My last post was about the two halves of a marathon, 20 miles and 6.2 miles, and how to run them properly. The post was due to my embarrassingly awful showing at the 2016 Cowtown Marathon where I completely bonked and suffered through that 'second half' of the race. This post, is all about the redemption and unbelievable feeling of accomplishment after listening to my own advice and absolutely CRUSHING the Eugene Marathon on my way to my first ever sub 4 hour time of 3:56:46! It was a PR by almost 15 minutes!
The Eugene Marathon is my idea of the perfect marathon. Let me paint a picture for you: Perfect weather (47 at the start, 65 at the finish), a flat course, beautiful scenery including mountains, rivers, and trees (much of the course is along a shaded path), efficient aid stations and volunteers, smooth check in process, and its in Tracktown, USA and birthplace of Nike! If you've never ran anywhere in the Great Northwest, I suggest you sign up immediately for next years race and treat yourself to an awesome marathon experience. The town of Eugene is great for staying close to the race and in walking distance of restaurants, shops, downtown and the Oregon Campus. I can't wait to come back and run this race again in the future.
I went for a shakeout run that Saturday morning before packet pickup, and got to run on Pre's Trail along the Willamette River. It was one of the most beautiful trails I've ever run on. Some of the pictures I took looked fake, because the trail is immaculate with its groomed bark trail alongside a picturesque river with greenery like you've never seen before. I couldn't believe I was going to get to run a marathon there the following day. I was only supposed to run 2 or 3 miles that morning, but it was so nice I couldn't stop and ended up running 4! I was so excited for Sunday I couldn't stand it! As a runner, you couldn't help but be psyched about getting to run a marathon where Nike began, and get to finish on the most famous track in America! That day I also had the best pizza of my life at La Perla, trust me, go there if you're ever in Eugene...I also ate at Mezza Luna and Sizzle Pie during my stay, both great spots for pizza, but La Perla was my favorite. The local beer was great there too, I had a lot of Hop Valley beers during my 3 day stay, including some Light Me Up Lager after the race, which was delicious after a long run! Another bonus for the trip was that I got to see Oregon play their spring football game at Autzen Stadium, and the price of admission was 3 cans of food!
Race day was perfect in every way, it was like the stars aligned for me to get my sub 4 before I even woke up that morning. The shuttle was close to my hotel, and ran smoothly to the start of the race where I left my drop bag near the start. It was a little chilly, but I knew it was gonna warm up as soon as I started running so I welcomed the early morning temps in the 40's. This is why I ran this race to begin with...I somehow am cursed with bad/hot weather marathons/ultra-marathons, and I knew the weather was supposed to be perfect in Eugene, and it was! I drank my pre-race Spark, and had a Roctane Gel about 15 mins before the start, and visited the port-o-john, then got in the corral and immediately seeked out the 4 hour Pacer, named Tim. He was great and assured me that if I stayed with him I would reach my goal. It was my first time with a Pacer, and it helped a ton to stay modest early in the race and not take off. We were in Corral C and left the starting line at 7:04 in a moderate crowd of runners, which is also great when you are trying to start slow, because in a sea of runners you have no choice but to go slow. It thinned out a bit by mile 3 or 4, and I had to visit another port-o-john at about mile 8, but made quick work and was back on my way. This whole time I had been about 200 yards behind the pace group, which was perfectly comfortable for me, knowing that I was saving my energy for the final push to the finish. The course was absolutely gorgeous when we got into the river portion, and the miles just clicked away. I felt very good until around mile 14 or 15 when I started to feel a little tired, but that is completely normal to have a bit of fatigue start to set in, and I didn't let it bother me, because I knew I had some reserve saved up in there somewhere. I joined the pace group from about the 12 or 13 mile marker and ran with them until around mile 20. We had great conversation, and again, the miles ticked away with the distraction of that coupled with the awesome scenery. Tim had told me before the start of the race that, if at mile 20, I could hold a conversation with him like at the start, then I should go ahead and turn it up a bit for the finish. I was nervous to do this in the beginning for fear of bonking too early again, but I trusted he knew what he was talking about considering he was running his 72nd marathon! (Tim, if by some miracle you read this, I didn't get to thank you after the race, but THANK YOU!!)
Mile 20 came and went, and it happened...nothing. Nothing happened. As in, I didn't all of a sudden hit a wall, or get really tired, or dread the last 6.2 miles ahead...I just felt the same. Which felt GREAT! This was not normal for me, so I knew something special was going to happen that morning. I didn't take off though, just very slowly left the pack to test my legs and see if I was capable of speeding up for the finish. The miles kept clicking, each one closer to the finish without me feeling like I couldn't keep this up, so I just kept accelerating. When I got to mile 23 I smiled and said out loud to myself, 'It's gonna happen!'. That is when I had the best runner's high of my life because I absolutely knew I was going to keep going all the way to the finish and it was absolutely going to be under 4 hours! Every mile after that got faster, as I passed every runner in front of me for the next 3 miles, not letting a single one go by me. This was completely the opposite picture from 2 months ago in Fort Worth, when I was passed constantly for the last 3 miles as I walked and struggled to finish. The redemption I was feeling was unlike anything I've ever felt, all my hard work and determination was coming to fruition, and I started to cry as I neared Hayward Field and the hundreds of people lining the street were cheering us on! I made the slight right turn to enter the gates at Hayward, and there it was, the famous track that Prefontaine ran on, and I was about to finish the best race of my life! I was running so hard at the end I literally was dodging runners along the entrance to the track just to get my feet on that famous surface. Once on the track, all of my emotions came out and I was flying all the way to the finish line, knowing my wife and family were watching online, and I threw my arms up at the finish like I'd won the Olympics or something! But to me, it was such an amazing achievement to finally do what I thought I could do, and know it was all worth it. I stood there after the finish and just watched runners finish for a few minutes and tried to let it all sink in. I took a mental video of the track, the sky, the runners, and the entire scene, and it will forever be replayed in my head.
Here's what got me to a 3:56:
-A solid 18 week block of training, including the Cowtown Marathon (epic failure, but such a great learning experience for Eugene)
-During the last week of tapering before marathon week, we took a vacation to Florida, so I only ran 8 miles that week, which I think helped me show up to Eugene fully rested and rejuvenated.
-Bagel, almond butter, apple, coffee and 16 oz Gatorade 2 hours before start.
-Started slow
-Ran with my vest like I do in training with my drinks of choice, Roctane and Nuun (both w/ caffeine)
-1 Roctane GU gel before, and 1 gel per hour, 2 when I was drinking Nuun from hours 2-3.
-Stayed focused for 26.2 miles, and had supreme confidence that every move I made was the right one.
-Listened to my Pacer (running with a Pacer was great and wish I had done it in the past)
-Listened to my body, and only turned it up when I was absolutely positive I had enough left.
-Picked a race with great weather and a flat course with beautiful scenery.
I realize that I am going to get better over time, as this is only 2 years after my first marathon, and eventually this marathon time will hopefully be considered a slow one for me...but I will never forget the sense of accomplishment I felt on this day. A barrier had been broken, and has given me reason to believe that I am capable of much more. Thanks, Eugene, for giving me a memory of a lifetime!
The Eugene Marathon is my idea of the perfect marathon. Let me paint a picture for you: Perfect weather (47 at the start, 65 at the finish), a flat course, beautiful scenery including mountains, rivers, and trees (much of the course is along a shaded path), efficient aid stations and volunteers, smooth check in process, and its in Tracktown, USA and birthplace of Nike! If you've never ran anywhere in the Great Northwest, I suggest you sign up immediately for next years race and treat yourself to an awesome marathon experience. The town of Eugene is great for staying close to the race and in walking distance of restaurants, shops, downtown and the Oregon Campus. I can't wait to come back and run this race again in the future.
I went for a shakeout run that Saturday morning before packet pickup, and got to run on Pre's Trail along the Willamette River. It was one of the most beautiful trails I've ever run on. Some of the pictures I took looked fake, because the trail is immaculate with its groomed bark trail alongside a picturesque river with greenery like you've never seen before. I couldn't believe I was going to get to run a marathon there the following day. I was only supposed to run 2 or 3 miles that morning, but it was so nice I couldn't stop and ended up running 4! I was so excited for Sunday I couldn't stand it! As a runner, you couldn't help but be psyched about getting to run a marathon where Nike began, and get to finish on the most famous track in America! That day I also had the best pizza of my life at La Perla, trust me, go there if you're ever in Eugene...I also ate at Mezza Luna and Sizzle Pie during my stay, both great spots for pizza, but La Perla was my favorite. The local beer was great there too, I had a lot of Hop Valley beers during my 3 day stay, including some Light Me Up Lager after the race, which was delicious after a long run! Another bonus for the trip was that I got to see Oregon play their spring football game at Autzen Stadium, and the price of admission was 3 cans of food!
Race day was perfect in every way, it was like the stars aligned for me to get my sub 4 before I even woke up that morning. The shuttle was close to my hotel, and ran smoothly to the start of the race where I left my drop bag near the start. It was a little chilly, but I knew it was gonna warm up as soon as I started running so I welcomed the early morning temps in the 40's. This is why I ran this race to begin with...I somehow am cursed with bad/hot weather marathons/ultra-marathons, and I knew the weather was supposed to be perfect in Eugene, and it was! I drank my pre-race Spark, and had a Roctane Gel about 15 mins before the start, and visited the port-o-john, then got in the corral and immediately seeked out the 4 hour Pacer, named Tim. He was great and assured me that if I stayed with him I would reach my goal. It was my first time with a Pacer, and it helped a ton to stay modest early in the race and not take off. We were in Corral C and left the starting line at 7:04 in a moderate crowd of runners, which is also great when you are trying to start slow, because in a sea of runners you have no choice but to go slow. It thinned out a bit by mile 3 or 4, and I had to visit another port-o-john at about mile 8, but made quick work and was back on my way. This whole time I had been about 200 yards behind the pace group, which was perfectly comfortable for me, knowing that I was saving my energy for the final push to the finish. The course was absolutely gorgeous when we got into the river portion, and the miles just clicked away. I felt very good until around mile 14 or 15 when I started to feel a little tired, but that is completely normal to have a bit of fatigue start to set in, and I didn't let it bother me, because I knew I had some reserve saved up in there somewhere. I joined the pace group from about the 12 or 13 mile marker and ran with them until around mile 20. We had great conversation, and again, the miles ticked away with the distraction of that coupled with the awesome scenery. Tim had told me before the start of the race that, if at mile 20, I could hold a conversation with him like at the start, then I should go ahead and turn it up a bit for the finish. I was nervous to do this in the beginning for fear of bonking too early again, but I trusted he knew what he was talking about considering he was running his 72nd marathon! (Tim, if by some miracle you read this, I didn't get to thank you after the race, but THANK YOU!!)
Mile 20 came and went, and it happened...nothing. Nothing happened. As in, I didn't all of a sudden hit a wall, or get really tired, or dread the last 6.2 miles ahead...I just felt the same. Which felt GREAT! This was not normal for me, so I knew something special was going to happen that morning. I didn't take off though, just very slowly left the pack to test my legs and see if I was capable of speeding up for the finish. The miles kept clicking, each one closer to the finish without me feeling like I couldn't keep this up, so I just kept accelerating. When I got to mile 23 I smiled and said out loud to myself, 'It's gonna happen!'. That is when I had the best runner's high of my life because I absolutely knew I was going to keep going all the way to the finish and it was absolutely going to be under 4 hours! Every mile after that got faster, as I passed every runner in front of me for the next 3 miles, not letting a single one go by me. This was completely the opposite picture from 2 months ago in Fort Worth, when I was passed constantly for the last 3 miles as I walked and struggled to finish. The redemption I was feeling was unlike anything I've ever felt, all my hard work and determination was coming to fruition, and I started to cry as I neared Hayward Field and the hundreds of people lining the street were cheering us on! I made the slight right turn to enter the gates at Hayward, and there it was, the famous track that Prefontaine ran on, and I was about to finish the best race of my life! I was running so hard at the end I literally was dodging runners along the entrance to the track just to get my feet on that famous surface. Once on the track, all of my emotions came out and I was flying all the way to the finish line, knowing my wife and family were watching online, and I threw my arms up at the finish like I'd won the Olympics or something! But to me, it was such an amazing achievement to finally do what I thought I could do, and know it was all worth it. I stood there after the finish and just watched runners finish for a few minutes and tried to let it all sink in. I took a mental video of the track, the sky, the runners, and the entire scene, and it will forever be replayed in my head.
Here's what got me to a 3:56:
-A solid 18 week block of training, including the Cowtown Marathon (epic failure, but such a great learning experience for Eugene)
-During the last week of tapering before marathon week, we took a vacation to Florida, so I only ran 8 miles that week, which I think helped me show up to Eugene fully rested and rejuvenated.
-Bagel, almond butter, apple, coffee and 16 oz Gatorade 2 hours before start.
-Started slow
-Ran with my vest like I do in training with my drinks of choice, Roctane and Nuun (both w/ caffeine)
-1 Roctane GU gel before, and 1 gel per hour, 2 when I was drinking Nuun from hours 2-3.
-Stayed focused for 26.2 miles, and had supreme confidence that every move I made was the right one.
-Listened to my Pacer (running with a Pacer was great and wish I had done it in the past)
-Listened to my body, and only turned it up when I was absolutely positive I had enough left.
-Picked a race with great weather and a flat course with beautiful scenery.
I realize that I am going to get better over time, as this is only 2 years after my first marathon, and eventually this marathon time will hopefully be considered a slow one for me...but I will never forget the sense of accomplishment I felt on this day. A barrier had been broken, and has given me reason to believe that I am capable of much more. Thanks, Eugene, for giving me a memory of a lifetime!
Race Kit for Eugene Marathon:
Shoes- Nike LunarEpic Flyknit (my new favorite)
Shorts- Nike 2 in 1 5"
Shirt- Nike DryFit Knit short sleeve
Hat- Luke's Locker Trucker
Glasses- Oakley Jupiter
Hydration Vest- Salomon
Compression- CEP Calf Sleeves and CEP Achilles Cut Socks
Watch- Garmin Fenix 3
No comments:
Post a Comment