Monumental Marathon race report
Back ground: I’ve been increasing my mileage this year in
the attempt to reach 2015 miles this year.
My PB for annual miles before was 1800 last year so this was a real
effort for me. I started running 6 days
a week instead of 5. Monthly miles were
between 165-200 miles. But longest run
was 18 miles. Then, Labor Day brought a
hamstring strain that sidelined me for a few weeks. I initially figured I’d downgrade to the half
instead of the full for this marathon and focus on healing and preparing for
the Goofy Challenge (with Damaris!!) in early January as that’s my ultimate goal right now.
But….then I starting feeling better and more confident. I ran a 16 and 18 mile LR in October, feeling
really good during those ones. I
finished out the month with 170 miles so I thought I’d give the full a shot,
see what happens.
4 days before race day:
My former favorite running buddy, Anais, texts me that she’s running Monumental
as her first full and wanted advice as she was having some ITBS issues. After discussing her goals, my experience (this
would be my 4th time running this race) and my uncertainty about
what I could do, we decided to run together for as long as we could, with the understanding
that neither would be upset if the other went ahead.
Race Day: Up at 5:45,
out the door at 6:30 (after wishing my daughter a happy 12th
birthday). It’s 41* at the start with a
expected sunny day of 55*. I wear my new Ink N Burn skirt and a favorite classic InB top. New Feetures socks and Saucony shoes that I’m
testing out. Drove 20 minutes to
downtown, found parking quickly in a parking garage next to the finish line and
gear check. I met up with Anais and two
of her other friends who were also marathon virgins at 7:15. We all chatted some, grabbed some pics and
got into the corrals about 7:50 for the 8:00 start. Corrals were very crowded so we did our best
to line up about the 4:15 pace group area.
Anais wanted to finish a sub 4:30 and I know that she’s a bit of a
jackrabbit so I wanted to keep her under control for at least the first eight
miles. Race starts and we walk to the
starting line and are running by 8:05.
Miles 1-3: 10:04, 10:02, 9:52 CONGESTION is the issue
here. This race is getting more popular
and the congestion through downtown proves it.
We are running around walkers, groups and the like, trying to stay
together as a group (I didn’t really care about staying with the other two in
our group, just my friend, but I also didn’t want to be a jerk). Skip the first water stop as it was a
nightmare.
Miles 4-7: 9:31, 9:47, 9:41, 9:43 We settling into a comfortable pace but I
keep telling Anais to slow down as I wanted us to say 9:50ish, hoping that
would benefit her in the last 8 miles.
About mile 5, one of the friends who didn’t train for the marathon, just
thought since she’s done some halves and is a fast 5k runner, decided we were
too slow and dropped us. I reassured
Anais that we would be passing her before we hit 18 miles. You can’t have your longest run in your life
be 13.1 and expect to finish a marathon well.
The race splits at mile 7, with the halfers heading south to the finish
and the fullers continuing north. The
congestion really let up here, as you would expect.
Miles 8-11: 9:46, 9:45, 9:49, 9:52 Things are going smoothly as we run past the
state fairgrounds and down a very nice residential area. The crowd support is light but we were
enjoying our conversations. I continue
with my established marathon plan of walking the water stops so I would walk
and then catch Anais and her friend within .25.
I like doing this as it gives me a chance to catch my breath and
actually get water/Gatorade in me, instead of on me. Her friend decides to slow down at mile 11,
which Anais said was their usual training pattern. So it’s just her and I now.
Mile 12-14: 9:56, 9:33, 9:59
Things get congested again here as we are running in an older
neighborhood with narrow streets. Anais
gets a treat by seeing her family at the half way point so she had some extra
pep in her step for the next mile or so.
But we were both feeling the miles by 14. I’m not really paying much attention to the
math for a finish time as I was mainly focused on keeping her encouraged. I’d talk about the course, what we’d be coming up to, what we could expect ect… basically just keeping her mind occupied. It was a blessing for us both as it kept my
mind off the upcoming miles as well.
Mile 15-20: 10:13, 10:38, 10:19, 10:37, 10:18, 10:07 You can see now that my walk breaks at the
water stops were lengthening but I never, ever allow myself more than one
minute. That’s a mental contract I
have! But, my breaks are working for me,
I’m actually surprised at how well I’m feeling considering I haven’t run more
than 18 miles in a year. It hits me that
all the wisdom I’ve learned on the old BF forum is true, more miles = stronger legs =
better races. We pass the girl we first
started with who dropped us early on at mile 18. She’s death marching on the side of the
road. We don’t say anything to her and I
let Anais know that she’ll probably finish 30 mins ahead of her, if we stay
strong (the girl finished just under 5 hours). We run through the Indianapolis
Museum of Art, which is my favorite part of the race during this point as
well. Once we hit the 20 mile mark, I
decide that I’m going to finish under 4:25, no matter what. Anais is still running strong, slower but her
mentality is really good. We’re in a
boring area, not much support. We aren’t
talking as much either but every ½ mile or so, I update her as she’s not
wearing a Garmin.
Mile 21 – 26.2:
10:57, 10:28, 10:20, 10:43, 10:36, 10:20, 2:55 (.3 miles) So, at this point, Anais is slowing down but
I’m still feeling strong. I let her know
that she can totally finish under 4:30 if she keeps it together. She encourages me to continue on and I have
no doubt that she wouldn’t hold it against me so I continued on. She did pass me once during my walk break at
the next water stop but I passed her again and didn’t see her again. But I knew that she was going to be
fine. I re-center and concentrate on my
sub 4:25 goal. I haven’t been under 4:38
in a few years, not since I started running Ultra’s. I make the turn on Meridian and see the
downtown buildings. I know it’s
deceptive because we’re still 3 miles from the finish so I just keep pushing myself. Quads are sore but not painful. No issues from my hamstring. Temps are good, I’m very comfortable in my
clothes (skirt was totally amazing, it was so light, I honestly felt like I had
nothing on). I’m passing plenty of
walkers but I really just went internal, ignoring everything around me, checking
those mile markers off. Mile 25 and my
Garmin reads 4:12. Hmmm, maybe a 4:20?
Ahh, no, my legs weren’t feeling that good! But, I did pick it up because I really,
really wanted sub 4:25. Make the turn at
25.5 and start to see the running group tents that are set up at mile 26. I dig deep and make the next turn, knowing
that I’m nearly done. I hit 26 miles and
start to sprint but quickly slow as I got nauseous (I sometimes throw up from adrenaline
rushes at finish lines). I make the
final turn and the crowd support here is awesome. I hear my name and see my parents, cheering
me on, totally unexpected!!! I push
hard, see 4:25 on my Garmin and charge as hard as I can to the finish
line. I cross at 4:25:46, 10:06
pace.
I stumble through the chute, finding my parents, thank them
numerous times for being there. Anais
found me, she finished at 4:28:something and was in very good spirits. We thanked each other repeatedly for running
with each other. I know that I would
probably slacked off and been ok with finishing worse since it wasn’t a “goal”
race. But man, I’m so glad that I didn’t.
Goal race or not, it was the best marathon I’ve run in 3 years and actually, as
far as running a consistent race, I think I really did well.
I cooled down and had a quick meet up and beer with Brad. Then I caught an Uber and met Rick and Jenny
for a burger on the other side of downtown.
I really enjoy post race meet ups with my Runners World forum friends, even though I’m not active on
the boards anymore.
Next up, recover and prepare for Goofy Challenge. Thanks for reading!
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