They all can't be "easy" runs.

2026 La Crosse 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

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
15 Marathons:
1. 4:12:08, (9:37 pace) 1-9-11. Disney.
2. 4:18:18, (9:51 pace) 10-30-11. MCM.
3. 3:42:26, (8:29 pace) 1-14-12. Charleston.
4. 3:13:15, (7:22 pace) 10-7-12. Steamtown.
5*. 3:12:26, (7:20 pace) 1-19-14. Louisiana.
6*. 3:14:06, (7:24 pace) 4-21-14. Boston.
7*. 3:19:38, (7:37 pace) 7-19-14. U. of Okoboji.
8*. 3:16:27, (7:30 pace) 2-22-15. Mercedes-Benz
9*. 3:30:38 (8:03 pace) 5-15-16 Sugarloaf

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

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

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

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

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

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

* = 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

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 20. 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:

Ukraine Can Win With Crowdfunded Drones!

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Miles:	This week:	7.50	Month:	117.00	Year:	863.80

Sat, May 02, 2026

Race: 2026 La Crosse Marathon (26.2 Miles) 03:41:35, Place overall: 64, Place in age division: 6

Slow miles	Fast miles	Total Distance
26.20	0.00	26.20

Great Race. Spouse and I had a lot of fun sightseeing in the area. I'm pretty happy with my time, as it is about what I expected.

This is a flat point to point race, that goes from east to west (never facing the rising sun). 6 am start. 21 miles of crushed limestone trail, then 5 miles of asphalt, then 0.2 miles of concrete. We stayed across the street from the bus pick up location. I got on the bus at 4:30 am. and was dropped off at the Start in Sparta. 35 degrees and shivering. I bought some warm clothes to shed before the race at goodwill. It is a beautiful course, next to the La Crosse river for a while, finishing at the Mississippi river. 3 freight trains passed while we were running, geese honking, agricultural lands and bluffs in the distance. Very pretty, but also, 3.5+ hours of it. So it could be kind of redundant. There was much less water stops than I expected. I think there were times that I went 6 miles without water. I would say that was the only thing I would change, if I controlled such things.

I talked to a couple of guys at the start, because we had a long time to wait. One I think was the overall winner. And he talked about what it was like to be a senior in high school in 2020. Also, right before the start I talked to a 78 year old guy from Georgia that said this was his 698^th marathon. He said he did the 50 state thing 6 times over. He said he was running another marathon the next day, and then 3 more the next weekend. Crazy stuff.

I figured I would do 8 minute miles for 16-20 miles, and then just see what I could come up with for the end. I did, almost exactly, 8 minute miles for 16, then slowed a lot, without ever stopping. I knew there were 3 overpasses to run over, each 30-40 feet of climb that happen after mile 21. (I’m really glad I included hill runs in my build up for this super flat race). Then, because I ran the last 2 miles of the course the day before, I knew I could give some extra effort here, and had a really strong finish. Then I punished my stomach with brats and beers and bananas and curds.

The vacation to a place we’ve never been was great.

Weight: 178.00

Comments

From Michael on Wed, May 06, 2026 at 06:29:52 from 148.64.88.250

Glad you had a good race! Well done.

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