Some Background
A little over a year ago, I attempted my first marathon in Nashville. I say “attempted” because I was not able to finish, due to being diverted off of the course since the race was cut short by tornadoes, and frankly, me being too slow to finish before they arrived. Hey, at least those half marathoners got to finish! I was determined to finish a marathon and so I signed up for Cleveland, which was 3 weeks after Nashville. In Cleveland I finished in 3:58, and even though my stomach felt like I had swallowed a brick at mile 21, I loved it and became instantly addicted to marathoning. I then ran Chicago, Marine Corps and Las Vegas, in 3:49, 3:36 and 3:34, respectively. While I was thrilled at the improvement, the Vegas time was a four minute negative split and I really felt like I left a lot on the course.
I felt that even though I was really enjoying this new-found ability to run a marathon, I was concerned about how many I was doing in such a short time. So I decided to take a couple of weeks off to rest my body, in preparation for a proper marathon cycle to see what I was really made of in the Spring. I had been reading Advanced Marathoning on the recommendation from my friend and coach Walter Martinez, and in January began following the 18 week plan peaking at 55 miles per week. This would be a significant increase in both mileage and quality - prior to this I had never done any Lactate Threshold training (tempo runs) or any runs during the week longer than 7 miles. I was very excited to see what kind of results this would produce.
The Race Plan
I had announced earlier in the week to the 3:20 thread on the Marathon Race Training forum on Runner’s World that my “BOTT” goal (Balls on the Table - which I interpret as - if the stars, moon and planets all align, this is what you hope to run) would be 3:05. I thought this would be a very tough number to reach, but possibly attainable, mostly due to a 1:26:40 half marathon PR I set in late March. Because they are incredibly nice people, they basically told me they thought this might be a stretch, and that I may want to consider a more conservative race plan. They did express this in a nice way, however, so as to not totally crush my confidence. It’s things like this that I look back on and feel incredibly blessed that I found these people - for random internet strangers they are so incredibly supportive and helpful.
As the week wore on, and I thought more about the advice they were giving me, my own lack of experience and the weather reports of high winds, I decided to go out with the 3:10 pace group and just see what happened. Hopefully I would have some gas at the end to go sub 3:10 and qualify for Boston.
Pre-Race: Expo and Pasta
My wife and I and her friend Christine headed out for Green Bay on Saturday, May 14th, after dropping off my dog to our trusted dog-sitter. With three fully tapered marathoners in the car, the ride up went by quickly with all of the conversation. A lot of the talk involved the weather forecast for the race - which included very cool temps (40-50 degrees) and high winds (20-25 mph, with gusts of up to 35 mph). For some reason though, I wasn’t concerned- I had done plenty of training runs in the wind. I was much more excited the recent heat wave had just passed and we were going to get a cool day to run.
We got into town and eventually headed over to the expo, which was in the Lambeau Field Atrium. I took a couple of minutes to take a few pictures; the structure was very impressive. Green Bay was certainly a town that revolved around its football team. We picked up our bibs and checked to make sure our timing chips were working properly. An odd thing though - no shirt was included. When we inquired about that, we were told that we’d get them at the finish. I’ve never seen that before, I thought that was kind of cool - just another little added motivation for making sure you’re “all in”.
The expo was like most race expos: National Running was selling the same Frank Shorter running shirts, clinics for first timers were being offered, and of course, official race gear was being sold. I had looked up the race gear on the race website beforehand and, honestly, I thought it sucked. Nothing about that opinion changed when I saw it in person, so I didn’t buy any of it. My wife and Christine liked these hoodies, and they spotted a little sign with a sticker on it that says ‘unisex’. “Hey! You should get one! They are unisex!” I look closely at that sign, and I can see through the sticker that says ‘unisex’ that underneath it it very clearly says ‘WOMENS’. Tricky move Green Bay, but I’m on to your ruse...
I did find a really cool singlet from a local running store that said ‘Green Bay, WI’ on it, and I needed another singlet to add to my collection, and decided that this would have to do, as far as finding an article of clothing that I could wear that would remind me of the trip. Plus it was only $15, which I thought was a pretty good deal for a nice singlet. I then traded texts with my buddy Nick who I had planned on running the race with, and he informed me he was ultra paranoid about his pre-race dinner and would be skipping the pasta dinner. We made plans to meet up in the morning.
We then made our way over to the pasta dinner, which was included in our race fee. I thought that was a really nice perk, considering the race itself was about $70, which was considerably less than what I had paid for the Chicago Marathon, or the Rock and Roll races I’ve done. The pasta dinner was also at Lambeau, but in the part of the stadium adjacent to the atrium. The first thing we notice when we get in there is that it is COLD. We grab our pasta, salad, bread sticks, and cookies, and all we can talk about is how cold it is, which immediately spawns a ridiculous conversation about how many layers will be needed for the race. I stick to my guns and insist my singlet with arm warmers, gloves, and shorts would be perfectly fine (and I ended up being right).
We then drove the entire course. I’ve never done this before, and I think after this experience I’m going to try and do this for every marathon. It was incredibly helpful to know where things are, and it helped me look forward to certain landmarks at various points in the race. It also dispelled any fears I had about the elevation changes I saw in the course map from mapmyrun.com - this course had some small rollers, but it was going to be mostly flat and fast. The entire first half of the course winded through neighborhoods which also might help with the wind.
By the time we got back from the drive of the course, it was close to 7pm. Believe it or not, I felt tired. After being turbo-charged all week, I finally felt tired. I think my mind had just had enough - no more studying the course map, no more calculating splits, or worrying about goals, it was time to race. After laying out my outfit and my gear bag, I watched a little bit of the movie “Hitch” on TV. I was asleep before 9pm.
Pre-Race Morning
I open my eyes at about 2am, feeling like I had slept all night (well, I suppose I did sleep most of it...). I rolled around in bed lazily until about 4am, and then woke up to start the pre-race ritual.
I’ve found that a toasted English muffin with a generous helping of peanut butter and a banana is the perfect race-day breakfast. I have had a pretty remarkable string of personal records with this formula and I was not about to change it now. After getting dressed, and waiting for the two girls to get ready, we made our way to the hotel lobby, where a school bus would take us back to Lambeau for the race. There was a very strange guy on our bus that just kept talking randomly to us and made a simple situation of riding a couple of miles in a bus way more awkward than it needed to be. This would set the tone for the kind of day it would be - strange but successful.
We got off of the bus and began walking toward the atrium at Lambeau to get warm, and I immediately noticed the wind. Holy shit was it blowing. I also noticed something else though - it looked like the sun was trying to come out. I was at the same time hopeful and fearful.
Then another weird thing happened. I went over to the 3:10 pacer and asked him what his plan was to hit 3:10. He shrugged, and then said “With the wind and everything, I’m not sure. What do you think?” What do I think? WHAT DO I THINK? I think my race plan just hit a major snag, that’s what I think. I relayed this conversation to Nick later on when we were walking to the corral, and just told him that hopefully we can tuck behind the group when things get rough.
I then made two other very bad errors. First, I took off auto splits on my garmin. This would prove to be a big mistake, as the high winds on the course forced the volunteers to take the mile signs down, making spotting the mile markers very difficult. The course was also pretty poorly marked - some miles were long, others short. So in recapping the race, I will use the splits I did get, which admittedly, were not all that helpful.
The other error was wearing my Under Armor boxers under my Race Ready shorts. I had practiced the outfit in my dress rehearsal run, and on that run I had not been wearing these boxers, and even with the 6 gels and mp3 player, it worked out fine. But this combo with boxers made the shorts slide around on my waist, and the weight on the back of them caused them to droop down, so I was constantly pulling them up for the first few miles. Really annoying and stupid.
We lined up in the preferred corral, and I couldn’t see what happened to our pacer..and then I noticed him right in front. We decided we would gradually fall in line with the 3:10 group once things thinned out a bit.
The Race
Miles 1-3: 7:27, 6:58, 6:54. Miles 2 and 3 were short, but the pace was too aggressive, and I knew it. I told Nick we needed to back off...I had planned on being extra cautious, but we were hustling to try and catch the 3:10 pacer (which kind of ended up being a major theme in this race). At this point, I was still trying to find my pace. Also, my little problem was rearing it’s ugly head - I was having trouble keeping my shorts up, due to all of the stuff I was carrying in them. I was having to constantly pull my pants up, it was incredibly annoying. Nick reminded me of the story about that guy running Flying Pig who was stark naked - that made me laugh and made me wonder if he had a similar problem.
Fortunately, the field was pretty bunched up at this point, so I couldn’t really feel the wind, although a gust every so often reminded me it was there. I took my first GU at mile 3, and then adjusted my mp3 player, taking it out of my shorts and putting around my neck, which finally balanced things out weight-wise in my shorts and alleviated the problem. (I have a strange mp3 player which allowed me to do this. It’s this one.) I didn’t have the mp3 player on at this point, I brought it as a backup in case I was alone and needed something to pick me up.
Next 4.24 miles: 7:17 pace. We catch the 3:10s, and I settle into a very comfortable rhythm. I remember feeling surprised that the wind is not a factor. We are winding through neighborhoods, which must be blocking the effects of the wind. I am successfully keeping my pants on, and I begin to really enjoy the race. I remember asking Nick to help remind me to hit the splits on my watch if he sees a mile marker, but we are just shooting the shit and enjoying the crowd, and I’m not even thinking about anything, and it’s awesome. I see some really cute dogs during this stretch and I think about all of the recovery miles I logged with my dog, which makes me really thankful she likes to run.
Next 4 miles: 7:00, 7:20, 7:51, 6:33 (distances are 0.97, 1.00, 1.08 and 0.94 respectively). Well, this was my first evidence that the course was not marked very well. I am following the group and continuing to enjoy not thinking about anything. The time and miles are going by fast. All I want to do at this point is get the half over with around 1:35 and see what I’ve got. I take another gel sometime between miles 8 and 9. We pass a stretch where we are in the open and I get my first taste of the wind...and, wouldn’t you know it, it blows.
Next two miles: 13:58/Half split: 1:35:40. Crap, we are a little slow. I see our pacer realize this too, and so he surges on ahead, leaving Nick and I glancing at each other with a “what the fuck just happened” kind of look. The good news is that there is a tailwind now, and I am being pushed, which is fantastic. The bad news is that later on I realize that I am going to be faced with a 5+ mile stretch right into the wind from 16 or so until 21 and that will likely make or break my race. For now, I try to enjoy the fact that I’ve been out there an hour and a half running about a 7:15 pace and its still feeling pretty easy. Thank you, Pete Pfitzinger and Scott Douglas. I take my third gel sometime after the halfway mark. There are no spectators around, Nick is jamming to his music, so I decide to put my headphones on.
Next two miles: 7:01, 6:45 (1.02, 0.98 mi, respectively). Holy shit I am flying. I am consciously trying to not burn up here and ruin my race, the headwind stretch is coming. I’m at the 15-mile mark or so at this point, right near the turnaround. The 3:10 pacer has completely taken off at this point, I can see him in the distance with my piss poor eyesight, just barely. I decide to trust Garmin and their fabulous global positioning watch and run my own damn race.
Next four “miles”: 5:41, 7:06, 8:16, 7:57 (0.80, 0.97, 1.15, 1.09 mi, respectively). Who the hell measured this course, Stevie Wonder? Throughout this stage of the race, my Garmin’s average pace says 7:10 and never wavers. I am hoping that is correct, because from the moment I turned onto the bridge to cross the river, I was hit by a wicked crosswind that damn near blows me off of the sidewalk we were on and into oncoming traffic. Then we turn off of the bridge, onto a bike trail and INTO the wind, and I am struggling like hell to keep my hat on, not to mention run. There is a group of about 8 of us that is sticking together, and I am trying to draft off of them but it just isn’t happening. I am getting my ass kicked, there’s no other way to say it. Each mile I am thinking: “x miles until I can get off this damn trail and out of this wind”. I take my fourth gel at about the 19 mile mark. I have no clue how I stayed on pace during this stretch. I wish I could explain precisely just how ridiculous this stretch was, but I can’t.
On another note, around mile 18 or so, Nick looks as though he is trying to drop me. It suddenly occurs to me that this is a race, and I happen to be in it. I back off behind him, not letting him get too far ahead, and it looks as though everyone else in the group I was in realized at the exact same time that they ALSO were racing, and so we all started trading spots. All I want to do is survive this stretch and hang with my buddy and then assess.
Next two miles: 7:05, 7:31 (1.00, 1.01) I am finally getting off of the trail, which gives me a surge of energy, but the bridge back over into downtown Green Bay isn’t all that much easier. The crosswind now threatens to blow me into the river. I have passed the 20-mile mark at this stage and realize that the 7:10 average pace indicator on the Garmin has still not moved. I survived the storm. This thing is within reach now, I just have to stay strong. I still feel like I have some gas in the tank, and I am motivated to use it.
Next three miles: 14:40, 7:06 (2.06, 0.98) Oh no, I missed another mile split, ho hum. At this point I am stalking runners, including Nick. I catch him, and say nothing as I am passing him. He mumbles something to the effect of ‘go ahead’, and I know it’s up to me at this point. I am passing people left and right. I remember one of my favorite passages from Advanced Marathoning, something to the effect of: This is the stretch you have trained for, where you don’t need to hold back anymore. You will have the pleasure of passing people until the finish, look forward to this time. That time is now. I start to think about people tracking me, especially the people on the 3:20. I think about all of the great advice given to me about running conservatively in the first 20 miles, dropping the hammer during the last 10K and realize that somehow I am actually following it. I realize this is my moment. Even though I am sore, I still have something left to give and I have a tailwind, and it is pushing me to victory.
We weave around in another neighborhood and I feel the wind for the last time. I’m going to have nightmares about running in the wind, I’ve had enough of it. I glance over my shoulder at some point near mile 24 to look for Nick, and I don’t see him. My competitive juices are flowing. My Mom always accuses me of being competitive, and you know what? She’s right. We turn a couple of times and I feel the tailwind again, and I can see the road open up to the area where Lambeau Field is, and I realize it’s almost over.
Last 1.29 miles: 8:47 (6:49 min/mi pace): I finally get to the 25th mile marker and glance at my watch and quickly realize that breaking 3:10 is going to be very close. If I can just gut this out a little longer I just might pull it off. I see a very fit looking blonde woman about 50 yards in front of me and set a goal of catching her. I am giving it everything I have at this point, I can’t wait for this to be over. I turn a couple of times and make my way to the tunnel into Lambeau field, and I finally see the 3:10 pacer finishing, which dashes my spirit a little bit. I found out later he finished at 3:07. Feel free to draw whatever conclusions you want from that.
Immediately when nearing the tunnel I remember a thread from RW about the half marathon walkers blocking the entrance into Lambeau and of course, wouldn’t you know it, three large women walking arm in arm are blocking the entrance. With the last gasp of energy I have I yell using my teacher voice for them to GTFO of the way. Thankfully that works, and I am closing in on the blonde woman. For the first time THE ENTIRE RACE someone in the stands at Lambeau yells out “GO KPH”. I think about Paul (Zab), the master of the singlet messages and his critique of my singlet, and I laugh to myself. Yes Paul, they didn’t get the “KPH”. At all. Last stretch now, out of the stadium, and I have just enough energy to pass blonde woman and finish....at 3:10:09.
Awww...so so close! But those thoughts immediately turn to the positives - I had hit my not-quite BOTT goal of 3:10 and was technically a Boston Qualifier. And I was EXHAUSTED. I put everything I had on that course, so there was no question that whatever balls I had on this day, they were on the table, and I was proud of the result.
Then, my hamstrings immediately seized up, and walking became very difficult. “Holy shit!” I almost fell, it was kind of funny actually. I got my medal, it was this weird looking football thing, meh. I grabbed some fluids, and turned around and saw my buddy...he managed to finish in 3:10:4x I think, good for him. I thought he might really fade, but he totally gutted it out. He helped me grab some food and some other goodies, they had these cookies...my lord they were delicious.
I then had a very emotional moment. I walked over to grab my gear, and I took my phone out. There were a ton of messages on there. I read all of the “great job!” and “awesome!” messages from those from the 3:20, and then I realized something. I set out to break 3:20 in January, and I had just hit 3:10. I came in a full 10 minutes under my original goal. It hit me like a thunderbolt, I had completely transformed from someone who likes to run marathons to a Boston Qualifier in about a year. Whether my time was good enough for Boston to admit me wasn’t the point. I had completed a spiritual journey as well as a physical one. I had passed the test. The stars and planets, had in fact aligned, just not in a way I had intended. I sat in a chair with my gear and I had to fight back tears when I figured it all out.
Thanks for reading...and if you didn’t read, thanks for pretending to. :) -KPH
*Edit* I just found out, literally 5 minutes ago, that they are adjusting the finish times. It appears I did in fact break 3:10! With the adjustment, my time is now 3:09:04! Read about this development here: http://www.cellcomgreenbaymarathon.com/
*Edit 2* Took out the unnecessarily childish and harsh comments regarding the pacer, after reading how difficult it was out there for another pacer on RWOL. He did the best he could under the circumstances, between a mis-marked first half and the insane winds.
