I recently ran my first marathon on Sunday October 16; as part of a way to commemorate one year of running everyday (outside might I add) and also to test myself as the marathon is something I always wanted to do. I did not do a whole lot out of my normal running routine leading up to this marathon as I had already gone on several 15 milers and one 20 miler just for fun and was currently running 10+ miles a day.
I didn’t taper or anything for this race, I didn’t really know I was supposed to and by the time I found out it was pretty much too late….I got some crazy looks though when I told some more experienced runners that I didn’t taper at all…haha oh well… I actually cut back a little bit the 4 days prior to this first marathon. My training on those 4 days was Wednesday and Thursday 5 miles total running each day and Friday and Saturday 2.5 miles total running each day, so by my standards I was feeling pretty fresh on Sunday, race morning, other than some nervous type muscle twitches.
There was actually a very light drizzle before the race got underway at the YMCA where the marathon was starting. My sister Rebekah drove down with me, which kept me calmer than I would have been if I had been totally alone. We sat in my car and just waited. At about 40 minutes to the start of the race we made our way over to the YMCA. I thought I had left myself enough time to go to the bathroom….Boy was I wrong….The line for the restroom was unbelievably long for just a couple toilets/a urinal. It took about 25 minutes for me to finally get into the bathroom…good thing too as I told my sister that any longer and I probably would have had to take matters into my own hands. At least I learned to give myself tons of time prior to the race to go to the bathroom as EVERYONE HAS TO GO.
When I started making my way over to the start line the opening ceremonies were already underway, so I followed a group of runners that were quickly running over. When I rounded the corner to get to the start that’s when I saw the mob of runners. I decided to line up toward the middle-back of the pack as I had no idea how I was going to do ( I thought maybe around 3:45 for this first marathon) and I didn’t want to line up too far forward to slow anyone down. I think I was right around the 3:56:12 Will Ferrell pace group; they used celebrity names for the pace groups which I thought was very creative.
There was a countdown and then the race was underway. Everybody started walking kind of slowly and as you got closer to the start you could feel the pace picking up a bit into a light jog. It took about a minute 45 for me to cross the start. Once across I quickly found out I lined too far back as it felt like everyone was moving super slow. So, any opening I could find in the mob, I quickly would sprint as far forward as I could go and then start “jogging” again with the mob. This “Jog”/”Sprint” ritual went on for probably the first 5 or 6 miles until things started really opening up for me and I could start moving at a pace I was comfortable with.
I kept passing all the pace teams until I finally got up to the Lance Armstrong 2:59:36 pace team (I wasn’t planning on doing this it’s just how fact I was running). At about this time it was probably around mile 9 or 10 and I thought to myself…”Wait a minute, am I really a sub 3 hour marathoner????”. So, to make a long story short I slowed up my pace and started running behind the Lance pace team as I didn’t want to burn out later on in the race. I was super impressed with the pacers as they have to carry these big pace signs while they run at the same time they are talking to the people in their pace team and trying to keep people motivated.
Anyway after a while of following behind the sub 3 team and giving my legs a little bit of a “break”, I couldn’t take it any longer and I made a surge past the sub 3 team. I could hardly believe the pace I was keeping for someone that didn’t really “train” for a marathon, but just went out and ran a ton of miles every day for sheer enjoyment.
My legs started getting a little heavier around mile 19 and I could feel the lactic acid starting to build. But then one of the volunteers or someone watching the race said to me that I was top 25 and I could definitely catch a few runners if I pushed. I sort of got a second wind from that bit of inspiration and pushed on strong. As I started getting back into the city of Grand Rapids and off the bike path I knew the finish was near. I could then see the finish line and the crowd cheering. I ran hard through the finish and then somehow realized that this first marathon accomplishment would forever change me in a positive way. Don Kern the race director was waiting at the finish line and shaking the finishers hands and then I received my finishers medal. My final chip time was 2:56, which placed me at 22nd out of just over 1600 marathoners and also got me a Boston Marathon qualifying time based on the new standards for 2013.
Thoughts On My Race: I felt this was an excellent debut for me. It was definitely much better than I expected and I felt pretty strong throughout the whole race. I feel there is a lot of room for improvement for me as well:
- My race weight is a little high, so a few more pounds lost should show some significant improvements to my time.
- I need a better taper next time as I’m sure I wasn’t 100% doing four 10 mile days the week of the run and 70+ mile weeks leading up to the race.
- Also, I feel that getting more high mileage weeks strung together will definitely show some more improvements as I had only had about 2 months of 70+ mile weeks prior to the race.
- As far as speed training goes I have done no speed work. So, adding in hills, tempo runs, and some intervals should definitely bring about some more improvements.
- Also, I have been super inconsistent with my long runs and unless you consider 10 miles a long run I really didn’t do any in the two months leading up to the race; minimum I want to be doing a 20 miler weekly, but ideally I want some 30 milers in there too. I have a desire to try an ultra next year, so 30 milers will definitely help with that.
- Lastly, just having the confidence to go out and run my race now will definitely show an improvement to my time. There is no doubt that lining up closer to the front of the pack next time and having the confidence to pass, for example, the 3:00 hour pacers, should show a big improvement.
Overall though I am very excited and I am feeling very motivated for my next race. There is so much I can be doing to improve my time.
Grand Rapids Marathon 2011 Summary: This was an excellent first marathon race. Don Kern the race director sends out an email newsletter once you register for the marathon on a weekly basis and in the days leading up to the race. The newsletter has lots of inspiration and practical advice. I was scared I might take a wrong turn in the race, but those fears quickly subsided when I saw all the extremely helpful volunteers and the well marked course. There were tons of aid stations with gatorade, water, gu, oreos, pickle juice, oranges, gummy bears, etc. The stations were about every 2 miles. A lot of the course was through a park/bike trail, rather than through the city of Grand Rapids, so there weren’t a ton of spectators, but there were definitely enough spectators/volunteers to keep you feeling motivated. The course wasn’t too hilly, but there were a couple hills. It felt like the GR Marathon was put on like a BIG marathon, but it was actually kind of a small 1600 or so runner marathon, which was kind of nice for a first timer as you got take advantage of tons of extras, without having to content with thousands of people. This is definitely a growing, Class A marathon that won’t be small for long. I definitely recommend this race.