Blue Springs 50/50 Marathon Race Report and The Run to Subbing Three

This is my story of achieving a dream and a race report. Please come along on this run with me as I share my experience, provide feedback on overall organization, and hopefully answer the “should I run this race” question. Taking some time highlighting the things potential runners of this race might care to avail themselves of, prior to their first time here.  Secondly, I have a fun story to tell about my journey to subbing three and say thanks to all those who helped to try to get me there.

Race Report

Official Race Name - Blue Springs 50 Mile,  50K, Larry Mattonen Marathon and 1/2 Marathon

Unofficial Names - Blues Springs 50/50, Blue Springs Trail Marathon, Some Race Lou Puts On 

The Course – It’s flat. The hills that exist are negligible and basically take you up to cross a road or the river that you will be traversing next to the entire time. It's a crushed limestone or gravel trail, the kind when you were a kid would suck your shoes off when it gets wet. It would leave the bottoms of your jeans gray and dusty and if your shoes weren’t tied tight the occasional rock would let you know it. It’s one of the most forgiving surfaces that you can still run fast on. The route…well it’s not overly marked. Meaning it's a trail, which by definition states, it's a route in and of itself, hence followable. The points at which you turn or need some direction the ground was spray painted with arrows and pink flags were planted along those curves. You only crossed on a road once and that was to get to the other side of the trail which again was well marked. The trail meanders lazily but so does the Little Blue Trace running next to it. Here is a link to the course map.
Lou Joline is the Race Director (RD) for a few events in the Kansas City area and his course maps are the best. I'm not sure if he hand draws these or outsources this to a fourth grader but they are fantastic. This more appropriately represents in my head what the course looks like better than google maps but my imagination is still stuck in childhood. "POINT 9 IS THREE FEET E (East) OF A SIGN SHOWING THAT THIS ROAD DIVIDES". The level of specificity and detail is unheard of. Instead of saying, "a divided road sign" which I'm pretty sure we all understand he takes it to the next level and explains the sign, "a sign showing that this road divides." That's Lou. 

The Organization - What are they organizing for? That is always a good question to ask yourself when deciding how well the race was put together. This is not to be confused with a large, officially named and sponsored marathon, no sir. This is a small, local, completely volunteered and organized USTAF certified race. I ran the marathon in 2012 and read some reviews online. I hadn't run in a race Lou organized before 2012 but the laid back nature of ultra/trail running typically creates a good vibes all around. There were about 50 to 60 total runners of all the distances in 2012 - 50/50 mile and K, marathon and half. 

What do you need for a race like this? Not much. The start/finish area is well stocked with drinks, snacks, GU, etc. The aid stations are self-service mainly but volunteers do offer full service at a couple. The aid areas are designed for the 50 milers so they are well outfitted. There were three main staffed aid stations. Start/Finish, six, eleven, sixteen, and twenty three - that's according to the marathon distance. It’s an out and back so while there are three main aid stations they actually act like two aid stations because you catch them on the way out and the way back. There was at least three other self-serviced water or sports drink stations along the course. There were only four sections on the course with toilets. Start/Finish, mile four, mile six, mile eleven and then again on the way back. If you are dropping bombs while you are running my advice would be to take it easy on the Chipotle the night before. At each area there were typically one or two stalls. While that may not be enough to handle a large amount of people, there weren't a large amount of people. If you need a DJ, live bands, bounce houses or Radio Disney to offer pre or post-race ambiances you are out of luck - although there is a playground right by the start area. 

Lou is a BIG part of the overall organization. He directs, arranges bibs and timing, and gets aid stations staffed all the while getting tremendous support from the Kansas City Track Club and Blue Springs Running Club. Lou appears to wear life loosely and I'm akin to that philosophy as well. People can be a bit put off when he answers a question about course markings with the response, “it's a trail so it's inherently followable.” He's joking but under the considerable stress and anxiety before a race, some may not perceive the same level of humor he does. Lighten up my friends. If you go into this race with the mindset that it's a long fast training run, that's supported by volunteers but cheered by no one, your expectations will be met. Lou is also old, like retired old, like he could be your grandpa old or great grandpa old.

Fan Support - I like to look at it like this. If you run ultras to 5k's someone somewhere is making a sacrifice on your behalf so that you can run these races. While the screaming crowds of any big city marathon are entirely absent from this race, you have plenty of support from your fellow runners. I got at least thirty "good jobs and nice run" during my race. The aid stations workers are very supportive and encouraging and were just as likely to tell me I was killing it as they were to offer up any support they could give. This race is for runners whose motivation on race day comes from within because there will be a moment where you are going to have to rely on something deep inside your soul.

SWAG - People run races to get stuff, deal with it. That was as much for you as it was for me. If you are looking for some giant five inch finisher medal, complete with laser beams shooting out of the eyes of a phoenix that is triumphantly rising from the ashes while metallic fire glistens off it’s back, this race is not for you. Here is last year’s finisher medal: (and yes I have murder’s thumbs – just google it)

Was this crafted in the Yankee Workshop? Quite possibly. There was a braided nylon rope around it originally but that's still hanging on the wall. The wording appears to be from a word doc text box. Nice touch with the colors. This year we did not get finisher medals, instead we got solar powered desk gadgets. 

Different and original, check. How many race medals to you have sitting on your desk or on the window ledge? Not very many I bet. This will be proudly displayed on the window sill in my kitchen serving as a reminder of my favorite marathon. Well, it would have sat on the window but my daughters broke the flower off before we even made it home. Little assholes, we can’t have anything nice. You also get a t-shirt with the Blue Springs Running Club logo. It's of technical fabric and high quality. It's not race specific but will probably last longer in your race shirt drawer than many others plastered with more sponsor logos than art. The glorious winnings for the first female and male finishers of all distances are water bottles from other races Lou directs. In regards to swag at packet pickup I’m not entirely sure what’s available but something tells me not much. I mean, I think you get a bib. I have never gone to his pre-race packet pickup so I'm not sure if you get coupons and little advertisements for other races. Packet Pickup is at a Fazoli's which is tremendous. 

Price - Fees: Solo $30, $35 race day, Relay walkers $16 each, $20 race day. Includes shirt or something. I pulled that little ditty directly from the website. $30 BUCKS FOR A USATF CERTIFIED 50MILE TO HALF. I like value and this race is worth every penny. My intentions are to use my time as my Boston Qualifier next year and to improve my wave assignment for this year although I’m not sure if I can double dip like that. For $30 bucks I got an organized race, a marked course, a few shitters, stocked aid stations, a t-shirt, a solar powered nicknack, free pictures, and a fast time. If you have a tendency to find fault in things and look for negatives rather than positives, first, stop being such a dick, second go put on your own run and tell me how it goes. 

That should about cover what you need to know about this race. If you have any specific questions please hit me up. If all you were interested in was learning about the race you should stop reading. This is not a story of one that got away, this is the story about one that was finally caught.

2:59:09

Subbing three hours in a marathon has been a goal of mine since someone told me that only around 2% or less of marathoners ever run that fast. It’s hard. Really, really, really hard and I believe that you should do something hard every day. It was around 2011 when I really understood how hard it was going to be. That is not to say that 2011 was the year I started running. I started running small, like one mile fun runs in second grade small, and continued until I was a junior in high school and picked back up in 2008. My rebirth into running started in trying to prove to people I wasn't wasting my life. If you can run a marathon, how hard can you really be living? You would be amazed. In 2004, when I was constantly getting wrecked, I ran the St. Patrick’s Day Four Miler in 25:36, puked up whiskey in the last mile and smoked a cigarette on the way out of the finishing shoot. I WAS a screw up but man I could fly, what a waste but I digress. In 2008, my old man was determined to run his first half when he turned sixty and I said if he could do that, I could do a full. Always a competition with him and I. It was brutal but I was infected. I started becoming all too familiar with Marathon Guide and fortunately came across a local running group called the Trail Nerds. Jackpot. This is where and when it became less about time and more about having fun and seeing what you can do. I didn't have fun in my first marathon; in fact it was a shit ton of suffering. That was not cool. I get that the pain is part of it, pushing ourselves to see what we can do is inherently attractive to certain people. I dig it. Running at first was nothing more of a way to get out of the house, keep focused, and keep people off my back. It worked. Slowly, I started running more and more races of all lengths. Marathons, 50K's, halfs, fifty milers and 2.8 mile trail races. In 2010, I ran the Olathe Marathon. It may have been called the Oz or Garmin marathon at the time and I managed to run a 3:29. At that point I started researching qualifying for Boston. Boston, Boston, Boston. You hear it talked about in chat rooms and at races. I remember when I went to this kid’s house, Billy Huston, and his mom had a finisher medal and I think they had an article on her in the Southeast Missourian regarding running in the Boston Marathon. I couldn’t have been more than fifteen or sixteen at the time but I do remember thinking if you got your name in the paper it was probably a big deal. Man, what strange things stick with us. In 2010 a 3:10 was the fastest qualifying standard and lucky for me, my age group time. After following up that race with a 3:21 at the Kansas City Marathon I felt if I trained hard it was doable. 

That's when I started looking at training plans rather than my normal training plan which was “go outside and run”. I got an excel file from a collegiate distance runner I knew, Kyle Brown (much love my man), who had some success at the marathon distance. The file itself was intimidating. Like ten separate sheets for all sorts of things I have never heard of. To this day I believe VO2 Max is something that can be found in the hair care aisle.  Around this time is when my mileage started to explode. Kyle asked me how many miles I was running per week and I was doing about 30-40 with no real method just shorter runs with a long run on the weekend. He told me point blank that if I wanted to qualify for Boston I need to run more miles and more quality sessions. At first my inner dickhead thought, “Are you kidding me? I can do this thing on sheer force of will.” Then when I continued to make very little improvement I swallowed my pride and printed out the excel file. I got semi-serious with hill runs, long runs, tempo runs, and speed work. I attribute my ability to maintain a high turnover to a few fundamentals, at least one speed work session every two weeks (and it better be really hard), a long run every weekend of at least 14 miles most likely twenty, lifting weights, and trail running. Do what works for you, that works for me. 

After Kansas City 2010, I was now dabbling in 50K’s and targeted one during my training for my Boston qualifier using it as an extended long run. I was pretty good about hitting my times and my miles during that full eighteen weeks of training. I missed one or two, here or there, but on the whole, put in my time and miles. My goal was to sub 3:10. I figured if I ran a 1:30-1:35 first half I would be in good shape. I got a pace band from the good people at Races 2 Remember with the “modified warm up” strategy and by the half point I was at 1:30. I crossed the line that day in the 2011 Olathe Marathon in 3:01:19ish and was floored. I couldn't believe I smashed my goal time! I was also vexed by all the questions coming from people about how I DIDN'T sub three. In their defense, they didn't know that was my PR by nearly eighteen minutes and I was going to Boston. In retrospect, anytime you hear of someone finishing so close, but above, a fairly obvious goal time, tell them congrats on the feat and spare them the anguish of being reminded of what they didn't accomplish. Believe me, we runners are pretty hard on ourselves already, we don't really need the reminder after a race of the “almost”.

Once you get that close to one of these barriers you have to attempt to cross it. Now a word about finishing what you started. The ultra-community can be someone spastic when it comes to not finishing a race. Some would tell you there is no way they would quit, that nothing will keep them from finishing. “I commit not to quit!” is a mantra you hear quite frequently. The majority of runners will finish and the majority will accomplish what they set out to do but how do you know your limits unless you reach them? It’s going to happen. DNF - Did Not Finish. That sucks. It really does. I have quite a few of these and each has a story and each taught me something. The disappointment burns but that is why I keep running, to paste over those first drafts and replace them with something complete. From April 2011 to October 2013 I had some high, highs like qualifying for Boston and finishing my first 50K to some low lows, DNF'ing at Boston 2012 (my very first Boston), and only breaking 3:05 once. During all that time one thing did not change. My love for getting up at 5:30am on a Saturday, getting all my stuff on, jingling the dog collar as Charlotte goes bananas, and run like I was in the woods growing up. 

One subtle change of perception occurred after I ran in Olathe in April of 2013. I ran a 3:04 and was not upset even though I was attempting to sub three, not upset because I had placed in the top five two weeks prior in the Brew to Brew Solo forty-five mile ultra. I came off of that run with the legs still in me to qualify for Boston again and with that elusive five minute cushion (my qualifying time is 3:10 now that I am an old man and they lowered the lowest qualifying time to 3:05). As I took stock of that race (at least 24-28 hours later to more objectivity look back) is the moment in time where I KNEW I could sub three. 

For me it is all about the base. Basically, five years of running with no more than two or three weeks of full rest in between. This past July I only ran twice, once was a 50K and once was a half, other than that I rested. At the same time something was gnawing at me in terms of my training. I hadn’t really tried anything new and needed to change to keep it fresh and to do that, again, I asked for help from my friends. Chris Legler, a fellow runner, born with a great running name, gave me his Jack Daniel's 18 Week Marathon Plan. He highlighted two things that appealed to me. The highest mileage week was fifty-five miles and you had one or two speed sessions a week. That's not entirely true; it's not really two speed sessions but two hard sessions. Speed doesn't always have to be a factor in a hard workout but I find it usually has some aspect. His plan called for him to run a 6:45 per mile pace and finish in the sub 2:56-2:57 range. While, he barely missed his goal at Chicago, this was a more manageable training regimen for me since seventy mile weeks cause me to run twice a day and turn into a jerk. That is not conducive to me being happy and why run if you aren't having a good time. 

Back to Boston. My best friend qualified for Boston this year in probably the most competitive qualifying process ever. As he waited admission notification, he told me about these message boards on Runner's World where people were commenting on all things Boston Marathon. Surprising to me is how some people assume that being fast is all due to genetics and the biological lottery. That's probably true for a certain percentage of elites, think Kenyan body type, but for most of us those genetics only get you so far. No one runs those miles for me and no one wakes me up, gets me ready, or puts in all that time. Again, let's just make a note here that you can just be happy for someone when they do a good job or have success. You don't have to put some conditions on it like, "well, he has a great body for it". You know what, my body type wouldn't be right for running if I crammed Oreo's in my cake hole all the time and didn't exercise. I mean come on, a body like this doesn't just grow on the biological tree without a little pruning and weeding but again I digress. 

The final two weeks before Blue Springs 2013 I did what we all are supposed to do when preparing for a goal time marathon, I tapered. I like to do this before all the events I am racing but that is not always possible if I have an ultra only a few weeks before a goal race. Many of you are probably saying, “hey dumb-ass, if you would taper properly before all your races you would have subbed three already.” There is some validity to that for sure but I have also tapered correctly and had mixed results as well. Anyway, the final two weeks of preparation consisted of three off days, one set of Yasso 800’s ten days before the race, and mostly easy miles. I restricted my Coke’s to one a day and eliminated the sugar free Rockstars (white can) until race day. I also didn’t have desert and managed to stay away from snacking between meals. My ideal race weight is in the 160’s preferably 165 pounds. Those last two weeks have fattened me up before by cutting my mileage and eating like a dumpster. This time I tried to be a little bit more restrictive.
The last week I was getting pretty stressed, which is a mixed blessing because it causes me to lose my appetite and it also means I care.  This happens quite regularly when I’m attempting to sub three or place high in a race. Uncharacteristically, my confidence was pretty low. I had a bad half in July that discouraged me, for the first time ever I was having a foot issue (low grade plantar fasciitis), and on some of my long pace runs I was really struggling to hit my times for the last few miles. Struggling on the last few miles of a long run does not instill boatloads of confidence that come marathon day you will have something left in the tank for the end. I even told my wife I wasn’t feeling good about this one and if she wanted to stay home with the kids, I was down with that. She looked at me like I was crazy. 

Finally, the day before the race was different for me as well. The marathon was on a Sunday and I didn’t have any soccer games to coach so I decided to go to the Y and stretch. I walked/jogged a couple of miles and then spent a solid half an hour just stretching. Long static stretches and holds that I don’t spend enough time doing. After that, I came home and stayed off my feet and drank a fair bit of water. Around supper time I decided to try something different for my pre-race meal. Normally, it’s pasta, chicken with white sauce, and peas which tastes good and provides the needed carbs and calories I will be burning. That night we changed it up. Two Kansas City Strips left in the freezer from my eight year old’s birthday meal were enticing. Ruby wanted steak for her birthday, we have it maybe three times a year, and I had some left so we had steaks, mashed potatoes and peas with garlic bread. It was scrumptious. I followed that up with more water and managed to be in bed and asleep by 9:30pm, that’s a miracle. 

Race Day

I was up at 5:30am for a 7:00am start time. Like all obsessive runners, I had all my gear laid out from the night before. Shoes, tights, underwear, socks, sleeves, head band, stocking cap, gloves, pace band, watch, and fuel belt/pack. I got up a little early because I wanted to be able to actually eat. The stress causes me to not eat and then I bonk over the last four miles. A banana and piece of peanut butter toast are my go-to’s but I had a new plan for my race day diet. Banana bread. I had made two loaves of banana bread the night before and took about a three inch chunk with me in the car. I stopped at QuikTrip to get a giant (sugar free, white can) Rockstar because I drink about half of one before the race. The caffeine provides a little pick me up and makes getting out into the cold and running more pleasing. I arrived at the parking lot a little after 6:15am and just chilled out. I sat in my car, tightened my shoe laces, listened to some sweet jams and mentally just zoned out. Around 6:30am I got out of my car and headed over to find Lou and get my bib. It was black outside, in the upper 30’s Fahrenheit, and some runners had already started. You can start at 6 or 7am due to the varied distances of this race. You have fifty milers, 50k runners and relay teams already on the course so the start/finish area is a bit jumbled with activity. I found Lou and got my bib. This was the point where I heard him mention about the trail being a trail hence not too many markings. I was laughing and smiling because while I understand he is joking, if you have never run in his races you might think he is being mean but he is not. 

I got my bib from his manila folder stash and went back to my car to pin it on. I ate my first GU at 6:45am and took an S-Cap. If you aren’t familiar with S-Cap’s they are basically sodium and potassium pills used by endurance athletes to reduce cramping. At least that’s what I use them for. As I was sitting there, I began to ponder if there weren’t that many course markers what about mile markers? I knew the answer before I asked but in my nervousness I asked Lou anyway.  I got back out of my car and walked over the start. 

“Hey Lou, are there mile markers on the course?” I inquired. 

“Well the trail has mile markers on it but they don’t correspond to the mile you are actually running,” said Lou. 

“So not really,” I replied. 

Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit. 

This pretty much threw a giant wrench into my perfect plan. My pace-band was now an expensive paper wristband and the only way I was going to know if I was near my time was to estimate how far I had run and do the math in my head. Mental math!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Whelp, maybe I will just take my phone with me. This was not something I wanted to do. The point of this race was to be light, not carry my own water, just a little strap pouch for my GU but nothing else. No music, no update every mile of speed, pace, average pace, overall time. It was supposed to just be me, my thoughts and the trail. Instead this was unraveling and was going to be a disaster. Please pardon the language here but I just said, “fuck it”. No phone, no mile markers, no splits, just the trail and my thoughts. I jogged about a mile to get warmed up and did a few token stretches and headed for the starting line. 

Welcome to the starting line. You start asking what other people’s paces are, if they’ve ran the race before and if they are trying to hit a specific time. There seemed to be a fair number of new runners to this race and having run it last year I mentioned to a few that I was familiar with the course and shouldn’t get lost. Then a gentleman asked how I did and I said a 3:12 and he said he would probably not be following me then. We both laughed. Here are the obligatory starting line shots. 

This is me. Please note, I’m not sure if Lou believes in the three R’s, reduce, reuse, recycle but the bib I’m wearing is from another race he puts on. Adds to the charm. 

Here we are at the starting line. 

“Sixty seconds until the start!”

We stepped up to the line. There were a little over thirty marathoners competing in this race and based on last year’s results, I figured there would be someone fast racing because who doesn’t like to win a race. When I won last year, it was the first time I had ever won a marathon and I figured the last. When you see finishing times that look like you could beat them, it becomes pretty hard to not give it a go.

My plan coming into this race was a modified warm up strategy.  Look at the band below if you have questions about this method.  

In my three or four attempts to actually sub three, I have always broken down over the last few miles. Probably a little mental but mostly a lack of strength and endurance to maintain that pace over the entirety of the race is why I wanted to go out slow. My previous personal best was set when I ran this same strategy. The twist this time was there were no marathon mile markers only permanent trail mile markers. I kept the band on partially for the mantra but I also held out hope that at the turn-around or other spots there would be someone with a GPS or know exactly how far I was.

PERFECT

DAY

FOR FAST

That is the mantra on my band. Normally, I put my wife and kids names on the band and who knew when I ordered this the weeks before that this was going to be so fortuitous. 

I went out like a rocket. It’s almost black as night, its overcast cloudy and the sun hasn’t broken the horizon yet, it’s cold, and within a half mile I’m by myself. The only way this could have been better is if my dog was running with me. Due to the fact we are on a wooded trail, I’m out in front and the lack of road noise; I could hear my footfalls distinctly. For anyone who has logged thousands of miles of running you probably have the ability to know how fast you are running with a combination of your turnover, heart rate, and the sound of your footfalls. Personally, I can tell if I’m under seven minutes a mile on the sound of my feet hitting the ground. After a mile of settling in and deciding if the pace I’m running at is maintainable I felt as if I was right around that seven minute a mile pace or possibly a bit faster.  

Remembering the conversation I had with Lou at the beginning, I started looking for the first trail mile marker. The new plan in my head was to check my watch at that first post and check again at the next marker. I think I missed the first mile marker because my watch was ticking at 00:12:02ish. Don’t confuse yourself and think that this was the first mile. I figured I was nearing my second actual mile but I had no way to tell. When I saw the second trail marker and glanced down and saw 00:18:48ish. That meant I was running about 6:50 for mile or so. That’s nearly the exact pace I needed to be running overall in order to sub three! I was slightly perplexed because it did feel like I was moving a bit faster than that but I continued to push. 

 

Around the 45 minute mark I took my second GU and first on the course. I had three more to take and decided I would eat another at 01:30:00, 02:00:00, and 02:30:00. A pretty solid fueling strategy with the exception that I wasn’t carrying water. Normally, I eat one GU right before an aid station. Not really knowing where the aid stations were I opted to eat them at my given times and try to follow up with water as quickly as possible. When I’m using GU’s I try to stick to only water. Too much sugar upsets my stomach so if no GU’s then sports drink but not both. I hit the first manned aid station and grabbed some water. 

Another oddity for me this race was that prior to this aid station and not much longer after I had to stop to relieve myself on the edge of the course. Normally my hydration strategy eliminates the need to eliminate. I figured peeing related to the uptick in water I was consuming that prior week and the Rockstar I was sipping earlier. Too much information!

Right after this I began to be passed by runners coming at me and I was passing runners from behind. Remember there was a 6am start time as well for anyone who needed a little extra cushion. Plus, the 50K and 50 milers like to start early when they can, it makes finishing as a group more fun. Who doesn’t like passing people! I love it. A chance to change my mind a bit and start focusing on what’s in front of me and not how I am feeling. This is also when you get a lot of the “good jobs” and “nice run”. It’s around 7:30am and the sun is slowly starting to cook off the low hanging mist/fog that has been enveloping the surroundings since the beginning of the race.

It’s so peaceful, so serene that a calmness and serenity is in my soul. A tear starts to well up as I am wrapped in a blanket of emotion of happiness and freedom. Seriously, one day I will write the story behind the inspiration for my running but that is for another time.  

As I approach the hour mark I start to think about how far I have gone. I am under the impression that it is roughly eleven miles to the turnaround and then eleven back to the start/finish line. The way I figure if I can hit the turnaround at 01:15:00 that would put me at 02:30:00 if I can even split it on the way back. As written previously, you run out and back and then through the start finish for another short out and back the other way. Based on my mental math that would leave 4.2 miles remaining and a little under thirty minutes to hit my time. Your perspective changes quickly when you start to think something is doable. Your confidence starts to grow. 

The turnaround is right after an aid station so I grabbed some water and a few pretzels and headed to that point. At the turnaround I am at 01:15:30ish. That put me at a good pace and put me at around a 00:06:51 pace per mile. Internally mind blowing as I’m holding the exact pace I was hoping to run. Are the stars aligning? The motivation is coming quite often. I’m now passing people regularly, which again provides a focus and I also know how far behind me the other runners are. While I have no idea how far the second place guy really was it seemed like it was at least five minutes or longer before I saw anyone who I hadn’t already passed. I want to share a picture of the guy who was in second at that time. 

I am sharing this because he is wearing the race shirt from the 2009 Go! St. Louis Marathon and that was the FIRST marathon I ever ran! Yes, we are only in Kansas City and yes the running community is pretty tight but for real? Another omen. 

I’m feeling really good at this point even uncomfortably comfortable. I have two more GU’s to take and the landmarks I had stored in my head from the first half are helping to shorten the distance. This entire time I have not had any setbacks only when I pass some old dude and he says, “only nine miles to the start” do I start to wig out a little. How can that be right? Based on my stellar arithmetic I am certain it’s less than that, more like eight or even seven. No worries, he’s probably confused of the mileage, like myself, and he’s old.

At the 02:15:00 mark I can hear the highway. Interstate I-70 is probably a mile from the start/finish and the traffic has picked up based on that noise. What a great freaking noise! It can’t be more than two miles to the start/finish and I’m running a little behind my pace. It’s going to come down to how far is the out and back once you cross the start/finish. If it’s four miles it’s going to be tough. I’m continuing to gain confidence though because I FEEL that my pace has been fast. I FEEL it’s been faster than I’ve needed it to be. I had yet to allow myself the thought that my goal was within reach but dammit it was within reach. 

I busted out of the woods and could see the path as it runs back up and down and under the main road. I’m glancing at my watch and estimate that I will be at the start/finish to head out on the final out and back around 2:32:30ish. 

As I see the line I scream out at Lou, “how many miles left?”

 No response. 

“How many miles left?!” I yell again. 

“Three!” Yells Lou. 

NO WAY! I glance at my watch and I’m around 2:33:00ish. That means I have around twenty seven minutes to finish and hit my time. NO WAY! Are you kidding me? Unless there is an epic collapse I am going to do this! While I was a bit disappointed that there was no wife and kids to cheer me on, if I could at least maintain I was golden. I continue to motor along but must confess my pace is fading. My mental map of where the turn-around was, was failing me. Finally, I see a guy running toward me and I ask how far to the turnaround. He says about a mile. About a mile? What the hell is happening? I glance at my watch and it feels like I should nearly be at the turnaround already. Cursed non-mile mile-markers!

Again the math starts along with the terrible conversation blasting through my head. What time did I come across the line to start this out and back? Based on that to the turnaround how much time am I going to have left? Where is that damn turnaround? Like finding water in the desert when I saw the two volunteers at the turnaround I was pumped. 

“Marathon turnaround,” I scream? 

“Yep, do you need any…”

I knew it was the turnaround. There was a yellow sign and a U-Turn arrow spray painted in orange on the ground. I didn’t even hear him finish I just turned around and checked my watch. Based on my Hawkinian calculations I surmised that if I made it to the turn at 02:45:00 or even 02:46:00 then I had plenty of time to make it back and sub three, even if I got into some trouble. Again, I avert my eyes from the trail to my watch and it’s about 02:46:30ish. It’s going to be close but how is that possible. There is no way it can only be only 1.5 miles to the turn it HAS to be longer than that. More on that later. 

Mental maps and landmarks are great for many reasons but reassurance and comfort are what I was looking for. Fall is my favorite season and I had chosen a large tree that looked like a giant red firework exploding. Once I saw that tree I would try to pick it up and finish really hard. Let me remind you that I have yet to have any physical setbacks so when I got a cramp with less than a half a mile to go all I could do was laugh and panic. My right quad got tight and my left quad sent the first twinge to my head that there was trouble. Then my right calf started to tighten and all I can think is don’t seize up. As long as they just tighten but don’t seize it’s all good. Sprinting is now out of the question but it’s not going to be necessary. The gentleman who was in second was now in third and the competitor now in second is at least five minutes behind and won’t catch me. 

I’m no more than two hundred yards from the finish when I hear, “Way to go Daddy!” 

The three loves of my life had made it to finish. The trail likes to bend, with large trees providing shade but blocking sight lines so my wife didn’t see me coming until I was pretty close. I had glanced down when I saw my tree and knew I was going to make it. The girls are yelling for me as I pass and when I cross the line I see my time. 

All I can do is raise my arms in triumph. 

I still don’t know how to accurately express everything that was pulsating through me emotionally at that time. I have heard my oldest tell others that sometimes Dad cries at the end of his races. During the entire race I was thinking about what I would do if I made it. Get down on the ground and kiss the trail, just start sobbing, do a cartwheel, collapse in a heap? Instead I just lifted up my arms and said, “I did it.” 

“Two fifty nine oh nine! Two fifty nine oh nine! I did it. I did it. I did it.”

That’s all I could say. I found my wife and gave her a huge hug. The girls ran up to me and could care less, they just wanted me to pick out my finisher toy. Lou walks up and has my time and congratulates me on a job well done. He mentioned that he ran a 3:03 or 3:01 once and comments on how hard shaving that last minute or two can be. He gives me an insulated water bottle from a previous 5K as my winnings. The girls are already fighting over it. Talk about helping you keep perspective in the most normal ways. 

Here are some finish line photos. 

Coming to the finish. 

Getting my time.

Getting my first place swag!

With my loves. 

My soon to be broken solar toy medal!

Here is a link to the course I ran via www.gmap-pedometer.com : http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=6128460

According to the course map and my memory it seems as if I ran nearly twenty seven miles. That could be correct or my memory could be wrong. The final turnaround may have been sooner but it certainly feels like it too forever to get to. 

Let’s dig in for a little more analysis. If you take the link to the mapped run at face value and said I actually ran 26.98 miles, I averaged a 6:38 per minute pace. If you were to subtract out the additional distance and time I could have possibly ran a 02:53:58. I’m going to go back and look at the ground to see where the actual final turn around was and actually GPS it. The more I look at the map the more I am convinced I ran long and let me explain. 

My time to the first turnaround was 01:15:30 if the distance is correct I ran that at an average of 6:37 per mile. On the run back I managed a to hit a 01:17:30 which averages a 6:48 per mile pace. It all comes down to the last splits and how far that it was to the last turnaround. It was either 1.68 miles to the turn or 2.09 miles. Regardless, it was probably further than three miles and maybe someday I will actually know exactly how far I ran. It was probably a little more than 26.2 miles but its all good. It’s better for a race to run long and be certified than be under and be not certified.

You see what I'm doing here. Trying to give myself the justification and motivation to try to keep going faster. I was convinced this was what I was shooting for and it was. The pressure I put on myself is now lifted; it's like going to confession.

People talk about bucket lists. I don’t have one. At least not in the sense that I have a defined list of things I want to do before I die. Instead, I have life goals. Running under three in a marathon was one of them. Whatever ever your life goals are I recommend setting them high and not giving up on them because when you accomplish one the feeling of satisfaction is unlike any high I’ve ever had. No one can ever take this away from you. It’s forever a part of who you are. When you gain this new perspective from something you’ve accomplished it’s then your obligation to share this experience with others when they ask. 

I’m happy to be part of this club, I’m thankful for all the friends and family who sacrificed to help make this happen, and I’m going to continue to try to get better at doing the right things one day at a time. With that I’ll pass...on your left.