50K Run for Regis - 2010

Summary

I have mixed feelings about this “Fun Run”.

The first 13 miles were easy and rather enjoyable, at 10 min/mile average pace. But after that, the “fun” very quickly changed to “torture”. My pace slowed down to 12-14 min/mile. I developed blisters, got tired of running, and started praying for the ordeal to be over.

But I made it under 6:30 and when it was done, I actually felt pretty good. Good to the point of entertaining thoughts of more 50Ks soon and attempting longer distances, even a 100 miler!

Am I a masochist or what?

Training

Who thought that running 32 miles in snow-covered trails without proper training in January in Ohio would be a good idea?

One problem is training: It is impossible to train properly for the given running conditions because most likely the running conditions on “race day” will be unique. I had trained on dry trails, leaf-covered trails, muddy/wet trails, trails with fresh snow, but not slippery trails covered with half-melted snow, as we had on Sunday.

My training consisted mainly of running 12 miles / 2 hours on trails every Saturday. That’s clearly not enough. You need at least 2 runs 20-25 miles to get ready for this.

With the word “fun” in mind I arrived at the “Ledges” around 6:45 am.  The race director (Tanya, below) gave us the final instructions and at 7:30 am off we went!

Course

This is a new course, consisting of two loops 5 and 8 miles, just like the old course. To compete the 50K you need to run 5 + 8 + 5 + 8 + 5. After you complete each loop, you return back to the “headquarters” (starting point). There is one aid station inside each loop.

The run is labeled “fun” in the sense that it is not a race. There are no awards. Everyone pays the same amount and gets the same benefits: a handsome Brooks running jacket and a bowl (or more) of chili. Anyone can run any distance they like, a combination of the two loops: 8, 13 (“Half Marathon), 18, 26 (“Marathon”), 31 (50K)

According to my GPS Garmin, both loops were about 1/2 mile longer so the total distance was about 33.5 miles or 54K.

After each loop, I zeroed my watch (a good idea, since I then knew exactly where I was located within the loop and how far away I was from the nearest aid station). I timed each loop and I think these times tell the story:

5 mile loop times: 54:37, 1:00:47, 1:13:02
8 mile loop times: 1:27:11, 1:58:00

Fun

The first two loops (5 + 8) went fine, running strong and confident. I was even ahead of Mel and Rachel, the top female runners. (They both passed me around mile 13, with 15 year old (!) Rachel finishing first - again!  I can run faster than her in shorter races but she is nowhere to be seen in these 50Ks).

The course was well marked with little arrows at cross-points and orange ribbons marking the right side of the trail. We were told that it is possible to get inside a loop the wrong way and still finish the loop, having the orange ribbons on the left side, instead of the right. This actually happened to me in the first 8 mile loop, when I followed the guy in front of me, despite my better judgment. No harm done, I got to meet all the runners who ran the loop in the correct direction.

By the time of the 2nd 5 mile loop I was already slowing down, got passed by several runners and felt blisters developing on the bottom of my foot, as a result of the friction of the wet socks and shoes.

Despite the well marked course, I managed to run a loop in the opposite direction (duhhh!)

Torture

The worst part by far was running the 2nd 8 mile loop. I slowed to a crawl and did a lot of walking. Only a couple of people passed me (a sign that others were struggling too?) so I was mostly alone.

Just to give you an idea of how low my spirits were, I had carried with me a music player to entertain myself listening to the radio, podcasts, or some music, and did not even have the energy to take it out of my pocket! I also carried my new Fuji digital 3d camera with me, but only used it for a few pictures. I was not in the mood (very strange for me).

My feet were sliding all over the place and I was wondering if wearing plain trail shoes was a good idea. I could see from the footprints in the trail that some people were using additions to add traction on the snow.

I was feeling miserable and I had decided to skip the last 5 miles. I was already composing my blog with title: 50K (NOT!) FUN (NOT!) RUN. This was definitely not fun. The only way to run the last 5 miles was if my wife joined me. She was going to meet me before the last loop. I called, but she did not bring her running shoes, which made me mad (not difficult to do at this point).

Last 5 Miles

By the time I reached headquarters for the last loop, something strange happened: I felt better. This is very weird, but it also happened last year.  My wife said that I looked fine (after 5+ hours of running, under these conditions??). I changed my socks and shoes (well aware that this would do little to stop the blisters), kissed my wife and son, and headed for the last 5 mile loop, determined to complete the 50K.

This last loop was actually the best, even though it was the slowest. At first I was trying to catch a younger guy in front, so I could have some company. But he seemed determined to finish ahead of me and he had more energy, so he pulled ahead. Then I heard someone approaching from behind. I started talking to him and, soon enough, we are talking and enjoying the run together. Running with a partner makes a hell of a difference at this stage.

Two young guys passed us when we stopped at the last aid station (1 mile from the finish). Then another guy came from behind just to finish a bit ahead of us. If I were alone, I would have pushed, to finish ahead of these guys, but, what the heck, it seemed meaningless at the time and I had a good time running and chatting with my new friend, Bob (above).

As we approached the finish, Bob noticed the Race Clock nearing 6:30 and said “let’s beat 6:30” so we sprinted and made it! Here is the proof:

In the end, there were 5 of us finishing within one minute, from 6:29 to 6:30. In the official results (posted at: http://winterrunforregis.blogspot.com/ ) I am listed 29/74 with the official time of 6:29:56. This is better than last year’s 6:47, but slower than the year before (my first winter 50K) were I finished at 5:31 (in better weather conditions).

I am sure there were a lot more than 74 runners signed up for the 50K, so I am pleased to be one of the 74 who made it (even though I barely made it!).  The rest completed the shorter distances.

Aftermath

After the race, I stayed around for a while, socializing with other runners. I met Clara and her friend from Indiana. Clara is the “Indiana Girl” from my first Winter 50K blog (seen below, suprisingly fresh and quick, at the "finish line")

We all got our packages and were treated to nice chili and grilled cheese sandwiches (I had 3 servings!) By the way, in this race I made an effort to eat and drink in every aid station. My favorite food was noodle soup and I had plenty of Gatorade.

The most amazing thing is that I felt great at the end. It seems that all the bad memories were erased. As I am writing this blog, I am making an effort to remember the “bad times”. Equally strange, the next day I had almost no muscle pain. Liz took care of the blisters and I am ready to resume running today (Tuesday).

The human body and mind is a strange thing. Despite the pain and frustration during parts of the run, I am already thinking of running longer and faster. I love running and I think I prefer long and slow trail runs to short & fast road runs.

I think I will look into running a 50 miler this year and maybe 100 miles next year.

Many thanks to the race director and volunteers for making us do this, and helping us stay fit and strong during the winter (talking about "strong", I've gained 10 lbs since my marathon in Athens, but I am sure it is all "muscle" :)) Now I am starting a diet so I can go back to my normal race weight!

Following the Guy with the Pony Tail

Snow covered Trail Run – 15F

I had every good intention to wake up early and join the 6 am, or maybe 7 am running group today, but when I got up and saw all the snow in the ground, I decided to wait and join the SERC (South East Running Club) which always starts at L29 at 8 am on Saturdays.

I arrived at L29 at 8:15 and barely made it, joining about 8 more running fanatics. This group runs for about 12 miles, 2 hours, in the trails. The temperature today was 15F (-9C). It sounds more dramatic in Celsius but it was quite cold and I had to wear a face mask, in addition to the regular winter running gear.

Steve (second from left) is deciding which way to go.  - Some parts of the trail has thick snow.

The group’s leader appears to be Steve Godale, Mark’s brother, who has a long redish hair and long beard. A couple of weeks ago I asked if they have a running schedule and they said, “we just follow the guy with the pony tail” (Steve). I then asked, “What are you doing today?” Reply: “We are following the guy with the pony tail”. So, the plan is very simple.

Some parts were easier to negotiate that others.

Today Steve decided to go off the trail so for about 30 minutes we were a bit lost, in the thick snow, in the middle of nowhere. But, finally, we found the trail again and we were back to L29 safe, almost exactly 2 hours after we started.

I really enjoy these trail runs, even in the winter!

New Year’s Run with Ed – 2010

Happy New Year everyone!

What a better way to start the new year than join Ed for the Traditional New Year’s Day Run? Nice but challenging run 6.6 miles in 1:03. Here is a picture from two points during the run:

We started at Boston where Ed took a group picture but his camera ran out of battery, so when we reached the Brandywine Falls I was the only runner with a working camera. I took a picture of the group and then someone took another picture, seen here (I am the guy with the red jacket in the first row):

Great New Year’s Eve 5K Run - 2009

Great New Year’s Eve 5K Run

My wife and I ran the Great New Years Eve 5K last night. This was the 3rd time for me and the first time for my wife (I had to work a bit, to make her agree to this :))

My times in the previous 2 years:

2007 – 20:47
2008 – 21:48

The weather was fairly decent (last year it was very cold and icy, this year it was 38F, the streets were wet but not slippery). At the start I got behind some slow runners and was a bit delayed, until I found an opening on the left side. My first mile was 6:31. Mile 2 involves some hills in the return, time 6:51. Mile 3 = 6:53. Final stretch: 6:18. I was happy I passed a couple of runners near the end, including 14 year old Rachel.

My time was almost exactly 21 minutes (a bit over actually, as I tried to beat 21 minute but did not make it). This is a good time considering the weather, tough course, and the fact that I have gained 8 lbs since the Athens Marathon! (I’ve fallen off the proverbial wagon, in the eating/diet department)

Liz before the race and at the finish line.

We stayed after the race to enjoy the food and socialize with other runners. When the time came for the awards, it was a repeat of the Thanksgiving 4 mile race. They announced the top Female winner but she said she was not the first. If they cannot get the first female runner right, you know the results are all messed up. So, they stopped the awards and asked people to come forward to check their times and placement. I was listed 3rd in my age group with 20:50, and my wife was also listed 3rd in her ago group, so we took our awards (engraved glass) and went home, happy. They have posted what they call "preliminary" results in the Summit Athletic web page.

Overall, despite the confusion with the times and awards, it was a fun race and we’ll do it again.

Falls Run & Accident

Last Saturday I joined a group of 40 or more runners for the “Falls Run”. This is a comfortable 18 mile trail run visiting local falls. It is the first time I do this (previous years we went to Minneapolis between Christmas and New Year’s so I have missed all previous runs).

It is a nice scenic trail run. We started from Lock 29, ran up 5 miles to Pine Lane and to Boston. From Boston we ran 5 miles to the Brandywine Falls (1) and back, then 4 miles to Blue Hen Falls (2) and Buttermilk Falls (3) and then 5 more miles back to L29 via the Buckeye Trail and Pine Lane. It took exactly 3 hours of running.

Here are some pictures that I took from the Brandywine and Buttermilk Falls:

You can see more pictures (with me in the picture) in Nick’s blog here:

http://rtrsbm.blogspot.com/2009/12/m-cubed-for-122809.html

This would have been a perfect day, if it was not for an accident I had around mile 3 of the run. While crossing Boston Mills Road (from Pine Lane to Boston), I fell and hit my leg at the metal rail on the side of the road. This was clearly my fault. Instead of stopping and taking it easy, I tried to step on the piece of wood (see picture below, taken a few weeks ago with my wife going over the exact same rail - I marked the piece of wood I stepped at) to go over. The wood was icy, so I slipped and fell right at the sharp metal rail.

At first it hurt quite a bit. Michele was running ahead, turned around and asked if I was OK. I said I was fine and continued running. I knew I was hurt badly, but I could not decide whether to stop and call my wife to pick me up, run to Boston and from there to L29 and then drive home, or just keep running. I kept running. I decided to continue to Boston. At Boston I checked my leg (see picture above - I snapped this picture for memories). The wound looked really deep but it was not bleeding a lot and it was not hurting enough to force me to stop. So I decided to keep running, to finish this nice long run.

When I got home, my wife saw the wound and started screaming at me to go to the Emergency to have it stitched up, which is what I did. At the emergency I had 2 X-rays, a tetanus shot and 14 stitches put in my leg! Everyone was amazed that I kept running for 15 miles / 2 ½ hours, after this accident.

Anyway, I was able to run the next day and race on Thursday (New Year’s Eve) so it cannot be that bad. It is healing nicely right now.

Home Run For the Homeless 2009

Home Run For the Homeless 2009

This year for the first time I ran (together with my daughter and Matt, her friend from Toledo) the “Home Run for the Homeless” 4 mile race on Thanksgiving Day.

It was a perfect running weather, cold in the morning but sunny later. Good running atmosphere. Delicious muffins in the end. A nice way to start the Thanksgiving day.

I ran with the Fuji 3d camera in my hands - This is a picture from early on. Mike George (center left) is leaving me in the dust at this point.  I ran most of the race with the little girl with the green T-shirt on the left, which wrote in the back "Sorry officer, was I going too fast?"   I could not get this out of my mind during the entire race!

This picture is from near the end.  A couple more turns and we are done.  The guy with the black shirt is Jamie Carr from our running group.  He passed me in the uphill and even though I yelled at him "Hi Jamie", he did not turn around to say "Hi" because he was working hard to pass me.  I tried to catch him in the final stretch but he was going too fast for me.

I thought that the course was hard overall. It was also a bit short (3.8 or 3.9 miles). I felt a bit out of shape and finished behind most of the people in my running group, but I am happy with my time (26:18). It will take a lot more effort and training to meet my time goal of 25 minutes.

One of the more interesting runners at the finish line:  The leaping leprechaunm made a nice subject for our 3d stereo club competition "Motion".

We stayed for the awards and that was a bit frustrating because it became clear from the very beginning that the results were messed up. They made the mistake to announce times with the awards so every time they mentioned a time, someone would say, “Wait, I ran faster than that, how come I am not getting an award?” After a while, they stopped announcing the times but everyone had the feeling that things were not right.

My friend Mike Juppe is receiving the Master's Award.  He appears to be really excited about this, plus the large Turkey that is part of the award.  But, as it turns out, he was not the fastest Master runner.  So, later he had to return his trophy, but he kept the Turkey because he was still in first place for his age group (first place winners get a turkey).  Thanks to Mike, I got my award too! (Later, not at the award's ceremony because, thanks to Mike again, I was bumped into 3d place when my division 1st place runner got the Master's Award)

Later, next day, I checked the results in the internet and I was not listed. After a few email exchanges to straighten things out, I was listed 4th, but then changed to 3rd because they moved one of the guys ahead of me in my age group, to get the “Master’s Award”. My friend Mike went and picked up my award (he had to return his Master’s award) so in the end I am happy I got a nice mug.

The “good weather” and large “same day” registration was blamed for the errors. This is the first time in 8 years of running races that I waited to register on race day, because I was not sure I would be running this race, plus the deadline for mail-in registration was 11 days before the race (isn’t 7 days enough?) Needless to say, I will not wait until the last day again.

Anyway, we had a good time and got a nice exercise. We will do it again next year.

Fall Classic 2009

Something must be happening around Thanksgiving... I get busy with work and neglect my blog. Last year I stopped blogging at this time for about 6 months. But I am determined not to let this happen this year.

Liz & Lea, heading for the star line

My friend Mark from Brecksville was also running the 1/2

The race took place on Sunday before Thanksgiving. In our family this, and the Spring Classic, is an annual favorite. My wife and daughter run the 5K, I run the ½ Marathon. My wife always has a good race and she claims that she “owns the race”.  She has actually won an award in every 5K race she ran in either Spring or Fall Classic.  I have never won an award.

I had a good race. The weather was nice (cold but sunny) and this made it a very fast race overall. My official time is 1:32:40 (7:04 pace). Even though this is not a ½ Marathon PR, it is my fastest time in this course, out of a total of 10 races. However, I only finished 8/35 in my age group of old guys (50-54) and 66/325 overall.

Lately I have been running all races with my Fuji 3d camera and I take pictures and videos during the race

To give you an idea of how fast the race was overall, there were about 50 runners (out of 325) with a time faster than 1:30!!!

Mile splits: 7:04, 6:57, 7:01, 6:57, 6:52, 7:00, 7:06, 7:06, 7:11, 7:11, 7:06, 6:50, 7:03. Overall I am happy with my consistent and fast pace. I have decided I will never win an award in this race (never have) so I just relax and enjoy the torture of going up and down this rather boring course TWICE!

I was happy, smiling, while I was approaching the finish line, when I noticed this guy sprinting by me.  I tried to outkick him but it was too late.  I did not have enough time to react!

My wife Liz won 1st place in her age group with 26:07. Lea finished at 32:03.

After the race, I read a lot of complains in active.com. Apparently, they ran out of water, out of food, and out of medals. There were complains about the parking, restrooms, and the 5K slow runners who were getting in the way of the 1/2 runners (apparently, the 5K started a bit late so the 1/2 runners met them towards the end of the first loop). None of these affected us. We had a nice race and we'll come back to do it in Spring!

Athens Classic Marathon 2009

“I came, I ran, I conquered” the Athens Classic Marathon!

I had a wonderful time in Greece and a very nice race.

I arrived in Athens on Friday, November 6, after an uneventful flight. My brother picked me up from the airport, ran a few errands and then dropped me at the Expo. Everything went well, no problems. I never got adjusted regarding the time difference. On Saturday night I went to bed at 10:30 pm with the alarm at 5:00 am. I woke up feeling fully rested, but it was only 1:30! I forced myself back to bed, but got up at 3:00 am, unable to sleep any more.

Got up, ate, got dressed and left my brother’s house around 6 am. I went to pick up Tony, an American friend I met the previous day. He was staying in a hotel nearby. While waiting for him to eat breakfast, it started raining really hard. We walked to the Stadium to pick up the bus for Marathon. Our feet got wet. The bus left around 6:30 am and we were in Marathon by 7:00 am. We had 2 hours before the race started.

I ate 2 energy bars, drank Gatorade, took pictures, socialized with other runners, and at 9:00 am I was ready to go!

My goal was 3:30. To understand how the race goes, you have to take a look at the topography. I divide the course into 4 sections:

A. First 6 miles (10K): It is flat. I started the first mile conservatively (it was also crowded) at 8:11. Then: 7:37, 7:38, 7:39, 7:45. The pace felt very slow and comfortable. Around the 5K mark we were diverted from the main road to tour the Tumble of the Marathon where the battle of the Marathon took place in 490BC.

B. Next 6 miles: A slight uphill, but I manage to maintain a good pace of 7:45. My splits: 7:47, 7:43, 7:33, 7:58, 7:26, 7:48. I feel great! It was drizzling in the first hour and had my Fuji 3d camera covered in plastic. When it stopped raining I took it out and took pictures and videos of the race.  In the picture below I am crossing the half line at 21km.  You can see me holding the Fuji 3d camera. I was actually recording a 3d video at this point.

C. Next 7 miles (20-32K): This is the hardest part of the course and apparently one of the most difficult stretches of any well-known marathon. There is an elevation gain of about 800 ft. My average pace drops to 8:20. Splits: 8:15, 8:26, 8:19, 8:40, 8:10, 8:09, 8:21.

D. Final 6 miles are downhill. Normally, this would be good news, but my legs are tired and downhill running hurts more than uphill. My average pace is 7:50. Splits: 8:02, 7:34, 7:52, 7:58, 7:49, 7:57, 7:58.

I entered the Stadium for the final 200 meters where I found the strength for a semi-kick. I looked at the official race clock and my time was 3:29:58, only 2 seconds away from my goal time! Chip time: 3:28:41. I finished 37/404 in my age group, and 452/3853 overall.

After the race, my legs were hurting and my stomach was upset.  I managed to smile and my relatives said that I looked great.  In the picture above I am photographed with my sister Alexia and nieces Vasia and Maria.  The picture on the right was taken by a fellow runner, using my Fuji camera.

It is fair to say that I felt worse than other marathons, but I took an ice bath and felt better for the rest of the day. The next day I was happy and ready to do it over again! My legs were hurting a bit for a few days. I walked a lot and did not run. I returned to the USA on Friday and ran on Saturday for the first time.

Right after the race I was interviewed by a young reporter. She wrote down (on a notebook with a pencil) a lot of details and then the photographer took a picture of me. I did not catch the name of the paper but the next day my interview was published in one of the largest newspapers in Athens (TA NEA – The News). That was quite a surprise!  I took a picture of the paper interview below.  It says that I was 100kg (225 lbs) when I started running in 2001 and dropped to 72kg (160 lbs) thanks to running.  My goal was to run the Athens Marathon when I turned 50.  This is what the reporter considered the most important points from the many questions she asked.

Overall, my experience was positive:

1. I made all the arrangements on line (http://www.athensclassicmarathon.gr/ ) The expo was well organized, the transportation of the runners to the start was without problems. The weather cooperated (low 60s with rain, better than the days immediately before and after, 70F and sunny).

2. The medal is nice (serious look, like a large coin). The T-shirt is plain short sleeve cotton.

3. The course is mildly scenic at first, later goes through industrial areas, and finishes in Athens. Aid stations every few miles, well-stocked, no problem. Crowd support is sparse but enthusiastic (“Bravo, bravo!!!”).

4. The finish in the Panathenaikon Stadion, where the 1896 fist Olympic games took place, is spectacular.

No one is running this marathon for the medal, T-shirt or the beauty of the course. If I want a nice course, I’d stay in Ohio. You are running this marathon for the history. But I was touched by the people who were out in the rain and the fact that all the roads were closed just for us! (I took the bus the next day to visit the city of Marathon, and the route is a lot uglier with cars and traffic, so I consider myself privileged that the roads were open only for us runners).

I went back to the US with very good impressions and I would like to run this marathon again in the future, this time with Liz.  Based on the 10K results, Liz would have done great if she had come to run the 10K.

Overall, I am happy I did it and would recommend this marathon to other runners, interested in history and international marathons.

Towpath 2009

Towpath 2009 - Race Report


Today was the Towpath Marathon, Half-Marathon & 10K, which takes place in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park, which runs very close to our house. I did not know this, but this race is only one of two races taking place in a National Park.


Perfect weather for running (35F at start!) a bit chilly waiting for the awards.

This was the last test for me before Athens... I was aiming for 7:10 pace, but managed to clock 7 minute miles on the average, finishing 19th overall (out of almost 1000 runners!) with a time of 1:32:16, which is my 2nd fastest half after the "River Run" half last month.

My mile splits: 6:40, 6:54, 6:59, 6:53, 6:54, 7:00, 7:05, 7:03, 7:00, 7:07,7:13, 7:10, 7:07

My wife (waiting at the finish) reported that were a couple "old-looking guys" finishing ahead of me, so she was afraid I'd finish 4th again. But I finished 1st out of 42 in my age group, 5+ minutes ahead of the 2nd. The curse of the 4th place is finally broken!

Liz (wife) ran the 10K and finished 1st in her age group with 52:10.

A good day for both of us. I am especially happy that I can manage to run 7 minute miles in a half. The Towpath course is not a particularly fast one. It is flat (downhill in the first mile) but the crushed limestone has less friction, that leads to slower times.

The goal of 3:30 for the Athens Marathon appears to be within reach.

The Day After

The day after the Akron marathon brought a nice surprise: MY LEGS ARE *** NOT *** HURTING!!!

So, now I get it: If you want your legs not to hurt, don’t run fast… That’s what my wife is doing :) Seriously, the person who said “It’s not the distance, it's the speed that kills” is absolutely right! After the Perfect 10 Miler 3 years ago when I set my present PR (6:51 pace), my legs were hurting for a couple of days. And it was only 10 miles. After my half marathon at 6:58 pace 3 weeks ago, my legs were hurting. But, running Akron at 8:20 pace does not produce pain (even though it felt hard).

I am happy for that. For a while I was worried that I pushed too hard in this marathon. The reason you should not run a marathon too close to an important race is that the recovery from the marathon can mess up your preparation for the race. This does not appear to be no problem for me now. I still have 5 weeks for Athens. My goal is 3:30, which is rather conservative but very reasonable considering the difficulty of the course.

Akron Marathon 2009

A Training Run that Went Not So Well:

Since I am running a "serious", one-of-a-lifetime marathon in Athens, Greece, November 8th, I decided to treat the Akron marathon as a training run for the Athens Marathon.

Based on my good Spring Cleveland Marathon (3:22) and the good 20 mile Akron training run, 3 weeks ago (8:08 pace, finishing very strong), I decided to run the Akron marathon at 8:20 pace (3:40 finish).

Sounds easy, right?

WRONG!!! This was the hardest "training run" I've ever run!

I joined Elizabeth's pacing group (3:40 time). Elizabeth has the unique ability to chat during the entire marathon. As expected, she entertained us with her stories, and she also maintained a constant 8:20 min/mile pace, no matter what!

Do you ever have runs where you know from early on that this is not your best day? This rarely happens to me in a race, but it happened in this one. From the very beginning my legs and hips felt tight. The pace did not feel as easy as it should. I was thinking... if I feel like that in mile 10, how am I going to feel in mile 20?

After 11 miles running around the city, we entered the "Towpath" section, for 4 miles. At the exit of the towpath there is a 3 mile stretch of rolling hills at first and then mostly uphill. This is considered the hardest part of the race.

My original plan was to see how I felt at the top of the hill and maybe take off if I felt good. Elizabeth had us climb those hills at 8:20 pace. She warned us that this is a tough section and urged us to stay together and we will feel better when we get to the top. I managed to keep up myself and was surprised by how many did. But by the time I reached the top, my legs were very tired. There goes the "felt good" plan. At this point I realized that I will never feel good, so my best bet was to just keep up with the pace group.

I continued to follow the pace group until around mile 20. At this point, I started struggling and falling behind. Somehow, I managed to keep visual contact with the group. I was also mentally revising my final time... Maybe 3:45? It is a training run after all. If that was a regular training run, I would have stopped and walked at this point. But it is a marathon and my family will be waiting for me at the finish, expecting me at 3:40. So I had to keep going.

Only when we got to West Market Street I felt a bit better, knowing that it is downhill and only 2 miles to go.

My last two miles were at 8 min/mile pace, with 7:30 min/mile down on Main Street. I managed to catch up with Elizabeth at the final stretch before the finish. My official chip time: 3:38:53.

George Themelis #735
Brecksville, OH
Age: 50 Gender: M
Distance MAR
Clock Time 3:39:47
Chip Time 3:38:53
Overall Place 227 / 1331
Gender Place 196 / 930
Division Place 21 / 92
3 5M 00:28:17
9 2M 01:17:24
25K 02:09:52
30K 02:33:43
Pace 8:21

I am happy I finished strong, but I am also worried that this run felt worse than it should have. I cannot see how it would be possible to run this marathon any faster. I am actually surprised I managed 3:30 last year.

I now have to revise my plans for Athens. I was secretly hoping for something like 3:20 or better. Now, I will be happy with 3:30 in what is a difficult course (net elevation gain with long uphill sections).

Legs NOT hurting?

Please help resolve this on-going marital dispute!

What does it mean if your legs are NOT hurting after a hard race?

My legs always hurt after a race. Later the same day. Even more the next day. And the day after that, and so on. Sometimes I am even unable to run for a couple of days. This is especially true for long races, of course, but it also happens with short races, like a 5K. For example, after the Half Marathon on Sunday, my legs (quads, etc) were hurting later on Sunday, also on Monday, even today (Tuesday).


<--- Liz struggling at mile 13 the half. Yet, her legs did not hurt after the race. What gives?

On the other hand, my wife's legs NEVER hurt! I keep asking her after every race: "Do your legs hurt?" Her response: "No". "Not even a bit?", "Not at all".

"Then," I say "you did not try hard enough".

And there is where the argument starts. She insists that she ran as fast and as hard as possible, but still her legs do not hurt. How is this possible?

How is it possible to give 110% and not pay for it (with pain)?

I don't get it.

After I wrote this, and posted in a running email discussion list, most people said that they did not understand it either and offered explanations like "maybe she does not want to admit that she is hurting".

I had a long discussion with her. She says that her hips felt a bit tight and her Achilles tendon slightly tender (she had problems with both Achilles tendons and her hips in the past) but she has absolutely no muscle pain. If you hit my quads right now, I will jump up and screem. She feels nothing.

She also shows another unusual characteristic: Her training runs are even and fast. But her race pace drops and her final time in the race is slower than a training run!

Example: 2 weeks before her first half, she ran a training run at the Towpath, 13.2 miles at 9:32 fairly even pace. The Towpath is flat but slow due to less friction. This good training run led her to believe that she could achieve 2 hours in the race. Her target race pace was 9:20. Sounds possible, based on this training run.

In the actual race her mile splits were: 8:57, 8:55, 8:46, 9:04, 9:13, 9:22, 9:37, 9:33. Up to this point (first 8 miles) things look good. But look what happened next: 9:52, 10:03, 10:39, 10:34, 11:04.

Average pace = 9:45.

Most people (myself included) can race faster than they train. If I could cover the distance at 9:30 pace when training, then for sure I could do a 9:00 average pace in the race, most likely 8:30 (one minute faster in the race vs. training).

Maybe she started too fast and this caused the melt-down at the end (the last 11 min/mile is very uncharacteristic for her... even her slowest training miles are faster than 10:30 min/mile). She swears that the first miles did not feel fast and she has no explanation for the melt-down at the end. She likes to blame the hot weather & sun, but the weather was not hot and the course was well-shaded :)

So, she remains a mystery to me :)