I love the northwest. Every single training run in November has been cold, windy and extremely wet. If I ran in the morning I would be chilled the rest of the day. If I ran at lunch I would sit at my desk looking like a wet mop all afternoon. So I resigned myself to evening runs, in the dark, through puddles I couldn't see and through driving rain that chilled me past the point of feeling. It was good training.
The weather forecast for the Seattle Marathon was ominous and ever changing. One station would call for high winds and rain, another for snow, and still another for partial clearing. The next hour the forecast would change, but the main theme was constant: it would be cold and wet. I packed for all conditions and headed for the big city Saturday afternoon. After a very quick stop at the expo we checked into our room then straight to the elevators to make our 5:30 Boomer Dinner. When the elevator doors opened we were shocked to be greeted by a red-stilettoed Goddess....
Fast forward to Race Day:
By now everyone has heard about the conditions: rain mixed with snow and wind. I decided to wear black tights, a red Marathon Maniacs long-sleeve tech shirt, safety yellow Maniacs jacket, black hat and black gloves. I tucked some hand warmers provided by Divechief into my gloves for extra comfort.
Waiting for the start was miserable, but as soon as the gun went off all was forgotten and it was time to run. I felt good and thought I was running strong, but my first mile split came in at 11:45. Oh well, it was crowded so the next one would be better. The next split? 10:30... no excuse, I guess it was going to be a slow day. Mile three came in at 9:30, better but still not good enough for the elusive BQ.... almost 5 minutes behind my pace in the first 3 miles. Everyone told me Seattle would be a tough course to PR or BQ on, I was probably foolish to even think it was possible especially with the weather conditions. (I had trained for a BQ attempt in the Tri-Cities three weeks earlier, but mother nature gifted us with a nasty wind storm and though I PR'd, I missed qualifying by a little over 3 minutes.)
My splits were bad, but my spirits were up. I was having fun with the rain, the cold and the other runners. I finally felt like I was hitting my stride as we came off the floating bridge. I shed my jacket and gloves and settled in for 18 miles of constant, consistent effort, putting myself in an almost meditative state. I don't remember much about the middle miles except an all-too-brief hug by an aqua-socked Boomer at mile 16. At mile 20 I caught the 4:00 pace group, hung out for a few minutes then went on ahead as we climbed towards the arboretum. Almost too soon I was flying down the long down hill approach to the finish, through the tunnel and onto the football field. My feet took wing as I crossed the artificial turf (one of the best parts of the Seattle event) and into the finishing chute in 3:58:46. A 5 1/2 minute PR, a BQ and an age group placement award.
Yes! I'm going to Boston!
