Here's what everbody was waiting for....I know it. To start, I've learned some valuable lessons from this race and I'll share them with everyone.
1. If you are going to run a marathon, make sure you actually run more than 15 miles prior to the race.
2. Don't start out too fast thinking that you'll be able to carry the pace throughout the race.
3. I'm able to finish a race, with minimal training, and meet my goals. That said, maybe I need to consistently train and actually run something like a 3 hours next time.
4. Injinji socks are AWESOME. I had blister problems on all my long runs prior to the marathon, lubed my feet up with some glide, put the Injinji socks on, and my feel only have one small blister. El Perfecto.
5. Do not, I repeat NOT help someone sod a 3500 sq ft yard one week prior to a marathon.
Total run time was 3:40:59.
I was able to mosey my way to the front 10th of the people in the start, so I didn't have to navigate through too many people like I did last year. First mile I clocked in at 8:15 mile and I continued on. From there, I began to loosen up and felt great, which is probably why I blazed a trail. Up and down the hills of Georgetown, no problems there, and then down to Hains Point. At the halfway mark, my time was just over 1:38 and I felt really good. I figured that if I stayed with the 3:20 pacer/group, I would be fine. Well....not so fast my friend. At mile 16, I began to hit some bumps in my personal running road. I thought it was lack of fuel, so I continued to eat goo's and drink water/sports drink at the stations. Right after mile 18, my day was made when my brother, Greg (non-runner unless he has to) hollared my name he was holding my neice, the Maeve. I ran back to them, where he said I was going to wrong way, then popped a quick kiss on the little tyke. Seeing them really energized me and I probably continued to run for another mile before I really broke down. From there on out, I would run, at a really slow pace for a while, then walk for a minute or two. I did this until the end of the Marathon. The worst part about the whole race was just after mile 24 when both my quads seized up, I mean, totally seized up. I walked for about three minutes then until they were loose again, stretching and massaging them as I went, and finally got going again. This was probably a combination of me not running far enough prior to the race and the mad sodding event. Oh well, from there, I hit the home stretch, at a very slow pace and felt total relief that the end was in sight. It was my assumption that I would have to go a little further than I did, based on last years course, but we made an immediate left and headed up the final .2 mile hill to the Iwo Jima Memorial.
Overall, I really did learn some valuable lessons during this race. The one salient point that bothered me at the end of the race was the fact that I wasn't meeting anyone there. Last year, I did, but this year, things are different....it's a long story. I'm happy with my performance to some extent, given the fact that my "really tough" goal was to run a 3:30 but my realistic goal was to run a 3:45. Well, I beat my realistic goal but have a long way to go. Training....it does the body good. I feel good about myself, now my legs....they are a different story. If anyone wants to run a fantastic race, with great fan support, I highly suggest heading towards DC and hitting the MCM up. My sense of pride as U.S. Marine in finishing our marathon is nothing but amazing...although I'm no longer in my beloved corps, I will always love everything about it and I honestly feel re-connected to more than many of my brethren ever will.
Semper Fi - Aaron
(Brooks Infinitis - 36.7 miles) | 