I flew through Las Vegas - Bleh, possibly my least favorite
place in the U.S., but I'll refrain from ranting about that - and drove the
scenic and fast 120-ish miles to St. George. Checked into a super friendly
hotel, went to the expo, then settled in for a quiet night before the race.
Out of bed at 3:30. That's early even for me (luckily I was
already well awake), but it's a point-to-point race starting way out in the
boonies so they need to get everyone to the start line for a 6:45 start. It's a
smaller version of Boston, everyone meets at a park in town and they use school
buses to transport runner via the one road out to the start. The start area is fairly typical although
they usually have dozens of bonfires to keep people warm. The temperature was about
70 degrees so it was pretty warm and I never bothered to get near a fire.
Knowing the day would be over 90 I was concerned about the heat, but I had
prepared as much as possible - I was hydrated, I was wearing minimal clothes,
and planned to carry very little on me. Still, I knew it would be a race
against the clock in more ways than one.
Going into this race, I knew I would run a PR, I just didn't
know by how much. My only concern was some knee trouble. My left knee was not
happy with me for upping my miles in the last few weeks of training. I
planned/hoped that I could use my quads enough to protect it as much as
possible. Based on training, I felt
confident running with a sub 3:40 goal, but at some point the week before the
race I thought that something faster would be acheivable on such a fast course.
I targeted 3:35. I figured out an even pace (8:12s) then scribbled a few target
distance/time goals on my forearm. I had 10, 13, 20 & 24 written out. I
always plan to negative split with the general race plan being to stay patient
for 13, comfortable until 16, then start reeling in the finish line. For the time goals I just wanted to be in
striking distance at the 10 and 13 mile marks, then gradually pick it up so
that I would have cushion at 24. I wanted that cushion in case of a blow up in
the last two. So just before the start I lined up somewhere between the 3:25
and 3:35 pace groups.
Off we go in the dark. Love the pre-dawn start as I always
feel like the miles in the dark somehow don't count. As mentioned, there's only
one road back to town. A house here or there, there is very little along this
road until mile 7 then almost nothing again until 16 or so. It is crowded, but since I started close to
the front everyone was moving along nicely. It is somewhat surreal because
there is nobody else out there except the runners (and helicopters!). Like a
really big training run. Other than chatting runners, all you can hear are
footsteps. I absolutely loved it.
So I stick to plan and try to keep the pace feeling ridiculously easy, the first few miles were 8:15ish then worked down to just under 8 by mile 6. The course is somewhat rolling, but very gentle and net down for sure. At some point the 3:35 pace group caught up to me so I ran with them. The pacer was chatty and around mile 6 he mentioned that they had a 50 second cushion for the "Veyo Hill" and he expected they would give that all back. There were a few people around me talking about the hill and the hills to follow and I quickly realized I was coming into the hardest part of the course. The hill(s) although long, had grades were not much by Seattle standards. The Veyo Hill is almost a one mile climb, but by this point in the race a nice grinder felt good. The Pace group slowed down and so I went a little ahead, using my perceived exertion as my pacer. Now the water stations were coming up every 2 miles so I took advantage and drank gatorade and water at each plus dumped water on myself. There was steady headwind that provided a cooling effect and I was thankful for it. Miles 8 through 13 were my slowest of the whole race because of the hills, the water stations and stopping for a potty break somewhere in there. At mile 10 I was about 30 seconds over my goal time, at 13 I was about a minute over, so I felt good about where I was on the pace. I was now behind the pace group, but I felt fine and with the dead straight course I could see them and knew that I would work myself back in a few miles.
By Mile 17 I was back with the group. My stomach was
starting to bug me and feeling too full but I wasn't willing to stop adding
fluids. I had only eaten 2 gels which is all I would eat during this race. It
was just too hot to think about getting anything down. At some point I asked the pacer if he knew
where he was on chip time and he said he'd check it at 18. He did and noted they were 1:15 ahead so he
was going to slow down. We were headed
up a little hill and I felt great so I thanked him for his great pacer work and
said I was moving on. Now I knew I just had to stay head of them and I would
break 3:35.
It was around this point in the race that I started feeling
fatigue set in to my quads. I knew it would happen and I was somewhat pleased
that I got this far relatively pain free. Only 8 miles to go!!! Of course as anyone who has run a marathon
knows, you never want to get too far ahead of yourself, because you just never
know if/when the wheels are going to fall off :o) It ain't over til it's over
so I tried not to be over-confident in thinking there was only 8 to go. So I
buckled down and kept grinding away at each step.
A few times I got a little too up in my head and wondered
how hard I was going to be willing to fight for this, because it always comes
down to a fight and it comes down to mental toughness. I have no delusions
about my mental toughness, I can be as soft as anyone. Then thoughts of
"how are you going to do this again next week in Chicago?" slipped
in. I tried to stay in the moment and control any negative thoughts, focusing
on my legs. They hurt in a way that felt like rowing and so I told myself it
was "just" rowing pain and I know how to deal with it. So I kept
pushing and would let things get numb until the terrain changed, either to an
uphill, or flat or back to downhill, and the pain would come back. O.k. nothing to do about it except relax,
stay calm and keep the legs turning over.
I came up on mile 20, checked the time and saw I was a solid minute
under goal time.
A large part of the middle of the marathon is in or next to
Snow Canyon. An absolutely stunning place. I had hiked here 5+ years ago while
pregnant with my 3rd daughter so I thought about her and what a great trip that
was and used it as energy to reel in that finish line. By mile 21 or so we reached the outskirts of
town. A little more protected from the wind so I could really feel the heat.
There were people out and cheering and I was slapping hands with little kids
and wishing I could see my own :o(
By mile 23 we were now on mostly flat streets that after all
that downhill, feel more like hills. I
just tried to stay focused, will away the pain, etc. I knew that my last time check was at 24 and
I wanted as much in the bank as possible.
By mile 24 I figured I was about 1:30 under. I'm somewhat dreading
having to run these last two miles but I am happy with the cushion. Knowing
that you can hit your goal even if you slow down can be a powerful
motivator. I knew I didn't have to
sprint, but I had just enough fight in me to not want to lose any time. It was a fight though and each quarter mile
was getting harder and harder. I get to
the last mile which feels like forever of course. The last aid station had
ziplock bags full of ice so I grabbed one and held it to my neck as I ran. It wasn't a magic bullet, but it certainly
felt good. Miles 25 & 26 were 8:14
and 8:22 respectively - I was seriously slowing down! Finally I'm inside the
last quarter mile and can see the finish line. I tried not to even look at it,
but how can you not? My last quarter was a 7:55 pace and it couldn't come soon
enough.
3:32:16! A PR by 12 minutes! I know that at least half of
that is due to the course, so I am realistic about where I am. I stood under the mister, got a popsicle, a
coke w/ ice (love, love, love coca cola) and some fruit. I was seriously
over-heated and sat down under a tree for some time before I felt steady enough
to get up.
People often ask me what my favorite marathon is and I
always say it's hard to pick. Pikes Peak
is the one I am most proud of, but they are all special in their own way. St.
George is no different and I am thrilled that I was able to do it. I've always said I plan to never repeat a
marathon (except maybe the really special ones) because to some degree knowing
that I only get one shot motivates me to prepare for and savor each one.
As I finish writing this it is three days later. I am still
really sore, maybe the most I've ever felt after a marathon. At least my knees
don't feel any worse. I am trying to get my head wrapped around running Chicago
this weekend. My goal was to just phone it in, but how can I go all that way
and not give it a shot? I think I'll ensconce myself in the 3:40 pace group and
see how long I can hold on.
I saw a t-shirt while running, it was a crossfit shirt that
said "it never gets easier but you get faster." So true.
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