2008 Marine Corps. Marathon

Before the Race

It was a dark and stormy morning.  John, Mark, and I squeezed into my little car with all of our running gear, an insane amount of food, and a handful of electronic gadgets (we’re geeks after all).  The day started to go bad when I kept saying “I think we should have turned already.”  Eventually we realized that we really should have turned already but by that point it was way too late to turn around.  We let the GPS system re-route us and we continued on.  That snafu along with fog that reduced visibility to a less than a tenth of a mile added an hour to our drive on our quest to the 2008 Marine Corps. Marathon.

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As I write this there are less than 5 days, and 20 hours until the start of the 2008 Marine Corps Marathon.  Looking back through my training log I can see that I started training for this race in early May.  That’s pretty close to 6 months of training and a mile or two shy of 1000 miles.  I’m nervous because I’ve put in so much effort.  I want to do the best I can and I don’t want anything stupid to prevent me from doing my best (like forgetting my sneakers or getting lost or any number of things).

The nerves and the extra energy from the taper are making me a bit cranky.  I snapped at Mary yesterday for no good reason. A nice strong cocktail helped calm me down but I’m not going to have any more alcohol this week.  Alcohol messes up my sleeping patterns.  So to all who come in contact with me this week: I’m sorry I’m nervous and irritable and if when I’m a jerk it’s not you.

My “long” run yesterday was really good with the exception that it was 31.2 degrees out.  At that temperature even water doesn’t want to move.  I wore 4 layers of clothing and was surprisingly comfortable.  This week is supposed to be cold.  I hope I don’t acclimate to this weather!  The weather in DC is currently predicted to be a high of 70 with rain.  Since the race is run in the morning I expect it to be much cooler than 70.  If it rains I hope it doesn’t happen until after the race starts.  All things considered this could be very good weather for me since I prefer warmer weather.  Still, I think I perform best in the mid 50s.  I can’t worry about the weather because it is not in my control but I can worry about preparing for the weather with proper clothing.

I’m going to plan for the trip using the time that I’m NOT spending running.  I have only 3 runs planned between now and the marathon for a total of 13 miles.

Yesterday marked the end of my true training for the 2008 Marine Corps. Marathon.  The long run is the most important type of run for a marathon and my training plan this time around had 4 20 mile training runs.  Yesterday was my last 20 miler and marked the beginning of the 3 week taper period.  My longest run up to race day is only 12 miles!

Yesterday’s run went well. Read the rest of this entry »

I know, I’m a little slow in posting this…but I ran the Rochester Half Marathon on Sept 14, 2008.  It was my first ever official marathon.  I have run longer distances in the past, but this was my first really, really, really long race.

Conditions for race day were not ideal Read the rest of this entry »

You heard it right!  A new PPPR for me!  You’re probably wondering…what is a PPPR?  Well, it is a post pregnancy personal record.  Yesterday, I ran the Scarecrow Safe Journey 5k in Fairport.  It was pretty cool…about 44 degrees but sunny.  I overdressed…I wore a tank top and 2 long sleeved technical shirts.

At the race start, I was flying high!  Read the rest of this entry »