Twenty Miles. Done.

Well the twenty is in the bag. It went really well.... much faster than I expected. Somehow I got into a groove and held it. Mantra of the day was, "Slow is smooth. Smooth is fast." It worked. I stayed "slow" in the beginning and found "smooth". Then came "fast".

Oh, and the race course was awesome. Really, really nice.


WORK-outs | -------------------------------------------------

It seems weird to be reporting on just one run, since I am usually writing about 4 or more. This one run, however, is the highlight of my running career thus far, and I figure that it deserves a killer report. We're talking novel peace prize type stuff. Okay.... this is attempt number two (after my computer died...and I had been typing for an hour already) at this report. Here goes.

Pre-Run: My goal was to treat this run as a dress rehearsal. I went through a routine that I anticipate repeating in nearly three weeks. I ate for dinner what I plan to eat the night before the race; I checked and rechecked my shoes and clothes; I packed a back with back-up gear that Zack would have in the car; I laid out gels; I filled water bottles; I studied the map; and I went to bed early with my alarm set so that I could start running at the exact time of the race start. As I was preparing, I found myself confident and calm, knowing that I had covered nearly this distance in my 19 mile run two weeks ago. However, there was a certain amount of anticipation that came with the preparation and the details.

Saturday (9.15.07). 8 AM. 33 degrees / 86% humidity @ start. 55 degrees / 40% humidity @ finish. = Chilly when I started. Perfect after I warmed up. Hopefully a mirror of what race day will be in three weeks.

Zack drove me to the 6 mile mark on the marathon course. This put me at the bottom of Lake Calhoun. I took off loaded with gels, two bottles of water, a cell phone, and the course map. Lake Calhoun is a runner's paradise. The place was loaded with runners of all shapes and sizes, speeds and ages. It was jammed with people, and somehow I imagined that it was something like what running on the lakefront path in Chicago would be like. In addition to a race going on, a local running club was putting on a supported training run. Somehow running amidst the masses was distracting to me... I spent the first two miles dodging runners going in all different directions and working to find "my space" and settle into a groove. I skirted Calhoun and then came up William Berry Parkway to Lake Harriet. There I stopped to stretch for a couple minutes before picking it up again. And then I started to take it all in.

Twin Cities Marathon advertises its course as "the most beautiful urban marathon in America". Uh huh. Marketing. Whatever. I have lived in the cities for over 5 years, and I have done my fair share of running here. And yet, putting it all together... running from the shores of the Chain of Lakes, along the parkways and the river, up Summit avenue and into Saint Paul, I started to see where they were coming from. The course easily cruises along sparkling waters, tucks into cozy neighborhoods, through tree lined boulevards, along the majestic Mississippi before finally cresting over a hill to a fantastic finish at the State Capitol. As I ran along the shore of the sail-boat-sprinkled Lake Harriet, I started to gain focus, and my running mantra of the day began to form... "Slow is smooth. Smooth is fast." (the movie Shooter, anyone?) I began to warm up slowly... and then I found "smooth." From "smooth", "fast" began to creep in as I got more and more comfortable.

At 5 miles, I took my first gel. I had checked the race map for the location of aid stations and planned to take my gels at the mileages where I would have access to water to wash 'em down. I figured my first should be at 5 instead of 7. So I washed down a Vanilla Bean GU. Not bad... it went down smooth and sat really well in my stomach. I hit a few traffic lights as I came up Minnehaha Parkway, which gave me a chance to check the map. At 6 miles, I turned on Cedar avenue and crossed Lake Nokomis. Maybe I was just finding my sweet spot in the run, but Nokomis was my favorite lake to run around. The trail was easy and fast. At 7.25 miles, I ducked into a porta potty for a code brown and a quick pee break. I am still trying to figure out how to avoid this in the race. I haven't had to stop before in races... and I am blaming the fact that I ate/drank about 45 minutes before the run instead of a couple hours.

After Nokomis, it was back on Minnehaha parkway, and I found myself cruising along comfortably. I took my second gel on the run at 9 miles, and like the last, it went down really well. At 10 miles, I saw Zack and switched water bottles before starting the stretch north along the Mississippi. I had run this portion of the route before during my 10k last April, so I was on familiar ground. Each mile, I found myself surprised at the pace I was holding, and yet as I repeated to myself, "Slow is smooth, smooth is fast", it became evident that it was true. Staying slow and comfortable made me smooth... and somehow I ran fast... faster than what I normally run during my LSD runs. At 13 miles, I took my next gel, this time a chocolate, and I started to wonder if I could hold the pace for 7 miles more. Yet, as I crossed the river and headed south again, my pace stayed pretty even. Cruising along the river, I came across some stunning views, and I could imagine that with fall colors in peak during the marathon, this would be a really nice distraction in the 20-22 mile section.

I hit 15 miles at the 21 mile mark on the course. Somehow I had added a mile somewhere along Minnehaha Parkway... I guess I was following the running path and not running along the road. Anyways, this is where "the hill" started. The 10k course that I ran in April crossed the river at Lake Street, which is precisely where the marathon path intersects with it again and also where the hill begins. All of this to say that I have run this hill before... and my clearest memory of doing so is running along behind two guys, one of whom said to the other as we trucked up that hill... "This is where we shine." Yup... I agreed. This is where I started to shine... But really, I was surprised at the hype of this hill... because it wasn't much. I completely understand that I'll be tired and thus this small hill will be multiplied. Okay... enough rambling about the hill. I soon was on Summit and at 16 miles. 4 to go... a walk in the park... nothing more. The "climb" continued up Summit, but one could hardly call it a hill... as it was just a small incline.

Now, give me a moment here to reflect... as I started cruising up Summit, I looked around and found myself in familiar territory. Before I knew it, I was retracing the steps of my first ever 5k that I had run just about 7 months ago. Wow. This was a walk down memory lane. Somehow, the race was clear in my head as I ran up that road. I remembered going through each bit of advice that I had received from you guys, including Farnk's detailed instructions on how to pin my race bib on. All I could think is... (set to music) "take a look at me now". Ha... Really though.. it was a good reminder of how far I'd come, and I was glad that I'd run that part of the course before, because, again, it dispelled any myths that there was some monster hill looming along Summit avenue.

At 17 miles, I was scheduled for another GU, but honestly, my stomach wasn't ready for it. So, instead I tried something new that I'd picked up the other day. Sharkies. Basically like fruit snacks, but with all the good extra stuff that a tired runner needs. I found these both a nice distraction and a welcome break from the GU. At 18 miles, I found myself losing steam. Two miles seemed like a long ways to go. So I focused on running another quarter mile and then another. And soon I was at 19. Only one more to go... keeping it strong... staying steady. "Ain't nothing". "Anyone can run a mile." "Slow is smooth. Smooth is Fast" 19.47. Keep going. 19.75. Quarter mile to go and I'm feeling good. Zack drives by and I wave him ahead... and wait for the beep. 20 miles. In the bag. I slow to a walk... and find myself disappointed that it's over and I didn't get to run to the finish (due to the added mile in the beginning). Oh well, I'll save that treat for the race I guess.

Once I got to the car, Zack handed off the Powerade and I started my stretching routine. A few pictures, more stretching, and then we hopped in the car and headed out. Around the bend was the stunning view that I was waiting for... now I really can't wait to RUN around that corner... in three weeks.

A few thoughts.. (as if I haven't written enough)

The course: Simply put: I believe Twin Cities' tagline. It is a beautiful marathon course. The terrain is mostly flat, with a few rolling hills. The hill at mile 20 is definitely not ideally placed, but I am not worried about it at all. If I am totally beat at that point, I'll walk for a couple minutes, recover, and plow ahead. The finish is outstanding, and I am really glad that I ran the course and am now familiar with it enough to know landmarks and have something to help keep me motivated (run to point x, then around the corner and over the bridge... etc). Somehow, I think knowing the course will help me.

A few stops: Before I put down my times, I have to say, I had a few "off the clock" stops. With the exception of one or maybe two, I figure that each one of these is a stop that would not happen in the race. 1) Stretching stop... obviously, I will take the time to warm up and stretch. With this run, I basically took off cold, figuring that I would use the first couple miles to warm up. 2) Traffic stops. I guess that I should have anticipated the fact that there are allot of stoplights that one will meet when doing a run through the city from Minneapolis to St. Paul. Yeah... I had to stop a few times to wait for cars. I usually swigged some water... ran in place, or checked the map. 3) Phone call/map checks. I had to stop twice to figure out where to go and Zack and I touched base once or twice to figure out meeting locations for water bottle drops. 4) GU/water/sharkie stop... I took most of my GUs on the run, however I did have to stop for a total of like 45 seconds once or twice when I had some problems finding/getting to my GU and opening the sharkies. 5) Bathroom break... this is the only one, that if need be, might just happen during the race and on the clock. It might have taken me 2 minutes +/-. Probably less... there was no line and it was a quick in and out.. but still. I really want to avoid this come race day.

My time: Okay... here it is. I started out slow and used the first several miles to warm up. And then I found a groove and I held it to the end. Now, I know that I ran this "fast". Was it too fast? I don't know. This is faster than what I've been training at. And it's faster that what I was intending to run at. .. but hey... once I got into smooth... then came fast. :)
20m / 3:18:43 (As in, two minutes faster than it took me to run 18.89m last time around)
10:23
10:51
10:42
10:42
10:27
10:02
9:41
9:29
9:42
9:38
9:37
9:35
9:44
9:47
9:37
9:47
9:57
9:35
9:39
9:42

What that means for the race, I don't know. I have been going through this run in my head over and over and over again. Trying to figure out what I could do better and where... analyzing if the stops at traffic lights gave me a boost to run faster?? Wondering how the course with feel if I had run the first six miles of it... how would the hill feel to me at 20 miles instead of 15? If the times are right... will I be running a 4:20 marathon? Is that jumping ahead of myself? Yes, I think it is... After thinking through everything once, twice... and over again. I figure the best I could do is 4:20. And the worst is somewhere around 5 hours. I will be content with a finish somewhere in that range. Realistically I am probably looking at a 4:30 - 4:40 finish. But really... I just don't know. I was tired at the end of twenty and happy to be done. Should I have felt fresh? Like I could go another six miles? Because I am not sure that I felt that way.

But enough analyzing. I do know that I had a good twenty. One that I am proud of. I ran it well and I ran it faster than what I had anticipated. I didn't bonk at all, and while I felt tired at the end, my pace stayed steady. I didn't have any major bumps in the road, and I find myself already anxious to go out there and do it again. Why, oh why, is the race still three weeks away?? Okay. I guess it's time to taper. I think the madness is already setting in.

And for those of you who made it through... congratulations... reading this report takes nearly as much endurance as running that 20. ;) Can you imagine what my race report will be like in three weeks??