I'd already decided to take it very easy and run the marathon merely as a training run for the 100 miler coming up in April. I had no plans to kill the race or myself. I just needed the miles. I rode to the race with my friend, Adam, a trail running bad ass. I knew several other friends who would be out there that day as well and was looking forward to the effort and all the camaraderie.
As the race began, my friend Dennis snapped the photo below of me, Stinger Waffles in hand, ready to eat and all smiles. It was going to be an awesome day.
I ran the first couple miles with my friend Alyson's sister-in-law, Tina. The first two miles were on bike and bridle trails that eventually led us to single track trails. As we hit the single track, I said good-bye to Tina and let her go ahead. Keeping myself slow and steady was my goal. After about 6 miles of single track (around mile 8) the race was back on bike and bridle trails and would remain on them through to the finish.
Much of this course was very familiar. The Umstead 100's 12.5 mile loop (repeated 8 times) traverses much of the same trails. I was at home. I'd been training out at Umstead through the fall and winter and felt comfortable and happy running here. A portion of the course goes out and back (Turkey Creek), so I was able to see pretty much all of my friends who were out there that day as we passed each other.
As the miles ticked by, I kept to my race plan: eat every half hour, constantly sip water from my camelbak, keep my pace slow, and enjoy myself. I was stellar on all counts. I covered this course the way I planned to cover the 100-miler course: easy-going until the hills, then rapidly walk all hills. It was a piece of cake, and I was steady through to the end. I passed a lot of people as I cruised up the hills. I began to fatigue some around mile 20, and I noticed my feet hurt a little. Otherwise, though, I felt strong. The beauty of running a marathon in the midst of training for a much longer distance is that you are really well prepared for it. This was a no-headphones race, and I didn't even really miss mine. I was having a great day.
Within about a mile of the finish, I could see Tina way up ahead in the distance. She was running with a friend. I took the opportunity to kick it for the last mile to try to catch her. With about a quarter mile or so to go, I caught and passed her. She was looking great - strong and steady. For my part, it felt good to sprint through to the finish line. I was pleasantly surprised to realize I finished in just over 5 hours (5:05:12). I'd originally planned a finish time closer to 5:30. Knowing I'd kept it conservative and still finished that close to 5 hours was great.
As I came across the finish line, Jay Spadie snapped these pictures of me as I checked my watch and then cheesed a little for the camera.
In the photo below, notice Dennis Geiser, just behind and slightly to the right of me, in all black with a white hat. If you look very, very closely, you'll notice he is holding a box of gummie bears gifted to me by Christine Strom (thanks, Christine!) and passed along by Dennis (thanks, Dennis!). I have great friends.
With such a great day running this marathon, I was left feeling nothing but hopeful for the Umstead 100.
Can't tell your start picture from your finish picture! Amazing!
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