Tri Cities Marathon

I woke up Sunday morning ready to run. My ankles were a little sore from the sand yesterday, but otherwise I was feeling great. After a quick coffee and biscotti (my latest “breakfast of champions”), I walked over to the lobby of the Shilo Inn. People were gathering for the early start and there were several faces I recognized from yesterday. The general consensus was that yesterday’s course was slow… mostly due to the 5 miles of sand… and that everyone was feeling fatigue in their calves/ankles. A little before 7 we were ushered outside to begin our run. There were a dozen of us taking the 7:00 start, and rumor had it that 25 took the 6:00 start. I was excited because the weather was cool and there was no wind! The 2006 race was so windy I was almost blown off course a few times. I lined up with Jill and once again we decided on a strategy. Today it would be a 1 mile run followed by a 10th mile walk until the half way point, then I would drop down to a ½ mile run, 10th mile walk.
I started off faster than I expected, churning out solid 9:30 minute miles. Jill dropped back by mile 3 and I decided to proceed on my own. It was one of those days where I wanted to be alone with my thoughts and push myself from within. Just me and the marathon.
I kept a good pace as I ran alongside the Columbia, then over a bridge. Once over the river we turned back towards the start line and bam! There was the headwind. The wind is like that, you can be fooled into think there is no wind, just easy, effortless running. Then you make a turn and realize the wind had been pushing you all along. At mile 12 we turned again and got to experience the joy of wind-at-your-back for the next few miles. I passed the halfway point feeling much better than I expect. My two previous attempts at doubles left me tired and fatigued on day two, struggling to complete the distance. I didn’t feel like that today. All too soon, we crossed a beautiful suspension bridge and turned for a final 12 miles into the wind. I considered shortening my run/walk ratio like originally planned, but decided instead to push through to the 20 mile mark before making any changes. At mile 21 I let myself slip into the 5/1 ratio. I was starting to feel a little tired and the change felt great. By mile 24 I was refreshed enough to run the final 2.2 miles (with the exception of a brisk walk up the last bridge). As is customary at Tri-cities, a local runner met me at the 26 mile mark and paced me the final .2. He kept trying to get me to stretch out and sprint for the finish, and I gave it my best shot. Unfortunately that was the wrong decision and I felt something give way in my calf. Still, I finished strong in a time of 4:34, giving me a weekend double time of 9:13, a Double-Marathon PR 45 minutes.

Back at the hotel I took an ice bath and immediately notice my calf filling with fluid. I think the stress of the soft footing yesterday really took a toll. I’m planning on resting all of next week and letting myself heal up before starting my final training cycle for the Across the Years 24 hour Ultra.

Columbia River Power Marathon

If it’s October, it must be time for another double. As luck would have it, the perfect opportunity for a double was taking place in eastern Oregon and Washington. One of the most appealing things about this double was the easy logistics. Marathon 1 was in Umatilla, Oregon, and marathon 2 was in Richland, Washington… just 35 miles apart. This meant I could stay in Richland and drive to Umatilla on Saturday morning, so no long drives between marathons and no changing hotels.
It sounded good (on paper at least.) The drive over to eastern Washington was easy, we made good time, got settled into our room and turned in early. I was up at 5:45 Saturday morning and left for Umatilla at 6:30: giving me 1 ½ hours to complete a ½ hour drive. Clutching my mapquest directions I zipped on the freeway and was off. Really off, miles and miles off, by the time I realized I missed my exit and was heading for Walla Walla. I was just about to turn around when I saw a sign: Umatilla 35 miles. I decided that was better than back tracking and I still had almost an hour, so I was sure to get there by start time. I finally made it to Umatilla, then couldn’t find the school where the race was held. My directions kept trying to send me to the opposite end of town. Thankfully Umatilla is a small town and we managed to get to the proper location with a few minutes to spare.
At 7:55 we were all asked to line up at the start line. No one was willing to toe-the-line… everyone was hovering back 20 or 30 feet to allow the “fast” runners to take the lead. I was busy chatting with fellow Maniac Jill Hudson and we decided to be brave and move to the front. I think it’s the first time I’ve put my toe on the chalk line for a marathon. After the national anthem and a speech from the town mayor, we were off. The first few miles took us down to the river and across the dam. We then climbed back up the highway, and made a big loop on bike paths, then across the river and back up hill to the start line. Jill and I had been spending most of run chatting and getting to know each other better. She was running her 49th marathon, 12th in 12 weeks and first double. We decided to stick together and use a 10 minute run, 1 minute walk ratio in order to save our legs for Sunday. After we passed the start, the half marathoners peeled off, and Jill and I found ourselves alone out on the prairie. Soon, we were running along the river on a very isolated trail. The footing was loose and sandy. We decided to do our best to run through it, maintaining our run-to-walk ratio. I few times one of us would remark on how glad we were to have each others company on such a long and lonely trail. Every once and awhile we would see other runners, but they were all walking and we would soon over take them. After 5 miles of sand, we emerged out on the highway and ready for the final 9 mile push to the finish. This stretch was windy with lots of long hills but the cool, sunny weather helped keep my spirits up. We were also reeling in other runners, despite our relatively slow pace. Jill and I crossed the finish line together in 4:39:08. TP! Was the announcer and rattled off my running resume as I came into sight, that made me feel great….one of the Main Maniacs actually knew a little about my running history!

The Potato Commission sponsored a baked potato feed for all runners and family, then a brief award ceremony (I was 2nd in the 40-49 age group, 5th overall woman) and we were heading back to Richland. We got back to our hotel in time for a walk along the river front, a stop at packet pick-up and a nice protein-packed dinner. We went to bed early again in anticipation of another 5:45 wake up and day 2 of my autumn double.

Royal Victoria Marathon

What a great weekend and I'm so glad I didn't miss it. I really enjoyed the conversations with my running friends at before and after the marathon parties. It gave me lots to think about, both running and life in general. Nothing is quite as rewarding as spending time with smart, confident women and our boomer group is full of them (o.k., the guys aren't too shabby either).

I had planned on an easy 4:30 marathon. I haven't been working on anything other than long, slow runs lately and haven't posted a time faster than 4:20 all year. I also hadn't run a marathon since August 17th, which for me is an eternity.

I got to the start with a little time to spare and started scanning the crowds as they lined up. I spotted Le Chat Noire and decided to join her. She asked if I'd be interested in helping her PR, and if possible get close to a 4:15. I decided to give it a shot, but reserved the right to bail out if I felt like it. After we started, we caught up with the 4 hour pace bunny. Both Le Chat and I decided to run with him as long as possible, then use whatever we had left to get us to the finish. The pacer was using a 10 minute run, 1 minute walk strategy. That was easy enough, but he refused to slow down through the aid stations. As a result, we had to dodge over to get water, then sprint to catch up. The run, walk, sprint, run, walk, sprint combo eventually wore me down, but I did manage to make it to the half way point with the pacer. Le Chat pulled away from me when I stopped at a vacant porta-potty and I lost sight of her. I finished in 4:14:23... Le Chat in 4:10ish (I believe that is a 20 min PR for her!) It was my 12th finish of a marathon or ultra marathon this year. The weather was perfect and the course spectacular.

Ric met me at the finish line, we started walking back to our hotel but detoured for a beer and some lunch. I had just enough time to shower before meeting MustangMom and a shuttle to the best Canadian Thanksgiving meal ever.
Mustang Sally and The Scot were perfect hosts, serving us wine and cheese as soon as we walked through the door. We sat down to eat in the formal dining room and the power went off. I though it actually added to the festivities, especially as it got darker and we resorted to eating by candlelight. Ric and I concluded the evening with a 3 mile stroll back to our hotel. Just what I needed to loosen the legs before turning in.

Thanks everyone for a memorable weekend!