They all can't be "easy" runs.

Greenbrier River Trail Marathon

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Location:

Venice,FL,USA

Member Since:

Oct 31, 2012

Gender:

Male

Goal Type:

Other

Running Accomplishments:

5k:
21:01, (6:46 pace) 11-19-11.
20:08, (6:29 pace) 9-1-12 (Part of a Mini-Triathlon Relay).
19:17, (6:12 pace) 11-17-12.
19:19, (6:13 pace) 11-23-13.
19:30, (6:17 pace) 1-4-14.
20:34, (6:34 pace) 9-13-14
19:49, (6:23 pace) 10-25-14
19:32, (6:17 pace) 11-22-14
19:40, (6:19 pace) 12-19-14
19:49, (6:23 pace) 1-31-16

21:09. (6:48 pace) 7-4-26

8k:
34:42, (6:57 pace) 3-17-12.
32:11, (6:28 pace) 3-16-13.
32:32, (6:33 pace) 3-15-14. 

34:00, (6:50 pace) 3-14-15.

33:09, (6:40 pace) 3-11-17.

32:56, (6:38 pace) 3-17-18.

10k:
44:18, (7:08 pace) 4-14-12.
41:22, (6:39 pace) 12-15-12.
42:11, (6:47 pace) 4-13-13.
41:06, (6:37 pace) 12-8-13.

42:03, (6:46 pace) 3-5-16

44:35, (7:11 pace) 8-26-17
12k:
53:53, (7:14 pace) 3-24-12.
49:20, (6:37 pace) 3-1-14
15k:
1:18:16, (8:24 pace) 2-26-11.

1:04:37. (6:56 pace) 2-20-16

1:08:25 (7:18 pace) 2/22/20

Half Marathons:

1:37:57 (7:28 pace) 1-26-20. Fort Lauderdale - A1A 
16 Marathons:
1.  4:12:08, (9:37 pace) 1-9-11. Disney, FL.
2.  4:18:18, (9:51 pace) 10-30-11. MCM, VA.
3.  3:42:26, (8:29 pace) 1-14-12. Charleston, SC.
4.  3:13:15, (7:22 pace) 10-7-12. Steamtown, PA.
5*.  3:12:26, (7:20 pace) 1-19-14. Louisiana, LA.
6*.  3:14:06, (7:24 pace) 4-21-14. Boston, MA.
7*.  3:19:38, (7:37 pace) 7-19-14. U. of Okoboji., IA
8*.  3:16:27, (7:30 pace) 2-22-15. Mercedes-Benz, AL
9*. 3:30:38 (8:03 pace) 5-15-16 Sugarloaf, ME

10. 3:24:21 (7:48 pace) 11-5-16 Savannah RNR, GA

11. 3:27:37 (7:56 pace) 5-12-18 Brookings, SD

12. 3:46:02 (8:38 pace) 10-7-18 Towpath, OH

13. 3:35:11 (8:13 pace) 9-12-21 Med City, MN

14. 3:45:45 (8:37 pace) 4-16-23 Coastal Delaware, DE

15. 3:41:35 (8:27 pace) 5-2-26 La Crosse, WI 

16. 3:45:53 (8:37 pace) 10-4-26 Greenbrier River Trail Marathon, WV

* = These 5 races were run at 67.9 seconds per pound. If I want a PR, I need to weigh less than 170 pounds.

Other: 

Logged (on computer) 24,901 miles (circumference of the earth) in 5,744 days (11/20/25)

Short-Term Running Goals:

2026 GOALS:

to stop being a chicken, and run a race

La Crosse WI Marathon. May 2, 2026 - 3:41:35

Greenbrier River Trail Marathon WV. October 4, 2026 - 3:45:53

Long-Term Running Goals:

Continue running as often as I can, as far as I can, as fast as I can. Teaching my kids (by example) the rewards that come from putting in the work. Very slowly get to 50 states.

Personal:

I'm married, with two sons, 19, and 21. And as of January 18, 2025, one grandson. 

I started running because someone dared me to.

I ran my first race 3 days after my 40th birthday. (Disney)

My profile picture story: http://www.melissajill.com/blog.cfm?postID=1492&boston-marathon

Favorite Blogs:

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Miles:This week: 0.00 Month: 40.20 Year: 1669.36
Race: Greenbrier River Trail Marathon (26.2 Miles) 03:45:53, Place overall: 18, Place in age division: 3
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
26.200.0026.20

GreenBrier River Trail Marathon. This went way better than expected. Given the lack of training because I was sick for almost 2 months (among other life obstacles), and the forecast of a heavy downpour for the entire weekend, I thought this was going to be a disaster. (It never rained on race day.) The race started a half hour late, because they had to clear a tree from the path. Absolutely stunning race course along the river. Running over the river on the long bridge was fantastic. Running through Sharp's tunnel was unique. My legs felt fine immediately after the race, and now the days after. 

I did some different things than I normally do in a race. 1. I stopped at all of the water stations and drank 2 cups every time. (Recently, I have noticed that races are putting out 1/4 of a dixie cup of water, and I'm in too much of a hurry to drink more.) So this time, I was focused on drinking more water at each stop. 2. I was disciplined about my Gu intake. 3. It would be hard to describe here, but I have been running with cut up t-shirt sleeves as a headband formost of my races. I had a different plan with those that worked really well. 4. Going into this race with the idea that I hadn't adequately trained for it, really made me slow down in the early miles. It just felt like an extra lovely Sunday morning flat long run. Miles 14-17 things started feeling a little difficult. But by mile 18, I had unfamiliar energy, my pace picked up, and everything was a smooth running engine until almost the end of the race. I negative split the race by about a minute. 

I clicked my heels over the finish line. The race announcer said "That's our Florida guy!" Then spouse drove me back to the Snowshoe. We stopped at a hot dog shop, and got some Appalachian Hot Dogs that were awesome. We rode the ski lift down to the lake with some amazing views. We walked around the lake for a while, then went back up top, went swimming and got in the hot tub. 

This has to be one of the best race experiences we have had. Everywhere you look is like a postcard. 

Weight: 0.00
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