Rocket City Marathon - Race Report

Bottom Line Up Front: Accomplished Boston Qualifier.

 

Rocket City Marathon

DATE/TIME:

12DEC2015 @ 0700

LOCATION

Huntsville Alabama –

Total: 26.2

RACE COURSE & GRADE

Flat with minor undulations.  Not many scenic views (except for the Rocket Museum).  Running through middle class and project housing.  Great local support.  Grade: B+

RESULT: 3:23:03 1  7:20 2  7:10 3  7:14 4  7:23 5  7:26 6  7:17 7  7:17 8  7:19 9  7:21 10  7:20 11  7:20 12  7:24 13  7:17 14  7:22 15  7:35 16  7:46 17  8:01 18  8:07 19  8:07 20  8:20 21    8:04 22    8:00 23    8:01 24    8:33 25    8:21 26    8:13 26.2 3:36                         Avg 3:06

Narrative: - Warm/Humid Day - Started well and on pace.  7:20s.  No Stress - Fueled at the goaled spots. - Went well until M16 and M17 when I felt twinges.  Went to Gatorade. - 1st Bite on M18.  Fought cramps for 8miles to the finish - Pissed at missing the Humidity Variable - Accomplished BQ time but not Guarantee.

Place

Gender

Age Group

Gun

Chip

10K

Half

30K

Bib

110 of 1272

91st

10th

3:23:06 (7:45)

3:23:02 (7:45)

45:44 (7:23)

1:36:35 (7:22)

2:20:25  (7:33)

355

HEART RATE MAX: 174/182BPM

Cadence 194Avg/227Max – Avg Stride length 1.08m

TEMP/WEATHER: 70°F at 78%Humid (unseasonal weather)

INJURY/AILMENT: Seizing cramps (calf/groin).  Black Toe Blisters

MISCELLANEOUS:

Shoe

Nike 5.0 2015 Yellow (122 miles)

Timer

Garmin 225 Forerunner

Attire

Nike 2inch shorts, Nike Breakaway singlet, Seahawks Socks & Visor

Music

Marathon Mixture

NARRATIVE

Day before	Ran 4 miles from hotel to finish line (.5mile), then 2mile mark and cut back to hotel.  Carbo Dinner: Chicken and Spag with water & tea and cookie. Slept at 9:30.  Good sleep.
Pre-Race	Awoke at 4:30.  Got rid of almost everything in stomach.  Ate my traditional granola and 18oz Mi0/Water.  Suited up and out the door by 6AM.  Warm-up to course with a mile out/back at 9-10min pace.  Did my prayer.  Took off
10K	Stuck with plan of going 7:20’s.  Noticed a bump at M2 because of the slight downslope.  Refueled as planned at M3.5.  Stayed in the rhythm of my music and cadence.
Half	All the way to the half, I was floating like I had been (Video at Half).  But I did notice a side stitch.  I had never felt that before in any training run or race.   I wasn’t hungry and just fueled at M14.   I went into diagnostics mode and consciously went to form.
Cramps	Me and My Rouge The first twinge happened at 16.  Not a bite but something firing in the calf.  Something is wrong.  At 17 it went to the right leg.  Then it happened.  A full snake (more like Shark) bite stopped me dead in my tracks and almost fell over.  Part of my mind went to panic over other failed marathons, but I fought the temptation of going into self-deprecation. Okay, Great (sarcasm) 8miles left and about 70minutes to BQ.  That’s when I went to happy places. 8 miles is the loop by my house I take Rouge.  I just did that run last Saturday with her.  “Okay Rue, Let’s Go!” I yelled (frankly I could care less who heard me).
20Mile	Every incline was painful.  Imagine going from flat to 1 on a treadmill.  That was the slope but it was just enough to trigger a cramp bite.  When I got to 20 I thought 10K (the actual 2nd Half everyone speaks of).  The GUT CHECK. But it was going to take more than guts to get this done.  I needed to be patient because every time I’d lift my effort the bite was coming soon after.  I measured each effort to what it was going to cost me in pain.  My internal engine was great but the tires were flat and the entire body could only go so fast.  I broke down the distance into 2mile pieces, then 5Ks, then small mile bits.  All the while I kept a smile on my face.  I refused to go down broken or sad.  Sure I could be mad, but I wasn’t going down disheartened because I didn’t try to give it everything.  Life has given me worse heartaches than this, “So Darn It, SMILE!!!”    I wanted to be as positive as possible. As other runners cramped too, I’d give them a boost, “Hey, we got this! KEEP GOING.”  (I’d never say almost there.  I hate that saying)
Finish	Mile 24 and two miles to go at 10:03AM.  That means I have 17mintues for the Guarantee.  The internal engine was revving up but it couldn’t go anywhere without some serious pain.   But then I asked myself, is the pain masking an injury or is it a matter of a big hurt?  Nothing was broken, my muscles would spasm, but I didn’t tear anything.  If I bumped it up right now, the pain would go away as soon as I got into the Arena Finish.  So I went for it.  I was still above an 8:30 pace but just a little more I though, even cutting 20sec per the last miles would help.  At least I’d be running in.  I got to the last mile mark.  “Boy does this hurt”.  I felt fast although my watch would say otherwise.  I was into the home stretch approaching the Arena.  An elderly man (probably in his 60s) who passed me earlier, was ahead of me.  But he fell forehead and right-shoulder first.  I wanted desperately to stop instead I yelled and pointed to spectators to call for a Medic.  People gathered around as I past him but hoping he was alright. Rounding the Arena, the last 100yds is a railing leading to a chute to the finish arch.  The first 3-digits on the clock read 3:23.  I made the BQ.  In the back of my mind I also knew I probably missed the guarantee.  But Right now, I was exhilarated by the finish, pumped my fist down and yelled “That’s my 1st BQ”.  A BQ I’ve been dreaming about for 19 years.
After	Everything below the hips hurt.  As I took inventory of all the ailments, both big toes were now black.  My calves and left groin seized to rock.  I could hardly walk out of the arena.  Surprisingly, my feet and arches were fine. I told Grace that I’d never run this race again.   I spent the afternoon in bed watching Navy Beat Army.  Drank a lot of water and cookies.  No beer. The next day I got up at sunrise.  I took the same Friday warmup path.  I went to the finish, then back around to the 1mile and 2mile marks.  Then split back to the 12-13mile mark into the Arena finish.  Just to look at it again.  I don’t know why but I became very angry.  This course relinquished a 2017 BQ to me, but I knew I didn’t beat it.  It took a lot out of me to get the BQ.  Regardless if I get to Boston in 2018, I told myself I’m coming back to run the 2016 Rocket City Marathon course again.  I'm going to run as fast as possible and beat this course.

Above its the format of my debriefs to my coach.  Here is a Link to a Bottom Line Up Front (BLUF) Report (please cut and paste if you want to keep one for yourself).  I try to be concise on my scheduled (high-intensity) workouts and big races.  It serves as both a tool for improvement and a record of my personal history. 

 

RCM Course 2015

CAN'T STOP ENDURANCE
Thank you very much to CSE for giving me the chance to improve.  Not only in the run but throughout the four months leading to this marathon.  I was able to be a better running person.  I not only felt good on the outside, but felt pretty good on the inside about how I was competing. Thank you CSE!

RCM Finisher Medal