Buckeye Marathon – Running with Neal

PR and the Finishing Sprint

December 19, 2018December 19, 2018 runningwithneal1 Comment

I FINISHED!

3922_1544923823087 — Ready to Start…Sorta

I also set a new Marathon PR. My previous best was 6:24 at the Chicago Marathon in 2011. Saturday, on the most perfect day for running that I can imagine, I ran the 26.2 miles in 5:20:03. Over an hour faster than my 2011 Chicago run.

While I didn’t quite make my under 5 hour goal I’m still extremely excited about the result.

This was a very different type of marathon than the previous ones I’ve ran. I’ve ran the Chicago Marathon twice and the Air Force Marathon at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, OH. Those were much bigger races. Chicago is one of the largest marathons in the world with around 36,000 people. The Air Force Marathon is smaller but still about 3,200 people. Chicago is lined with people the entire coarse. Air force isn’t as solidly lined with people but there is still a fair number and you go through a lot of neighborhoods. Both races are a lot of fun.

Buckeye Marathon

The Buckeye is sparse. Its very well staffed with volunteers and aid stations about every 2 miles. But between the stations there is very little for most of the race. The first 4 miles is through a nice looking neighborhood. Then there is a turn to the west and you stay on that road for the next 15 miles. It is a road that has one main curve to the south and feels like its going through the middle of nowhere. And its amazingly flat. You can see for miles in all directions and see little in the way of civilization. It kinda makes you wonder why its there. Its a 4 lane divided road with little to nothing on it or near it. Felt like the road that Field of Dreams inspired. if-you-build-it-1288x724

I paused my music for a little bit and just listened to the deafening silence and my shoes hitting the road for a little bit. It was kinda nice actually. I love running with crowds cheering and feeding of the energy of the fans yelling encouragement to people they have never met. But there was something serene about the silence. Very calming and peacefully. I ran like that for about 2 miles before going back to my mix of Britney, Justin, and Pitbull.

3921_1544923819800 — Me with the best support crew ever!

Ok, so more of a recap. The first half felt amazing. My half split was 2:22, which would have been a half marathon PR if I was running a half. I had a small mental breakdown at mile nine, but pulled it back together to the halfway point.

Then I fell apart until about mile 17. I just couldn’t seem to find a rhythm. I eventually settled into an interval of .2 run and .2 walk. The runs where still at a 9 to 10 minute pace, occasionally getting more toward 8:30. I just couldn’t maintain it. I tried slowing down to around a 12 minute mile but that was even worse. Mile 22 my interval stopped working and I went to more a .25 walk and .15 run. Every time I tried to extend the run I had very sharp pains shoot through my legs. Almost felt like an electric shock in my calves.

And then it came. The ever elusive runner’s high. At the Mile 24 marker I looked at my watch and knew that 5:30 was still up for grabs. In 2 more miles I will have run my fastest marathon to date. And that triggered the endorphins. My brain overruled my tired sore legs and I started running again. Back in a .2 run, .2 walk. The runs were getting down around 8:30 pace and the walks only slowed to about a 14 min mile. Coach V was at the last turn which was about the 26 mile mark. She said something encouraging about being almost done and joked about having a hard time keeping up because I was walking too fast. And I basically said something to the effect of “Watch This!”

I let out a tremendous primal scream and took off at a dead sprint. Every time I felt like my body wanted to quit I screamed again. This was everything that was left. I just let my sprinter brain take over and went. I peaked out at a 3 min mile pace. Yes, I have some speed when I want it, I used to be a sprinter. Of course that was a short duration but still after a 26 mile warm up a 12 second 100 meter dash isn’t too bad. And if anyone reading this knew me in high school they probably aren’t surprised.

Afterward I felt great. As I said before I’m extremely happy with 5:20. My legs where dead but I still walked over to thank the firemen and police at the finish that where helping with the event. I changed into my post race kilt, fresh socks, different shoes, and the event shirt. Pro Tip: Clean clothes feel amazing after a hard race like that.

Coach V took me to Texas Roadhouse for a post race steak and beer. Possible the best steak and beer, Kiltlifter of course, I’ve had in awhile. Of course that could be the endorphins talking. Buckeye Finish

I had a lot of random thoughts and musings including how to focus my training over the next several years. However, I’ll save those for another time.

Until then…C-YA!

Hot Chocolate & Respiratory Infection III

December 7, 2018December 7, 2018 runningwithnealLeave a comment

20181202_080855

Saturday I flew to Indiana with my daughter to get her back to her mom’s place. Amelia is an incredible flying partner and really a blast to go through airports with. I had been warned that there were storms going through the Midwest over the weekend and to be prepared for an unexpected overnight stay. We were met at the airport, I saw them off, and then went back through security to get some dinner and wait at the gait. While eating I got an alert the flight was delayed. Not surprising and it was going to be tight but my connection in Chicago was still doable. I walked around the airport wishing that I could go for a run and periodically swinging by the gate just to check. Its a good thing I did. On one of my fly-by’s I saw that we were back to an “on-time” departure. Got on the plane and settled in with the latest Runner’s World for the short flight. I always get the latest Runner’s world to read on flights.

In Chicago is where the trouble really began. The flight was delayed a hal hour, then an hour, then an hour and a half and this continued until my 8:30 flight was delayed until 11:30. The whole time the gate personnel told us that they didn’t have pilots and where waiting on them to come in. Finally, the flight canceled. This was not looking good for the race on Sunday morning. I got on my phone and quickly re-booked for the 5 am flight and resigned myself to meeting Coach V at the finish line. American Airline was incredibly unapologetic about the cancellation and didn’t even offer vouchers for hotels. I was simply told that there was an emergency shelter area set up in Terminal 2.

20181201_220140 — O’Hare know how to decorate!

So, after giving the customer assistance people an earful, I went to the shelter area and was shown to a cot. I think I got a couple of hours of sleep before I had to head back to the gate for my 5 am flight.

I have yet to be very successful sleeping on planes. I continued to read Runner’s World and watched a movie.

To my surprise we landed a little early. I called coach V and she was just heading to the start corrals. “You might be able to get here in time” Coach V seemed pretty excited. And a plan was hatched.

She left my race bib at the information tent right beside bag check. When I get there I checked my bag, got my number and took off. I missed the start and they where just about to shut down the start line when I went through like a bat out of hell. Coach V had a pretty good lead on me and while I knew that she was going to stay with the 14 min/mile pacer I still wanted to catch her as quickly as possible. I caught up with her after about a mile and a quarter.

After spending the night at the airport, a 4 hour plane ride, and a Lyft to the race site I ran a 9 min mile. IN BLUE JEANS!

OK, so, I was kinda impressed.

We did the rest of the run together at a walk run interval. Coach V hadn’t trained for the run very much and being 5 months pregnant I was impressed she did it at all. But, she REALLY loves chocolate. Admittedly, it was really good chocolate. And it was so nice to see her after the night I had.

That race was the middle of “the Taper”. That magical time before a marathon when you scale back the mileage in preparation for the impending race. And as the theme has gone for the year I got another respiratory infection. It started on Thanksgiving day as a mild sore throat which eased off after a couple of days.

Then the cough started. I tried to deal with it on my own but after a week and reffing a soccer game I decided to head to a doctor. He confirmed the infection and started me on antibiotics and, my personal favorite, prednisone. Just what I wanted in the week leading up to the marathon that I’m trying to break my PR by over an hour in.

I have been jittery all week. I’ve been having such a hard time focusing that its taking me 3 days just to write this. I’m not sleeping a whole lot and when I do it isn’t great. Oh and I’ve reffed 4 of the 5 nights this week.

Yet I’m still hopeful that it will be a good run. The weather is looking like it will be just about perfect for a run tomorrow. I’ve been watching my diet this week and avoiding anything fried. The soccer games mean that I’ve been running 6-8 miles every night but its all stop and go. Light jogs, followed by standing, followed by full on sprints. Its actually a lot of fun but mentally taxing.

My goal tomorrow is under 5 hours. the trip, and Runner’s World, helped me think a lot about my running goals in the next several years. I’ve come up with some pretty aggressive goals over the next 4-5 years but I’ll save those for another time.

Buckeye Marathon

Tomorrow is the Buckeye Marathon. I’ve never been more prepared for a marathon than I am right now. Still I’m incredibly nervous and worried that the recent respiratory issues will create a problem. But, still I’m hopeful. Assuming I survive I’ll let you know how it goes.

Until then…C-YA!

Missed runs and Refocusing

May 17, 2018 runningwithnealLeave a comment

So, its been awhile since I posted anything. That’s partially because I haven’t ran in over two and a half weeks. But I have a fairly good reason. At least I think it is.

Two days before the race I started to get a little bit of a sore throat. Not a big deal I thought. I started pushing vitamin C pretty hard and decided to take it easy. Friday I had a little bit of a sniffle but again didn’t think much of it.

Then came the plane ride to Indiana.

Flying with sinus issues is never fun. But, I’ve survived it before and was confident that I would again. As the nearly 4 hour flight wore on I began feeling worse and worse. I was getting colder and colder. Even my three year old daughter cuddling up next to me wasn’t warming me up any.

OK, I have a fever.

Then came the uncontrollable shivering. Coach V was getting pretty worried about me at this point and started mentioning that a half marathon in less than 12 hours might not be a best idea. I dismissed that thought at first because I’m stubborn and hated the idea of all this training and not taking my shot at a sub 2 hour half. I was sure that the fever was about to break and that with some sleep I’d be fine.

We landed, got our bags, and I made the very tough decision that it would be better not to drive to Illinois get 3 hours of sleep and then run. The better plan was to go to our friends in Noblesville and be able to sleep in the next morning.

When Anna pulled up to take us to her place she thought that I “looked like hell” and that it was a good call to not do the race.

They took my temperature right before we went to bed and I was still at 102. Honestly, I thought it had come down quite a bit from earlier.

So, I slept until 10 I think. Temperature when I woke up was still 102. But it broke shortly after I took a shower and I was feeling somewhat human again.

The decision not to run was the right one. Even though it killed me, metaphorically speaking, to bail on a race. I think that it may have come close to literally killing me if I had run it. Best case I would have been extremely disappointed with the result.

So, I suffered though the next week with a horrible cough, sore throat, and I completely lost my voice. Which is fun when a lot of your job includes being on conference calls. I was coughing so bad especially at night that I was waking myself up and couldn’t get back to sleep. A whole week of only 3-4 hours of fitful sleep is not a great idea. Finally the next Friday my boss came by and told me to go home and see a doctor.

So, I did. and that’s when I was told it was an upper respiratory infection and that it would be a good idea to take a couple of days off work. They also gave my antibiotics and REALLY good cough syrup. Well, I call it really good but it was really effective. It tasted absolutely horrible.

Now in week three of the illness that won’t quit. I still don’t feel great. my throat is still sore and I can’t hardly stand the thought of running. And at the same time I am very eager to get going again.

I’ve taken this time to really think about where my priorities are in running.

I need to get faster.

Like I want to be ALOT faster.

That started with shorter distances and working on my form. I’m going to incorporate hill training into my weekly routine and I am looking to find a track to do some speed work like pyramids and intervals. If anyone reading this has ideas on increasing speed I’m open to try things.

I’m also doing more short (5k) races over the summer. The race schedule for the year currently looks like this:

5/26– ARIZONA SUNRISE SERIES – KIWANIS PARK

6/9- ARIZONA SUNRISE SERIES – SCOTTSDALE SPORTS COMPLEX

6/23- ARIZONA SUNRISE SERIES – FREESTONE PARK

7/7-Spartan Stadium Series Sprint – University of Phoenix Stadium

7/7- ARIZONA SUNRISE SERIES – ARIZONA FALLS

7/21- ARIZONA SUNRISE SERIES – RIPARIAN

8/4- ARIZONA SUNRISE SERIES – RIO VISTA PARK

8/18- ARIZONA SUNRISE SERIES – FOOTHILLS

12/2 Hot Chocolate 15K

12/9 Buckeye Marathon

12/15 Estrella Trail 10K\5K Challenge

Most of them I will do in person, 3 I’m going to do a virtual run since I can’t be there on race day. I’ll probably add some more to fill in September through November. Although that will be the height of the Marathon training so it might be best to lay off the races for a little bit.

Its a neat series with each race adding to a point total that makes you eligible for a drawing in the fall.

Hopefully my throat calms down soon and I can get back to it this weekend. Until then…C-YA!