Rise at 6, eat, POP, get ready. I carpooled at 7:00 with Dave, Spencer and Tami. Spencer is a grizzled marathon vet, but Tami (my wife) and Dave (my brother in law) were running their first marathons. We got to Huntsville, and found a bus for the long ride up to the start. We joked and had a good time for the drive, and immediately joined the lengthy POP line. Lots of people have complained about the late start, but I was glad to be doing all this stuff at a normal time in the daylight. I remember starting Layton marathon a couple years ago and running for 7 miles in blackness, never seeing anything or recognizing a face. The scenery was beautiful, and it was great to see all the people and feel the unmistakable energy of runners milling about preparing to do battle. I've been targeting this race, expecting to run 2:55-3:05. I rested well all week, ate and drank big on Thursday, then went back to normal routine on Friday. For breakfast I had oatmeal, 2 toasts, and ate a sandwich and donut holes on the bus and waiting for the start, plus 20 oz powerade. I was topped off, more fueled up than for any other race. My Smarties and 5 hr energy strategy was in place, except for one thing; I neglected to remove my utility belt before I threw my bag on the trailer. Luckily, I located my bag in a sea of identical drops just before they pulled away. The temp at the top was pleasant, but not cool enough. When the race started it was probably 60. I left Tami and Dave, and headed up for the front to run with Angi and Josse (good to meet her in person). They were both gunning for sub-3. Right on time a weak-sauce siren sounded. Nobody started until the race director frantically waved everyone on. The first 18 miles of this course average 3-4% grade. The miles rolled by with seemingly little effort. I ran with Angi and Josse for the first 4 miles, then Josse dropped back a bit. We settled in around 20-25th place, and just rolled down the mountain. The aspens were gorgeous. I noted clouds, and willed them to move south to block the sun. Alas, they dissipated, and we ran the whole race in full sun. I was surprised at a straight section around mile 6 to see a glimpse of the lead motorcycle. That's by far the longest I've ever stayed near the front. Everybody held position till around mile 5. From there to 18 we would come on a runner or two every mile, and pass them. We ran through all the aid stations, taking what we could on the go. Angi was 1st female, of course, so she got lots of cheers. These miles were unremarkable from a racing standpoint; we just rolled. Splits for 1-13: 6:36, 6:41, 6:33, 6:38, 6:34, 6:34, 6:36, 6:34, 6:40, 6:35, 6:36, 6:33, 6:29. The half time was 1:26:12. I had planned on 1:26 or 1:27 to leave a reasonable shot at sub 3, so we were right on track. Through this point, I had eaten 150 calories of smarties, had a tiny bit of gatorade, and dumped lots of water on myself. I ditched my shirt at mile 9; it was already becoming uncomfortably warm. The halfway point of the marathon is triumphant and demoralizing. I was happy to be on track, but cowed at the task which remained. I had run 13 of the 18 "easy" miles. I had spent most, if not all my stored energy. The work was only beginning. At this point, Angi plugged into her music. Within moments she gapped me. I closed it and she encouraged me to follow suit; the music was pumping her up. I got mine on, and we continued down the course together, but running solo. The temperature was rising, and stirring up a dreaded headwind. It was drowning out my music, so I know it was a stiff breeze. We dealt with it for the last half of the race. Thinking back to UVM, I tried to draft and get Angi to draft, but I gotta be honest, neither one of us make a very good wind shield. We probably could have worked together a little better; it might have made a difference in the end. Mile 14: 6:35-- Still rolling along, enjoying the aided grade Mile 15: 6:35-- drank a 5 hr. Mile 16: 6:33-- Feeling good, although my right glute is getting a bit tight. Mile 17: 6:09-- This freaked me out! The caffeine must have really kicked in. Mile 18: 7:43-- Oh. I see. The marker wasn't placed correctly. I'm using a Timex watch, so marker placement actually matters. Angi's Garmin beeped 50 meters in advance of every marker, and this was the only one that was way off. At this point, I'm cloudy enough mentally that I can't figure out the real average of those two miles. So I didn't know I was in trouble until 2 miles after the trouble began. Corrected splits average 6:51. I am running out of grade and dropping 20 seconds per mile. Mile 19: 7:00-- Huh. A legit mile in the 7s. 3-4% grade has turned into .5-1%. This is really starting to feel like work. It's been 4-5 miles since I ate anything. I still don't eat anything, though 8 packs of Smarties remain in my belt. (That's 120 smartie discs) Mile 20: 7:15-- I'm not stopping the bleeding. Angi and I are running our own races now. I know Tara is coming to run at mile 21, and I'm holding on for that. I was at 2:12 at this point. "A 48 minute 10k. I should be able to do that. 7:30 pace is 45 minutes, leaving 3 minutes for .2 miles. Okay, I can keep it under 7:30's for the rest of the way. I don't want this to be close." Mile 21: 7:16-- Tara arrives. I take another 5 hr. This is really hard. She is encouraging, going back and forth between Angi and me. Angi has picked up a bike pacer, who gives me some water that is cold. I drink a little and squirt the rest all over me; I feel much cooler. We have turned off the highway on to the windy (in both pronunciations of the word) road past the monastery. Tara points out a red shirt guy. She says he's 2nd place. I tell her, "No way. There's another 10 or 15 guys up there." I can't believe five miles remain. I ran this last week with Dave, and we've got a long way to go. Mile 22: 7:35-- Wow. This is hard. I'm getting dizzy. I try to surge, to keep pace, but when I go a little harder, the dizziness slows me down. I keep the effort steady. Angi is still right there; we can still make sub 3. The margin is super close, though. Mile 23: 7:35-- Angi walks a bit. Does that mean I get to walk? "Oh no you don't, Kam. Not today. Not on my watch." Tara is relentless. "I feel so dizzy." "I don't care. Run till you fall down. Keep running." I keep running. I pass the red shirt guy while he is walking. Mile 24: 7:56-- Oh no. That's a lot of seconds over 7:30 pace. Surge...dizzy...slow down. "Don't you dare walk. You ran those workouts. You ran those switchbacks. Earn it. Go." Still moving, NOT walking. Mile 25: 7:43-- That's a little better, but not enough. To the finish: 9:00, 7:30 pace-- We are back to 500 S., heading toward the park. One mile straight, then a final turn into the finish. Rollers, up and over the highway. A policeman is holding up traffic. I wish I had to wait for the cars. Switchbacks kick in. Tara, lying through her teeth, "Wow. Who does that? You are picking it up on the hills." I'll take any encouragement. Sweet mother, this finish is going to be close. I didn't want to be this close. The road to the park is lined with US flags. I run by the 26 mile marker, and turn right. "Take the tangent! Go, Kam. That's the finish. Everything...go, go, go!!" Tara drops away. I'm going as hard as I can. I look at my watch. I can't make out the numbers. I hear the announcer guy, "And our second place finisher from Centerville, Utah, Kam Fillmore!!" I cross the line. My 6 year old says I collapsed, but I prefer to say I lay down abruptly. The volunteer says, "Okay, you need to get up." "In a few minutes." Oh the drama. They wheel me into a tent. I lie for a while with ice bags dripping sweet coolness all over my head, neck, shoulders, stuffed in my shorts. Revival. Oranges, grapes, creamies, water, smiley kids, elation. 3:00:34. I delude myself into thinking that clock is synced to the half marathon start. No such luck. It's official. I'm 35 seconds away from being legit. Sigh. I don't feel great, but we have other work to do. There are still family members on the course, so we head back to that final turn to wait for Tami. We are having a great time passing out ice cubes to tired, hot, thirsty people at mile 24.5, trying to coax and encourage them to the finish. Tami comes. She's plugging along, grinding them out. I joined her for the last 1.5 (bonus miles!) She's so great. I'm so proud of her, making it through her marathon without her shins exploding. Dave comes in as well, so we all made it. Unexpectedly, we hung around for awards. The had a trophy with a couple Snowbasin ski passes. 1st place was 90 seconds ahead. I didn't have another 35 seconds in me, let alone 90. Angi won, of course, but they had the female winners all messed up, somehow, so she didn't get the adulation she deserved. The runners all knew who won, even if the RD didn't. Man, this is long. So looking things over, I have a couple thoughts. I should have kept better contact with Angi. We could have worked together for a few more miles. Tara, bless her, was good for at least 3-6 minutes faster finishing time. She lived up to her assurance that there would be no walking this day. I wonder about the 5 hr. I never stacked 2 that close, and I wonder if the dizziness had anything to do with it, or if it was just the heat and exertion. Hmmm. I should have eaten stuff after mile 13. I could analyze this to death. The bottom line, though, Saturday was an incredible day.
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