I have completed my second, and perhaps final marathon of my career! On Sunday October 18, I finished the Toronto (GoodLife Fitness) Marathon with a time of 3:23:39. That's an improvement of 20:14 from my Honolulu time.
Though I may be 'retired' from marathons in the Brett Favre sense of the word, I said that this was it for marathons if I didn't reach Boston Qualifying time, so I am now a half marathon or less runner. For now 5 and 8k's sound great, as they are easy to train for and maybe I can enjoy a beer afterward!
How it went:
First off, marathons are so difficult to analyze, because there are so many variables and you can't pin down a single point of failure.
The first lesson from Toronto is stick to your game plan. I came upon some "seasoned" Toronto vets both on the course and prior to the start that had all sorts of suggestions. I probably went a little hard for the first half as a result. Many of my first 14 Garmin miles came in in the 7 'ohs'.
Once I hit the flats I was cruising, passing by the 3:15 pace rabbit easily. As I was approaching mile 18, I could feel my calves get cold. We were running along the lake, exposed to any wind coming off it, and there were a fair amount of shady spots. It was a sign that my race was about to take a turn. My calves cramped and I decided it was finally time to take a break. From there on out I walked all of the water stops getting a healthy drink of both water and Gatorade. Eventually the walking became more painful than running as my quads tightened above the knee.
The last mile I lost track of the pain, perhaps due to the crowd, or maybe the hydration finally hit my legs. If that's the case, my downfall may have been drinking too little at the prior water stops which I cruised through.
Another thing I can point to is the trip to Vegas, which took away from my running schedule, and added to my alcohol consumption at the wrong time. If that's the case, it was worth it, and I don't care :-)
I wonder how many of the volunteers were wearing the water/Gatorade they were handing out. One stop I blasted cups out of two peoples hands and barely grabbed the last Gatorade cup.
Some guy thought he was hilarious as he heaved a CRT TV on the railing of a bridge and yelled "Catch" as I ran underneath. Good thing he wasn't a klutz, but not funny...
The day after the marathon Noble and I hobbled around Toronto like old men to the CN Tower. We drove down to Niagara Falls where we hopped aboard the Maid of the Mist for a wet and windy ride boat ride to get up close and personal with the falls. Oddly enough the last thing I did the day after Honolulu was see some falls, after which I became violently ill. Thank goodness it didn't happen this time around!
This week I've been battling some foot soreness as a result of the marathon. It's possible the Racer STs were pushed beyond their limit.
The next adventure awaits... or I'll just enjoy some solid rest :-)
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