7:30 am race. Joe Bell went with me to this one. Mid 40s at start. around 70 and sunny at finish. 65% humidity. Overall, pretty good race conditions.
Miles 1 to 4: 7:07, 7:13, 7:26, 7:08. I started with the 3:10 pace group. There were about 15 of us. Seemed to be a wide range of experience in this group. Two newbees, Two with 30+ marathons under there belt and those of us in between there. My plan today was to stick with the group until 16 miles and then kick up the pace to 6:45 or so. I struck up a conversation with a guy named Mike from Nashville. We had lots in common. 38, two young children, trying to BQ. First four miles essentually went as planned.
Miles 5 to 8: 7:10, 7:12, 7:16. 7:25. The run takes us through some nice neighborhoods. The course is flat with just a few rolling nolls. I'm feeling pretty good at this point. However, after taking a gel at 7, my stomach is not handling it very well today for some reason.
miles 9 to 12: 7:28, 7:10, 7:20, 7:15. temps are coming up as well as a good breeze from the south. I'm intensionally drinks as much water as possible. Not used to the warmth yet coming out of winter training. The group is still in tact at this point.
miles 13 to 16: 6:56, 7:05, 7:09, 7:00. chris the pace setter has picked up the pace a little. The group starts breaking apart just a little. We pass the half at 1:35:03. Gels are not digesting very well. i also develop a side stitch. Not bad but still very noticable. I leave the group within mile 16 with hopes of not being swept up by them later in the race.
miles 17 to 20: 6:46, 6:59, 6:59, 6:59. course runs on people trails through a wooded area that opens back up into a residential area, then back to commercial. miles 19 and 20 wind in our face.
miles 21 to 24: 6:56, 7:05, 7:15, 6:54. My legs are starting to feel a little fatigued. Still dealing with digestion issues. I take a couple of gels in this stretch, but feel like they are going to come back up at any time. To my suprise, I pass Joe in mile 23. He had a rough day.
miles 25, 26, finish. 7:28, 7:57, 1:35. We finish downtown. I feel a little more broken down today than last month. I was hoping to finish in the 3:05 to 3:06 range. However, two sub 3:10 marathons in 4 weeks... I'm ok with that.
first half 1:35:03
Second half 1:33:38
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