for sharing--I love reading race recaps.0
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A small update. The timing system split the difference and rounded the time to 4:34:00, something that is easy for me to remember.0
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Thanks for sharing your story. Great write up and I enjoyed reading it. Great times on these races and it sounds like you learned a lot.0
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Nice going! Back to back marathons is quite an accomplishment!0
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Great story! Congrats! You are an inspiration!0
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An absolutely amazing 7 days!! Two marathons in a week is a wild accomplishment. Congrats.0
This discussion has been closed.