Team Cross Runs

Other’s Thoughts about Twin Cities Marathon

You’ve read my thoughts about my race during the Twin Cities Marathon, but I thought I would share what other people have said.

First, here is a list of other bloggers:

• Running Down My Dreams ran a PR.
• Life By the Falls ran an amazing and inspirational race.
• Down the Backstretch has a lot of coverage.
• Monomelic-Amyotrophy-tastic had a DNF.
• Make it a Masterpiece finished his 30th marathon.
• Team Unattached Running has a great list of their teammates performances.
• Simon Says… Run had a decent race.
• Kristin Armstrong’s thoughts over at Mile Markers.
• I found Miss Alleycat’s comments through Technorati.  She wrote about the spectathon!

Have you heard about Marathon Guide? They are a great resource I’ll have to right more about sometime, but for now, they let people comment on a race.  Here are a couple highlights:

Outstanding race, year after year (about: 2008)
Course: 5 Organization: 4 Fans: 5
S. W. from St. Paul, Minnesota (10/14/08)
6-10 previous marathons | 4-5 Twin Cities Marathons

I love the Twin Cities Marathon and have now completed the marathon four times with this year (despite the rain and 48-degree weather), achieving a PR time. As is the case with Minnesota weather, you should be prepared for almost anything. In 2007, it was 80 degrees with 70% humidity, so if you do not train for varying conditions, the TCM can become a challenge very quickly. Overall, though, the fans were outstanding and seemed louder than ever, given that they must have been freezing while standing in the cold, rainy weather. The course was organized with plenty of volunteers at the water stops. Although, the event achieves a near-perfect mark in my opinion, I think the TCM fails miserably with post-race refreshments. Compared to Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, which is stockpiled with goodies, the TCM should look to get more food sponsors and thus give runners a real treat when finishing. It seems like this area of the organization continues to decline every year.

TC Marathon - Thumbs Up! (about: 2008)
Course: 5 Organization: 4 Fans: 5
Ryan Nied from Plainfield, IL (10/9/08)
11-50 previous marathons | 1 Twin Cities Marathon

Twin Cities 2008 was marathon #13 for me in 7 short years. I recommend you run this race.
I’ve read a number comments about the weather. I ran Chicago last year in 88-degree weather, so although I did fear hypothermia at one point, it was much better than last year.
The reason? The spectators were downright awesome. I couldn’t believe how many weathered the storm along with us runners.
The finisher’s shirt is great.
I set a 55-second PR despite the challenging conditions, and I am totally ecstatic about how the morning went. It was an extremely memorable, positive experience for me.
Couple of minor suggestions:
1. Aid stations need to be more frequent earlier on - not a fan of having to wait until almost mile 2.5 for a drink. Later on, they are in good frequency.
2. Check mile marker #3’s position for accuracy. Had an unusually fast mile - and it felt short.
Overall, great job by the organizers.

Holy Hannah! (about: 2008) Course: 5 Organization: 5 Fans: 5 L. Y. from Southeast USA (10/7/08) 3 previous marathons | 1 Twin Cities MarathonWow, what can I say. The weather was AWFUL!!!!!!! But the race was fabulous! As everyone stated previously, the fans were amazing. Hats off to the guy dressed up as the televangelist with the “BELIEVE” sign. You definitely were the best out there! I keep reading these comments about the hard hills from 21 to 25, and I’m thinking, “Really?” Seriously, they were not that bad. Very slow and gradual. Totally doable. I have to agree with the comments about the porta-potties. There were definitely not enough. Sadly, I had to stop twice, and each time I did, it cost me about five minutes off my time. And since I’m a woman, I don’t exactly have a choice but to wait in line. The post-race support was great and the food was adequate. I appreciate the simple things, so I was psyched when I saw the rolls! Overall, no complaints about this race. The weather was terrible but the city, support, and beautiful route more than made up for it! Kudos to Minneapolis!

Thank you, Twin Cities (about: 2008) Course: 5 Organization: 5 Fans: 5 Gregory Ruthig from Iowa (10/7/08) 6-10 previous marathons | 1 Twin Cities MarathonPros: 1. The course is as nice as advertised. The lakes and neighborhoods in Minneapolis and St. Paul were pretty, even in the pouring rain. Running over the Mississippi was a cool experience. 2. Crowd support (considering the weather) was phenomenal. I never got tired of hearing: “Goooo!” being shouted with thick Minnesota accents. 3. Volunteers were equally as good. Not only were they friendly, but they were clearly well trained by the organizers. For a runner who only wants to think about running on race day, they really made everything run smoothly. 4. Despite never having visited the cities before, my wife was able to drive around town and see me five times along the course. I can’t imagine that this is possible at most urban marathons. 5. I was worried that with only two corrals that slower runners would clog up the front of the starting line. This was not the case at all. From what I could see, everybody in the first corral was very conscientious about starting with similarly paced runners. 6. Finisher’s shirt. I usually don’t care about this sort of thing, but putting on the dry finisher’s shirt after running in the cold rain was heavenly. Cons (these are very minor and more like constructive criticism): 1. The layout of the receptacles for the warm-up bags made dropping them off pretty chaotic. If they were placed in a long line, or just more spread out, it would have been easier. 2. Getting up to the first corral involved waiting in a slow-moving line that made me get a little panicky about the race starting while I was in line. In the end I was able to make it up there with several minutes to spare. Breaking my PR by three minutes may be affecting my comments, but after running six marathons in four states, this was among my favorites, despite the rainy weather. This race combines much of the excitement of the mega marathons, especially the fan support, but lacks many of the logistical headaches. This was my first trip to Minnesota and I found the people made the visit and the marathon a great experience.

Wonderful first marathon, despite the weather (about: 2008) Course: 5 Organization: 5 Fans: 5 J. W. from Savage, Minnesota (10/7/08) 1 previous marathon | 1 Twin Cities MarathonThis was my first marathon and I had a wonderful experience. The logistics of signing up for the race, to picking up my racing bib and chip at the expo the day before the race, to getting situated at the starting line all went extremely smoothly. Despite the pouring rain and 47-degree temperature, there was fan support for the entire length of course. I had an overall wonderful experience and plan on doing it again next year.

That’s enough random thoughts.  Did I miss your post? Let me know in the comments and I’ll add it to the list.

Technorati Tags: Twin Cities Marathon, Twin Cities, Marathon

Marathon Charts

Image via Wikipedia

Are you tired of hearing about the marathon yet? Well after Twin Cities I am pretty much pain free by now!!! YAY!! Thanks for all the congratulations, comments, and insights about my race.  They are appreciated.  Below are a few charts I’ve pulled out from SportTracks.  They give a nice visual reference for the 26.2 mile journey called a marathon.  In case you missed the more detailed race reviews, look back at Grading the Race Plan and Race Review.

You can get a better glimpse of the images by clicking on them.

First up is the pace chart, you can clearly see the 4 walk breaks and I would say some early inaccuracies (pace dips at beginning).  There is no way I ever ran at 4 minute pace, even for a split second!

This next chart shows my pace per mile. For some reason SportTracks really thinks I ran a 6:40 mile, but I showed you yesterday that it was more like 7:27. I should also note that the miles it shows at the bottom (1.08, 2.11, etc) that is based on the splits I took after passing each mile marker.

This is the first time I’ve ever viewed this chart before.  It shows the pace per mile in comparison to the overall average pace.  My average pace was 7:51.

In the past the elevation chart has tended to be the most inaccurate part of the Garmin data.  You can look at the marathon’s official elevation chart here (PDF)

Is this too much data? I’m really intrigued by the discrepancies within the data.  I’ve never noticed it before. What do you think?

Related articles by Zemanta

• Race Review: Twin Cities Marathon

Technorati Tags: Twin Cities, Marathon, Twin Cities Marathon, Garmin, GPS

Race Review: Twin Cities Marathon

So here is a more traditional race review.  It won’t be as long since I’ve already talked about most of the race yesterday: Grading the Race Plan.

Pre-Race

I was going to jog/walk the mile to the start but when I awoke to rain, I scratched that idea and had Christy drop me off at the Metrodome. I dropped my bag and hung out with my fellow MDRA classmates.  Nathan and I did a short jog before getting into the corrals.  I would agree with his assessment that the corral was really narrow and oddly laid out.  The Star Spangled Banner started playing as we were walking through the narrow area.  Some people had stopped to respect the song while others barged past.  I think there was a little confusion because I heard several people ask what was happening.  I don’t think people realized that the wheelchair event started 10 minutes before the marathon.

Race

I won’t go over too much more since I covered most of it yesterday.  But here are my splits.

Here is the official data:

Now here are my splits from my Garmin uploaded into various software Sportstracks on the left Motion Based in the middle and Garmin Training Center on the right (more on this at a later date):

I’m sure some disparities jumped out at you.But overall it gives you a good idea of how things went.  I’m not sure if I missed the mile markers or if I pushed the button, but not hard enough.  It was cold enough that I had trouble getting my hands to function!

I was amazed at the crowd support all morning - even through the torrential downpours.  I caught up to the 3:10 pace group right around the mile 7 water stop.  This was a narrow area on the trail and it was a huge walls of people cheering and lining the course and then bam into the back of the pace group.  It felt really crowded and almost claustrophobic. This was the only time that I really felt the largeness of the marathon.

I think the loneliest parts were around Nokomis, which is around the 1/2 point.  I think that is also the point that I started realizing that I was in a little pain.  Summit Ave was agony, but I expected that! I also wasn’t expecting how much pain I would be in at the very end. I thought the adrenaline rush of the final hill and straight stretch would carry me… everything hurt and every inch of me wanted to stop running - except for the finish banner up ahead.

A friend suggested that I say a prayer at every mile and since I am running in honor of my African friends that I say a prayer for them.  It was a good idea and I did pray off and on at different mile markers.  I should have done more in the second half when I was in pain and hurting - but that didn’t come to mind then.  It may have helped some, if nothing else it would have reminded me that my pain is temporary and in a few days I’ll feel no ill effects of the marathon.  But the pain that my friends feel each day is real with no end in sight.  An interesting thought…

Post Race

After crossing the finish line I remember getting my medal and foil blanket before shuffling around towards the food.  I grabbed a bunch of the random and good food that they had.  I talked with Steve who had finished 20 minutes before me but was still standing around talking to people in the finish chute.  He recommended the hot chicken broth to reheat and re-salt me a little bit.  I felt pretty terrible but was pleased that I must have looked good enough that the thousands of medical staff weren’t that interested in me! Many people looked a lot worse than I felt.  I kept wanting to sit down but knew that was bad and kept shuffling… got my finisher’s shirt and picked up my clothes.

Changing into a dry shirt and getting pants on was a little bit of a chore, but it felt oh so good.  I wore my Teva sandels after struggling to get my shoes and socks off!  I finally got everything together and meandered out to find my wife and friends.  They were all excited to see me and we slowly made our way to the cars - which were in the Sears lot.  That seemed like a pretty long little journey as I shuffled around trying not to make any sudden moves!

So I guess that is the review.  TCM did a great job all around making sure there was plenty of support along the course and at the finish line.  The people of the Twin Cities really came out in full force to make sure we felt the love.  I missed much of the beauty of the course due to rain or tiredness, but it is pretty dang pretty!

Technorati Tags: Minneapolis, Twin Cities, St Paul, Twin Cities Marathon, Marathon, Race Review

Grading the Race Plan

Feeling good at 2.5

Plans are made to be followed, reviewed, analyzed, and improved for next time.  So how did I do on Sunday compared to the Race Plan I published for you on Saturday?  Did I pass or fail?

Obviously, I passed because I finished the race, although there were definitely points in the later stages where I wanted to stop, sit on the curb and wait for medical to come get me.  I looked in the medical tents (they were pretty empty) and they had those pool chairs with the multiple settings to lay back on… you know the ones with plastic webbing?  Yea, those… they seemed a lot more comfortable than the pain I was in at the time, but failure didn’t seem like a good idea either!

A Look at the Goals

1) To qualify for Boston with a 3:10 (7:15 pace),

2) To break 3:30, or

3) To have fun and finish.

I hit my 2nd and 3rd Goals pretty well.  I was told several times that as a first-timer my only goal should have been to finish and then place other goals below that.  My MDRA Coach said that my A goal should have been to finish and my A+ goal the 3:10 and B goal be to break 3:30.  So I’ll do the average of an A-.

This quote may have been a little too arrogant:

The others are plans B and C in case I fall apart out there - but I don’t foresee that happening at all.

Umm, hello the marathon is a beast and I wasn’t treating it with the complete and utter respect it deserves.  TCM humbled me in that regard! As solid as my training had been I shouldn’t have taken for granted how I would respond.

Simply put, my race plan is to go out easy and finish hard.

Well, simply, I didn’t go out easy enough and the finish was hard, but it wasn’t the good kind of hard! On the simple race plan I’ll take a C.

For the more detailed plan I’ll put Saturday’s post in italics and my thoughts in regular font:

In the early miles “Take it easy—take it too easy.” I should have taken it much easier. I was 22:48 through the first 5K which is 7:20 pace. And that includes a sub-7 3rd mile.  Ooops!! I should have been at least a 7:30 pace or slower. I did take it slow up the hill on Hennepin and right after the turn.  I also let the 3:10 pace group pull way ahead of me from the starting line. D

Stay well-hydrated. We got some help on this one with the early middle miles being rain-soaked.  I still took fluid at every water stop.  I was going to take water at every one and Powerade at every other, but often got confused on whether I had just taken a Powerade or not at the last one! I usually compensated by taking the Powerade just to be sure! I had a slight urge to pee at some point but never enough to have to stop and it went away.  A+

Take a Shot Blok every 5k - this worked well in training and past races. This was easier said than done! I did take one every 5K and after the half-marathon switched to every 3 miles (basically the same thing but easier to think about). The hardest part about this was trying to get the shot blok out of the package! Before the start I opened both packs, but my fingers were so cold during the race that I basically had no manual dexterity to manipulate the packages.  It took a lot of focus and determination to make sure I got them out without dropping any.  I don’t think I calorically bonked during the race - compared to previous experiences, so I think this plan worked pretty well.  I took 8 total Bloks and there are 8.4 5K’s in the race so I was right on! A+

“Cruise” around the lakes and enjoying the “Most Beautiful Urban Marathon in America.” I guess I should have defined cruise… My splits around the lakes were pretty much all below marathon goal pace, which really isn’t cruising! I probably should have been just over goal pace during this section.  I actually caught back up to the 3:10 pace group around mile 7. I did try to enjoy running the lakes, but I threw my gloves off at 2.5 and the wind and cold started hitting around the Lakes again. It was very pretty along here, until the rain started.  Just as we got to Lake Harriet I saw lightening and heard thunder… shortly after the water stop the deluge began and probably the most scenic part of the course was run while getting drenched by buckets of rain! Sad, but there were still tons of cheering spectators along the course so props to them! B- (I’ll curve up for the weather!)

Part of my support crew!

Relax through the middle hills, feel good, and smile for the camera at the half. I consciously slowed down through the rolling hills on Minnehaha Parkway, even though my splits don’t really show it. I would watch the pace group pull away over the hilly sections and then catch back up again before the next set.  The rain started to slow down and I tried smiling for the cameras but was starting to feel a little fatigued as well.  After each hilly section it became a little harder to pick the pace back up.  I was right on goal pace at 13 miles, with little aches and pains that came and went. B+

Soak in the spectators and stay focused on the West River Parkway. There were a decent number of spectators on the course along the Parkway. I was impressed with the crowd support along the entire course, especially during the deluge.  West River Parkway was one of the thinner spots, but one of my visiting college teammates came from the crowd and ran with me for a few strides to check-in, offer a dry shirt, etc around 17. For the record, I didn’t take the cotton shirt, even though my number was on my shorts so I could have easily done it. My hip was starting to hurt, but I lied and said I was fine, which he relayed to my other friends and wife who were cheering wildly for me! I stayed focused and tried to relax.  A

Cross Franklin Ave bridge feeling good and don’t bust up the hills - stay even and consistent. Well good wouldn’t be the word I would choose to describe my feeling crossing Franklin.  The slight incline of the bridge, which hadn’t bothered me in training, seemed steep enough.  Not a good sign. I was starting to feel the exhaustion and pain set in.  I stopped at mile 20 which has the ALARC Wall to try and stretch my IT Band/hip - to no real avail.  And walked for the first time later that mile on the hill up to Lake Street, but was able to run/jog up the St Thomas hill before trying to finish up Summit.  D

Run the tangents, unless it is really sunny - then run the shade. I felt like I ran the tangents pretty well throughout the first half. I can’t really remember as well about the second half but almost half of that is straight up Summit - so I’ll say it went pretty well.  As a group we tacked on some extra mileage evading huge water puddles.  I’m not sure if it really mattered or not, but seemed like the right thing to do.  My overall Garmin distance ranged from 26.4 - 26.68 (depending on the program) so that wasn’t toooo bad.  There was no sun!  I’ll go with a B.

Stay consistent but start reeling in the runners while cruising up Summit. Hmm consistent is not quite my middle name! In this last section, when I was running my pace was fairly consistent.  The key word being “when.” I walked a total of 4 times during the last 10K and 3 times in the last 4 miles. I took the extreme opposite meaning of “cruise” for this part of the course!! I walked for right about 3 minutes during each of the breaks but only stopped once more to stretch.  That was a mistake - it was really hard to start walking again! Each time I picked a mark on the course and said I have to run when I hit that spot.  I think if I had maintained a slower pace during the running portions I could have cut out a walk break.  I actually did pass people while I was running again each time.  One of my training partners passed me with about 3 to go or so and encouraged me.  This section really really hurt! D+

Kickin to the end!

When you see the Cathedral - bust a move and kick it on the downhill finish. Well I busted something…  Comparatively I was busting a move - even though it didn’t feel like it! Mile 21 included my first walk break and was my first mile over 8 (and actually 9) minute pace.  The last 1.2 miles were all under 9 minute pace, so in comparison that was a kick!!! A group of MDRA runners/friends were at mile 24-25 somewhere in there and I like this quote from their blog, “Nick Cross who did his best to block us out, but couldn’t resist the cowbell.” I was so out of it, that it took me a while to realize someone was cheering me on by name, then I looked and recognized the faces… but had no energy to really acknowledge them.  Did I gesture in your direction??  After seeing them and being so close, I knew I couldn’t walk any more.  The downhill was pounding.  The last 0.2 miles hurt a lot, my muscles were seizing up on me and saying NO MORE, PLEASE STOP NOW.  Eugene, my college buddy from mile 17, yelled “get the girl in yellow”…  so I did, but that was all the energy I had.  Raise my arms for the finish picture and shuffle, shiver, and ache through the finish area! B

And for the record, Halie Gebrselassie’s quote from his recent WR two Sunday’s ago did not come out of my lips:

“Today, I’m so, so, so happy. Everything was perfect today”

My overall score… Let’s call it a B or B-.  Ok, I know I am being a little hard on myself - this is the first marathon, its a learning game.  Take it and learn…  I will, but I have to be hard on myself to make sure I learn from it.  Yes, I’m disappointed I missed my 3:10 goal.  Yes I’m excited about finishing.  Yes, I’ll take a 3:25 marathon debut.  And… Yes I’ll probably do another one!

Technorati Tags: Marathon, Twin Cities Marathon, Twin Cities, Race Review

Marathon Training: Week 18

Img from flickr.

TAPERING!!! In some ways life and work have been so busy that it is hard to really feel like the taper has kicked in.  But then again 2 days in a row without running is hard to handle! But the weather has been amazing!

Monday: 3 miles. I ran out and back along the Greenway for a nice 4 mile run.  This may have been the warmest run of the week in the upper-50’s in the morning!  I ran in 29:54.

Tuesday: 4-6 miles. Our last group training run.  It was a nice and relaxed run as we tried to dial back the pace a bit.  We even practiced for the marathon by starting behind the next slower pace group and waiting patiently for the first mile before slowly pulling away.  Ok, so that was by accident.  We ran in Edina and got in 5.28 miles in 41:30.  The run was followed by a talk about preparing for the marathon. It was in the mid- upper 50’s for this one.

Wednesday: 0-3 miles. I did my Metrodome loop on a chilly morning.  I was wearing long-sleeves and my knit gloves for this one.  I think it was 43! The marathon starts at the Dome so I was scoping out the starting areas.  I did 3 miles in 25:17 and things are feeling good!

Thursday: 0-3 miles. A nice rest day!!

Friday: 0-3 miles. Another good day of rest and hanging out with old college teammates!

Saturday: 0-2 miles. A relaxing and easy 2.5 miles around Powderhorn Park.  It was a beautiful sunny morning with temps in the low-40’s.  It was nice to get some of the cobwebs out but not be strenuous.

Sunday:RACE DAY!!! 26.2 miles. I did it!! 26.2 miles in 3:25:54!! My first marathon is complete.  It hurt and it rained, a lot.  Stay tuned for more details throughout the week!

Weekly Mileage

Running - 41.2 miles

Hal’s Tip of the Week: Smile as you cross the finish line. More important: Don’t punch your stopwatch until a few seconds later, while you’re in the chute. You want to look good for the finish-line photo.

Technorati Tags: Marathon Training, Hal Higdon, Marathon

Week 18

Quick Marathon Post

I just woke up from a short nap following the marathon debut.  It was a cool pretty much perfect start at 8am that turned miserable with a deluge of rain for 4-5 miles starting around 7.  I hit the wall shortly after 20 and finished in 3:25.

I finished and am now a marathoner!!

I’ll have a more in-depth review later this week but wanted to let you know.  Thanks for all the spectators who endured nasty weather this morning and for all those who cheered me on!

TCM Race Plan

Every race should have a plan. I think for my marathon debut at the Twin Cities Marathon I am going to go out at about 5 minute pace for the first half and drop to 4:30 pace for the last. That should help me set the marathon world record. I mean I only have to beat 2:03:59 right? Yea Haile Gebrselassie broke his own record and set the new one. I’m glad because I needed a little something to push myself through the middle miles!

Who am I kidding?!? My marathon goals are:

1) To qualify for Boston with a 3:10 (7:15 pace),

2) To break 3:30, or

3) To have fun and finish.

My training is on track for the 3:10 finish so unless something happens on race morning to suggest otherwise that will be the goal I have in mind.  The others are plans B and C in case I fall apart out there - but I don’t foresee that happening at all.  I’ve re-read Blaine Moore’s book, Marathon Preparation & Recovery and I’m ready to go.

Simply put, my race plan is to go out easy and finish hard. More technically I will follow the advice of friend, teammate, and accomplished marathoner Kirk Walztoni who recently published a great article in the Run MN Magazine. Here are my key takeaways:

• In the early miles “Take it easy—take it too easy.”
• Stay well-hydrated.
• Take a Shot Blok every 5k - this worked well in training and past races.
• “Cruise” around the lakes and enjoying the “Most Beautiful Urban Marathon in America.”
• Relax through the middle hills, feel good, and smile for the camera at the half.
• Soak in the spectators and stay focused on the West River Parkway.
• Cross Franklin Ave bridge feeling good and don’t bust up the hills - stay even and consistent.
• Run the tangents, unless it is really sunny - then run the shade.
• Stay consistent but start reeling in the runners while cruising up Summit.
• When you see the Cathedral - bust a move and kick it on the downhill finish.

I found a TCM customized pace chart that can be used to pace yourself to your goal time, I might cut it out and use it. Or one from MarathonGuide.com

I’ll be wearing an orange jersey NOT MDRA red. My bib number is 430.

When I finish I want to say just like Gebrselassie said last Sunday:

“Today, I’m so, so, so happy. Everything was perfect today”

Related articles by Zemanta

• Twin Cities Marathon Course Preview