Saturday, June 21, 2008

Race day…It is nice to get up a little later in morning. The starting line is always a great time to see people that we know and to make plans for a good race. The gun was a little late in going off but off we went. I was cruising for the first 2 miles and needed to really slow things down. Before I got to this point I saw my wife pass me and I wished her well.

I would not see her until the finish line.

The day was just perfect for running…it was partially sunny and right around the half way point it started to rain…just what I like! It stopped after about 10 minutes and the sun came back out. Unlike years past it wasn’t too hot!!

I ran what I could and walked when I needed and just had a good old time. My goal was 95 but I settled for 97. My wife on the other hand had a stretch goal of 90 and she was a whole 34 seconds over that!!!

Beautiful day…10.07 miles in 1:38:47

Sunday, June 8, 2008

When we woke this morning they were calling for more rain…just what we really need! But I was determined to head up there and see what was going on. We got to the area at about 10:45 and the registration only went until 11:15. The news was reporting that there were more storms on the way and that there was a warning until 11:45.

My wife was sitting next to me in the truck and said “if it is going to rain…I’m not going to pay to run in it! If you want to go ahead!”

I thought about it for a while and at 10 after 11 I finally decided that I was going to do it rain or no rain.

I got a shirt but they had already run out of numbers…this meant that I would be running without a number but that is okay it was more about the beer and the run than the number anyway.

While waiting for the race to start it began to pour…not just a little either but buckets!! The road in front of us flooded…I mean flooded! The van that was taking materials to the finish line already had water up to its hubcaps. The runners (drinkers) were having fun in the rain…the beach balls came out and people were just having fun.

The rain was still coming down when the horn went off but it had lightened up a bit. Over 1,100 runners set out on this wet course. We made our way down the road playing in the water. We made the first turn and the search for the first beer stop began…we all thought was at the turn but it was another 2 blocks. We all stopped…I don’t think the volunteers were ready for us since it took a good 3-4 minutes to get my beer!

The beer was okay and it was only a 4 oz cup…that they didn’t fill up. >:^(

I headed off to the second stop and found that there were people out on the street handing out medium (8 oz.) sized cups! I took one. If I’m going to drink while I run I should DRINK!!

While they were filling my large cup I noticed that the turn was flooded and that people were trudging through it. With my cup full I started to run through the thigh high water…boy was that fun!! The rain was still coming down and I still had 2 beer stops to go.

The next beer stop was quicker and I was able to move through it pretty quick.

By this point people were walking and enjoying the rain but I really wanted to run the race so I kept running. The last beer stop was managed by the HHH of Waukesha and I have to hand it to them they know how to drink and run!!

I made my way to the finish line and crossed in 22:07…not real bad for a 1.8 mile run and having to stop to drink beer. I will be back next year!!

On my way back to the car I ran an additional 0.3 miles just so that I felt like I got 2 miles in for the day.

Saturday, December 8, 2007

Race Day!! Today is the Jingle Bell run but I’m still training for Goofy, so I set out to run about 6 miles before the 5k race but based on my faulty mapping it turned out to be only 5.44 miles.

The race went really well. The 1st mile was 8:05 and my time at mile 2 was 16:05…hmm negative split is pretty good! I was starting to catch my wife and a few of my fellow runners so I slowly moved past them and finished the race. Here is what is odd…The 5k race turned out to be 2.79 miles…so the running group decided that we should finish the 5k so we ran a couple of laps and finished the 5k.

Total for the day was 8.57 miles for a total time of 78:40 or a pace of 9:11.

Thursday, November, 22, 2007

Well today was race day. My wife and I had been watching the weather reports all week and we didn’t like the looks for the day. When we got up the snow had fallen but there wasn’t that much on the ground…only about an inch stuck to the grass. Then temp was about 30 degrees but the wind was blowing strong from the NNW.

We got down to Kenosha and picked up our registration packet then went back to the car and sat there for 10 min to stay warm. Once we headed back to the starting line we realized that the wind was picking up and that the snow had started to fly again.

The race started a few minutes late but the vocalist singing the National Anthem did a fantastic job. We headed out at a good pace…around 9:12 and did a great job sticking to that pace for most of the race. All of the way out to the turn around the wind was into our face. It was hard going but my wife was a trooper. We kept the pace nice and easy.

Before the turnaround I remembered to take off my gloves before I started to overheat. As we approached to turnaround we saw all of our other runners go by. We made the turn for home and as we headed back saw our final two running group partners.

The turn home was as bad as I thought it would be…no wind and I started to overheat a bit. We kept moving and tried to keep the pace steady I saw Andy up ahead and thought that I could catch him in the last mile so I told my wife once we hit 5 miles she would be on her own but once we got there the person calling out the time said “45:40” My wife’s goal for this race was sub 58 and I had no doubt that she was going to hit that but at this point there was the potential for a sub 56!! I decided to stick with her and do what I could to push her.

We mad the final turn west and before I could ask her to step up the pace a bit she gets hit with a side stitch!! She worked trough it like a trooper and I kept the pace up beat. I tried to keep her mind off of the pain and told here to focus on catching th woman ahead of us.

By the time we hit 6 miles the stitch went away and she was able to run fast we completed the 10k (6.2 miles) in 56:47!! I am so proud of my wife for accomplishing her goal!!

Chicago Marathon – My first DNF

How is that for an opening to a race report?

I was ready. I had put the training in and made the necessary modifications to my process. I knew that I’d be able to finish this race as easily as any of the others.

The weather reports all week were calling for high temps for Sunday. They were predicting 85 degrees with high humidity. I just kept my eye on that storm hoping that we’d get rained on. But when we woke up Sunday morning, at 4 AM mind you, it was already 75 degrees. This wasn’t going to be pretty.

I kept a positive outlook. I knew what I needed to do to keep me moving and I planned to just stay with my pace group and know that in the end I will be happy that I did the race. The high temps meant that I would need to drink a little more and to be sure that I kept my self cool.

At 8 AM we were off. It took me 16 ½ minutes to reach the starting line but once I did it was pretty easy running. I took my time and maintained my pace. By mile 2 I was starting to heat up a bit so I eased off and continued to run. I started pouring water over my head to stay cool.

I arrived at the first aid station to find that it had already been abandoned and no water or Gatorade was available. I didn’t panic because I was carrying my water bottle that was still half full.

I trudged along and by mile 4 I was completely drained. I was overheating and the water wasn’t enough. I was lucky enough to find a restroom by mile 5 because I wasn’t feeling very well.

Once things had passed I got back out there and found that we were being told that there was no water at the next aid station. Thank god this was incorrect! The aid station was still operating but it appeared that they were unprepared for the onslaught that fell upon them. The volunteers tried their hardest to accommodate everyone and I was thankful to have some Gatorade and a full water bottle.

At mile six I took some much needed gel to try to recoup some of my lost energy but it was no use. I took off my hat in hopes that it was holding in the heat and making me feel much hotter than I really was but it was not the case. The sun was just cooking me and I was not handling it very well.

I drenched my hat when I could and took in as much fluid as I thought I could handle but I realized that this was not going to be my day.

I saw more and more runners around me starting to walk and I knew that this was not a good sign.

At mile 11 I decided that when I saw my wife at 13.1 I was going to make the decision to drop out. I just could not take this abuse any longer and did not feel that it was worth hurting myself to try to complete this marathon.

When I saw my wife I began to cry knowing that for the first time I was not going to complete a marathon. She calmed me down and told me to take a break. I rest at the side of the road in the shade for a minute. She gave me some beans and told me that I was not going to drop just yet that I could walk some more and that she would accompany me for a little while.

I crossed the half-way point at 3:25 (3:07 chip time or 11:25 AM) and we continued to walk. My wife kept me moving and feeding me the beans when we got to the aid station near mile 14 it was closed, no water and no Gatorade but we were told there was some water about 3 blocks away. My wife said sorry but I have to do this and tasted my sweat (before becoming a runner I don’t think she would have ever done that) and said there is no salt…you need some electrolytes now!

She saw a convenience store about a block away and said that she would go get some if I wanted, I told her yes! When I approached the store the firefighters had opened up they hydrant and they were giving water out to the runners directly from the tap. I once again filled my bottle and kept moving.

My wife caught up with me about a half mile down the road. She reported that the store was full of runners doing the same thing she was doing for me. I opened up the bottle and started drinking like there was no tomorrow. I had to stop myself before I got cramps.

About a mile later I had finished the bottle of Gatorade and was starting to feel like myself again. I decided that she was right I could finish this race even if it meant walking the rest of the way.

All of the sudden we saw a bunch of people coming up the side streets. These we fellow runners that had been diverted and we were being told by police and medics that the race had been cancelled.

Well I thought that I might have enough in me to finish and said that I would continue anyway but that option was taken away from me as we approached the turn to mile 17. At this point the road was barricaded with a 4 foot high gate and police standing there telling everyone that we were to walk back to Grant Park. Anyone that was running was told, rather sternly, to stop running, the race was over, and that we were to walk to Grant Park.

I had no options. The race was over for me and my fellow runners.

The view ahead of me was quite wondrous seeing thousands of people walking down the streets and all of the fire hydrants open on both sides of the road spraying large arcs of water across the street.

I have some very mixed feelings about this race. I received a medal even though I did not complete the whole course; that is just wrong. According to the website and comments made by the RD “all runners that made it past the halfway point before noon were allowed to finish”…I beg to differ, if you look at my time on the website I past the 15 mile mark around noon and was not allowed to finish.

But what if they had let me finish? This race is not considered official unless you came in ahead of them canceling the race, around 4 hours, so I would still not have been able to count this race.

It was a memorable experience to say the least. I am not proud that I wanted to quit but I am glad that the race officials had enough common sense to see that this race was no longer safe for the participants and called the race over.

The Chicago Marathon was unique. I still have to get Illinois but I just might look at one of the smaller races and hope for cooler weather.

Race Report - Park City, Utah

This all begins 3 months ago when out of the blue I find out that the late summer marathon I was going to run (Bangor, Maine) had been canceled due to an illness. This sent me into a tizzy looking for a new run so that I could have three marathons in this year.

Along comes Park City, Utah. The date for the race was ideal, 6 weeks prior to Chicago and far enough out so that I could adequately train.

Thursday’s flight out was eventful since we were ultimately delayed about an hour due to storms in the area and then due to the delay we were stuck on the tarmac waiting for takeoff. Once we got under way our pilot came on to tell us that only 2 planes were able to takeoff after us due to another storm that blew through Chicago!

We arrived in Salt Lake City and drove to Park City. The drive was rather uneventful but driving into the mountains with semis on the road can be rather nerve-racking when you are not used to it.

We spent most of Friday driving around town and the surrounding area just getting used to the altitude. Since I have never been at this altitude I was not sure what to expect. I found out that my muscles were tingling most of the night Thursday and by Friday they were feeling good but tired. I had trouble sleeping at this altitude, or maybe it was the humidity which was very low (10%) compared to home, and didn’t get sleep that I am used to.

Saturday morning came and I was up and ready to go at 5:30 am. I had half a banana and about a third of a breakfast bar. I drank about 20 oz of water and took 2 electrolyte pills. Got dressed and started to bitch about my shoes not fitting properly…at this point my wife jumped in and told me to knock of the negative talk, I was just making excuses and that everything would be fine if I just kept a positive attitude. She was right of course but at five in the morning I didn’t really care because I was nervous and worried about what the day had in store for me.

The temperature outside was 48 degrees…which for me is not a big deal but with 10% humidity it was COLD!!! The “gun” went off at 6:30 am on the dot and approximately 400 marathoners hit the road before the sun had risen above the surrounding mountain tops.

Miles 1-6: From the starting line we head east along a frontage road and we encounter our first hill of the day. It wasn’t that big of a hill but it was steep and all I could think of is “why did I chose this race?!?” The frontage road gave us some great views of the nearby nature preserve that we would get to see up close at the end of the race. We entered a residential area with some very impressive homes (we later found out that the cheapest one in that neighborhood was $950,000!!) and got a wonderful tour of the trails around the community. We encountered our first bit of gravel trails here. This section of the course, with the rolling hills, was the closest to what we would get in Wisconsin.

Miles 6-13: This was a long stretch. The course was an old rail line that had been converted to a multi-use trail. The grade was slightly upward and as the miles added up you could also feel the toll of the incline in your legs. The sights were awe inspiring. Upon turning onto the trail we could see 4 hot air balloons rising in the nearby mountains. We continued to watch them dance in the sky until about mile 10 when they were behind us. This section of the course we have mountains to both sides and straight in front of us so you know what is coming! The land on both sides of the trail were open for grazing and we got to see a number of cows grazing away…in fact at mile 10 there were two on the trail! As we got closer they moved just off to the side of the trail and kept eating. At 10.5 I saw my wife and introduced her to the people I was running with.

She was a champ…she made sure that I was in the right frame of mind, asked me what I needed and what I would need at the next stop. I told her that I’d like a few Jelly Belly’s the next time I saw her because I could really use some food. I was still progressing at a good pace and was confident at this point that I would be able to hit my goal of 5 ½ hours but the hills were still to come. By 13 miles I was doing great with a 2:35 half!

Miles 13-17.5: This is the hill climb. At this point we turn into Park City and start to progress up to the highest point on the course. The trail was impressive running right next to a major road and under many of the intersections into the city. From this vantage point we were able to see the many parks and shops of Park City up to mile 14. At mile 14 we take a turn and head for the “resort.” The “resort” in question is one of the most expensive in the area. The views here are spectacular! We ran into the resort and circled the lake. We were surrounded on all sides by the most fantastic mountain views I have ever seen. I was still feeling good but took my time and enjoyed the sights. The lake had people fishing in it and there were all kinds of people biking and hiking in the area. I continued on knowing that it was truly “all down hill” from here. My lovely wife was there to greet me at mile 14 and remained there until I returned from the resort at mile 17 at which point she gave me the beans I had asked for and we chatted a bit as she walked me down the trail I had just ran up not too long ago. I was still on pace and now I was headed down hill so all I had to do was run more that walk…sounds easy right?

Mile 17.5-18.5: This mile gets its own remarks because it was just mean. I’m telling you the person that placed this 3 block 16% grade hill at this point of the race should be shot! It was just plain wrong! We cross over a few walking bridges in town and then have to go up this ugly incline. There were people there to cheer us on and I was very grateful the guys at the top of the hill with the water.

Miles 18.5 to 20: This is the section that I though I would have the least trouble with it was down hill at a moderate grade and should be a fast section…well it was and it wasn’t. As I stated earlier Thursday my muscles were tingling from the lack of oxygen and up until this point in the race I had not felt any ill effects of the altitude but running down hill I was starting to pick up speed and my body was not getting enough oxygen to remain happy. My entire body tingled and not in a good way. I never felt like I was going to pass out but all of my muscles felt drained not tired. I know that sounds odd but I was feeling rather good but my body wasn’t sure how to handle what was going on. This section of the course we headed back into a residential area. We ran around a beautiful golf course at the foot of some impressive ski slopes and saw very little in the way of people.

Miles 20 to 26.2: We are back on the trails mostly gravel but there were some improved paved trails. Most of this section I spent walking. The sun was beating down and the temperature had risen to the low 80’s and there was literally no shade to be had. From 20 to 22 we followed a major highway and rounded a farm house where the aid station had bananas…now in the past I have had a bad reaction to bananas on the course but today I was craving them so I gulped a quarter of one down…boy did that taste good! The trail headed under the highway and made its way around a rather big hill and into the nature preserve. This was a beautiful section with a babbling brook to the side of the trail and a number of small bridges to cross. I tried to run a number of times but I felt like jelly and could not maintain any pace for more than a tenth of a mile. So with that I found a few people to chat with on the course and just admired the scenery. Rounding 25.5 mile mark I saw my wife in the distance and she had the camera in hand…I told her to take the picture as I was since I was not about to try running until I could see the finish line.

Well with a tenth of a mile to go I ran the rest of the way in. My official time was 5:46:42.

The rest: After the race I picked up my finishers shirt and sun catcher medal then stretched. The race had worked out an arrangement with the facility to allow runners to use the showers which was a great idea. I took a shower and was relaxing when we spotted someone with a Racine Half Marathon shirt on. It turns out that this couple was from Kenosha!! What are the chances? We chatted with them for quite a while.

The race was fantastic. I would recommend this marathon to everyone. The hills are, for the most part, easy enough. The views are beyond anything I could ever try to explain. The aid stations were well stocked with water, Gatorade, and fantastic crews.

We are ready to move…If we had a reason to move to Park City we would. The people are great.

I could not have completed this race without my wife. She keeps me level headed, she keeps me motivated, and she keeps me running. I can only hope that she realizes just how grateful I am to have her not only by my side but to have her course side. I’ve told her plenty of times that all I really need is to see her at the end of the race but she knows that her presence, expectedly or unexpectedly, on the course helps to move me along. Thanks babe…I love you.

Onward to Chicago.

Saturday, June 16, 2007

For Utah I need to do 15 miles today…for Chicago I need to do 9 miles…the Lighthouse run is today and it is 10 miles…isn’t that enough?

I guess not! I really needed to put the miles on so I decided to run down to the starting line 5 miles away. Managed to complete the 5 miles at a 11:11 min/pace.

Then I completed the Lighthouse Run in 2:01:00. Finished the 10 miles at a pace of 12:23.

In all I completed all 15 miles on a day that was just too damn humid!!