NeilCraigan.Com

Twin Cities Marathon - my race

When the alarm sounded at 4:30 I rolled out of bed and stumbled into the kitchen for breakfast. After some orange juice and a couple of pieces of toast with marmalade it was time to get dressed. By 5:00 we were in the car and heading toward St. Paul to catch the bus to the start line in Minneapolis.

Before the race we attended the ecumenical worship service at Augustana Lutheran Church. I was the guest speaker and shared a message with the congregation of around 200. I challenged them to consider whether they were running from, toward or for something. Acknowledging that we do all three but that running for something in both the race and in life is by far the most satisfying and best way to run.

After the worship service Jenny and I took off our sweats, kissed and headed to our respective starting corrals. I was feeling great and was really hoping to break the 3:30 barrier by running fractionally under an 8:00 minute pace.

The gun sounded and we were off, I quickly settled into what felt like a comfortable pace which turned out to be exactly the pace I was looking for. I headed through 5k in 24:43, right on target and with 49:33 at 10k I couldn't have been happier with my pacing.

It was a beautiful day, clear skies and a cool crisp morning with only a very light breeze. Absolutely perfect conditions to run in. I was thrilled to be running and was soaking in the environment around me. They say the Twin Cities Marathon is the most beautiful urban marathon in the country, it's true.

By the time I reached the halfway point I was still feeling strong and right on target for a 3:30 finish, I was relishing in the day running about 40 seconds ahead of the 3:30 pace group. At mile 15 I had lost a few seconds and was averaging exactly an 8:00 minute mile.

Then somewhere between miles 15 and 18 the wheels started to come off. By the 30k split (18.641 miles) my average paced had slipped to 8:05 from this point on it was a serious slide into oblivion! My 20 mile split was 2:42:40 which is about an 8:08 average. While this may not sound like much it meant that I had given back about another minute over 1.4 miles.

I was really starting to slow, my stride was shortening and my muscles where tightening. I was beginning to feel a little dehydrated. It was getting warm out and in the early miles the cups at the water stops weren't very full. Could I hold on? In a word, NO! I was quite dehydrated by now and was trying to drink plenty but drink it slowly to keep it in and the next 4 miles took me 49:05 to complete, that's a 12:16 pace, unbelievable! Well, not quite unbelievable but at least I only had 2.2 miles left at this point. I could hardly run, after a few steps of running I felt like I was going to lose the contents of my stomach so I slowed to a walk taking another 32:30 to run/walk the final 2.2 miles. 

At least it was a beautiful day for a walk with temperatures getting into the mid-70's by the afternoon. Oh well, it's the first time I've had a marathon  disaster like this, it may not be the last, time now to look forward to the next adventure!

Thanks to Molly, Heidi, Katy, Milt, Barb, Mum, Dad, Clare, Michaela, Kendall, Eric, Kelly, Julia and others for coming out and cheering for us on the way.

Grandma's Marathon

The day started off well, we woke around 5:00 am after falling asleep at 9:30. I had a good breakfast, whole wheat bread with marmalade, banana, glass of orange juice and a small cup of coffee, my usual pre-marathon meal.

When we boarded the bus for the start line I was feeling very confident that I could run somewhere between 3:20 and 3:30. My training had been good and I felt everything pointed to a good run. The weather wasn't quite perfect, a little warmer than ideal, low 60's at the start and feeling considerably warmer when the sun popped out of the clouds. The west wind was blowing at 10-15mph but wasn't much of a factor.

When the horn sounded to start the race I placed myself with the 3:20 pace group. It was a beautiful start as we headed south along the scenic Highway 61 with Lake Superior on our left.

The guy leading the group was the same person who led this pace group at the Twin Cities marathon and the first couple of miles where very similar. Mile one was a few seconds slow but then he ran hard to make them all up in the second mile. By the third mile I knew I wasn't going to have a good day.

Entering into the water station at mile three I grabbed a water and a Powerade and downed them both. My quads were already starting to burn and I couldn't figure out why but I immediately decided that I would walk through the remaining aid stations to try and keep my legs as fresh as possible. I quickly lost touch with the 3:20 pace group and came through the 10k in 47:39. By the half way point I was being caught by the 3:30 pace group as I struggled to a 1:44:45 split for the half. I was feeling terrible, everything hurt.

The next seven miles took 1:04 to run, although "run" may not be the right term for what I was doing. When I reached mile 20 in 2:48:21 my new goal was to get to the finish and if lucky break four hours. The run into Duluth was fantastic, great crowd support and a welcome change of scenery. I felt energized but my legs simply refused to respond. At mile 22 I arrived at Lemon Drop hill and enjoyed the climb followed by the downhill run into downtown Duluth.

Miles 20-25 took 53 minutes to run!

With 1.2 to go I decided to speed things up and finish strong. So I gave it all I had and ran the last 1.2 in 12 minutes, a blistering 10 minute/mile pace!

It was just one of those days. I have no explanation for it, 25 minutes worse than I'd hoped for, I just gutted it out as best as I could to the end. If there was any mistake in training it might have been that I didn't do enough long tempo runs but that doesn't explain everything going wrong at mile 3.

Twin Cities Marathon 2009

It was a perfect morning for a long run, overcast and cool. Having taken the shuttle from Saint Paul to Minneapolis we waited in the Metrodome staying warm until 7:40 when we made our way to the start. I headed into Corral 1 and Jenny into Corral 2.Pushing my way near to the front I hooked up with the 3:20 pace team and hoped to hang with them until the end securing a Boston qualifying time.

As the race got underway I felt great until about mile three when I realized that I was going to have to pee soon! By the time we hit mile 5 I had to stop, it only took about 20 seconds but it put me 20 seconds off pace, I took the next half mile to catch up with the pace team, I should have taken longer to do this as it meant I ran a 7:20 mile but probably closer to 7:10 for the half mile, way too fast, burning a lot of energy. I soon settled back into the pack.

One of the other miles (don't recall which) in the first ten was also a little fast as we hit a 7:25 mile but I seemed to be doing OK. It was great to see my kids just past mile 10 and then a couple of friends between 11 and 12.

We were through the half in just over 1:39 so we right on pace for our 3:20 finish. At mile 14 my back started to tighten and the lower left part of my back felt like a rock. By mile 15 I started to fall off my pace a little as the back tightening eased and transferred into my hip flexor which ached for the rest of the race. I continued to race through about mile 18 as I could still see the 3:20 group a few hundred yards ahead of me. By the time I hit mile 19 they were gone and so was my desire to push hard for a BQ.

I had a choice to make, chose my next goal... push hard and maybe get a PR or relax, have fun and enjoy the rest of the race. I selected the latter and treated the rest of the race like an ultra, steady and slow, walk the hills. I took time to stop and say "Hi" to Brian, Barb, Darrell, and then stopped to hug and high five my kids. I took time to thank volunteers at the water stops for giving of their time to make the race possible. I was glad to be able to take in all that Summit Avenue has to offer in crowd support.

I crossed the finish line in 3:39:50. Not a bad time considering how much fun I had over the last 7 or 8 miles!

So what went wrong? Why no BQ? Well the answer is simple... relationships and life! I took a trip to Viriginia to catch up with friends and see U2 in concert last week. Not the smartest way to prepare for a marathon. Wednesday night I was up until 2:00 am enjoying time with a good friend. Thursday night I spent a litlte over 5 hours standing at the U2 concert and didn't get back to the hotel until 2:00 am. I woke up with a serious calf cramp the next morning. Of course there is no guarantee of a BQ in any race and I while the timing was bad I wouldn't have done anything differently. There's always another race but only so much time with friends.

MCM Marathon

It was a beautiful morning for the race. The sky was clear and mist hovered over the water, it was as still as can be. I felt great at the start of the race and plodded along with the 3:20 pace team. I was doing great through mile 12 when the top of my foot really started to hurt, after the half way point (1:39) I stopped to adjust my laces to see if that would solve the problem, but it didn't, every step hurt. I thought about dropping out but I'd paid my $$$ and I was past half way and wanted my finishers medal! I knew I could walk in if I had to and still beat the cut-off. In trying to compensate my left hip flexor started to get aggravated so I decided that since a PR was out of the question I'd enjy the second half.

I took my time, walked a lot, (it was a beautiful day for a walk) soaked up the sights and ran a little! My 1/2 split was a PR for the half, the rest of the race was a lot of fun (albeit quite painful).

MCM In 36 Hours

With less than 36 hours to the start of the Marine Corps Marathon I am starting to feel the excitement building. I am still undecided as to the pace I am going to try and run! What's my goal? Certainly a PR and that means going better than the 3:34 I ran in March.

My training has been OK, but my long runs almost always felt laborious. Hopefully I'll feel better on Sunday after the 12 mile mark than I have done in my training. I can't wait to hit the 20  mile mark, from there it's only 10k to the finish!

Olympic Mararthoner's Bigger Goal

Olympic marathoner Ryan Hall has a bigger goal for his life than winning races!

Olympic Mararthoner's Bigger Goal

Olympic marathoner Ryan Hall has a bigger goal than winning races. He wants to change the world!

I want to run Boston!

I've stepped up my training this week, hoping to run a Boston qualifying time within the next ten months. I've reconciled myself to the reality that it will take higher mileage weeks and longer tempo runs to to bring my marathon time down to the 3:20 that I need for Boston.

Can I do it? Yes, I believe I can, I'm going to work off a base of 40 miles a week building to about 55 at the peak. I'm following Hal Higdon's Advanced I plan and I believe that should give me the edge I need to drop my 3:35 time to a 3:20. It's not going to be easy but I plan to follow Hal's schedule for Marine Corps and try to run a sub 3:30 and then stick with it for a spring marathon, either the Shamrock Marathon or the National Marathon,  where I'll go after my BQ. If the conditions aren't favorable on race day I may go for Grandma's in June. Either way 2009 will be my BQ year (I hope)!

My wife, 25:40, Marine Corps Marathon

The Marine Corps Marathon is still months away but the race is now full. Unless, that is, you decide you want to run with one of the charity partners. That is exactly what my wife, Jenny, has decided to do. Yesterday she signed up to run with team 25:40, an organization dedicated to the AIDS orphans of South Africa and taking its name from Matthew 25:40 which reads, "whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." (TNIV).

I couldn't be more excited for her, it's been 13 years since her last race over 26.2 miles and it's about time she had a chance to run this distance again. I'm also delighted that she's running, not just for herself but to make a difference in this world of ours.

If you would like to sponsor her you can go to her site and click on the "sponsor Jennifer now" button.

My wife, 25:40, Marine Corps Marathon

The Marine Corps Marathon is still months away but the race is now full. Unless, that is, you decide you want to run with one of the charity partners. That is exactly what my wife, Jenny, has decided to do. Yesterday she signed up to run with team 25:40, an organization dedicated to the AIDS orphans of South Africa and taking its name from Matthew 25:40 which reads, "whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." (TNIV).

I couldn't be more excited for her, it's been 13 years since her last race over 26.2 miles and it's about time she had a chance to run this distance again. I'm also delighted that she's running, not just for herself but to make a difference in this world of ours.

If you would like to sponsor her you can go to her site and click on the "sponsor Jennifer now" button.

Recovery Week

It's been a week now since the race. I had a great massage on Monday and then took the rest of the week off, doing nothing. Yesterday I laced up my shoes and ventured out for a three mile run. It was great to get out and run again, it was the longest break I've taken since my vasectomy grounded me for a week! My legs still felt a little heavy and they still have a little healing to do. Perhaps I should have taken today off but I decided to go out and run four today. I really enjoyed it, 7:46 pace, but still that heavy feeling.

Tomorrow I plan to run three miles and then take Tuesday off, depending on how I feel I may take Thursday off as well.

Official Results Are In

Time 3:34:54
Pace 8:12
Overall Place 335/1386
Division Place 66/175

10k Split 49:23       7:57 pace
Half Split 1:42:53   7:51 pace

National Marathon - my race in review

I'm still alive and kicking after today National Marathon. It was really cold at the start, somewhere in the mid-30's and the wind was blowing, but the sky was clear and we enjoyed a beautiful sunrise.

So how'd I do? Here's the good, the bad and the ugly of the race. It was a slow start with the first mile taking 8:46, that's the trouble of running in a crowd. No wonder I felt like it was a comfortable pace. The second mile was my first "mistake," I knew I'd have to pick up the pace to gain those 46 seconds back, only I overcooked it and knocked 41 one of them off in the next mile. It wasn't fatal and I settled in at a pace slightly ahead of my goal pace of 8:00. The first half went great as I hooked up with the Naval Academy pacers for a 3:30 finish.

They took us through the half a little faster than I would have liked but I was feeling great and it was a new PR for a half-marathon (I think it was about 1:42:40 I'll know for sure when the results are posted). I was looking forward to the GU that would be available at the half. I planned to grab one to eat at this point and another to take at mile 17. As normal I slid over to the aid station to grab a drink and some GU but there were only two people handing out GU and they were the first two people at the aid station, I missed it! OK, I thought I would just dope up on Gatorade to help out and on I went.

By mile seventeen I was getting a little sore and tired, but that's to be expected, so I walked through the aid station to make sure I got enough Gatorade. That set me back about 30 yards from the pace team, not a problem. At mile 20 I was still ahead of goal pace, but the lack of GU was starting to get to me, as was the wind that was funneling down the river and right into our faces, I not sure how hard it was blowing but blowing it most certainly was.

I grabbed some GU at mile 20, there was no way I was going to miss it this time, but by now I was a good quarter mile out of touch of the pace team and I had hit, not the wall, at least not if its made of bricks, but something more like a big marshmallow that I had to run through. I could still run but it was an effort and now it was just me. By mile 21 I knew I wasn't going to get a 3:30, but that was OK. Between the wind, running by myself as opposed to a group and no GU at 13.1, I was happy to still be going at a nice clip and knew that pending disaster I'd still have a PR.

Just short of mile 26 I took a short walk break but then I heard a booming voice behind me, "Blue shirt, get your ass moving!" It was the 3:35 pacer from the Naval Academy, another runner came by tapped me on the shoulder and off we went, a dash for the finish, could we get in under 3:35? Officially I don't know if that happened but the time by my stopwatch was 3:34:54, so I made it by six seconds.

I would have liked to have run a little faster and apart from a couple of blips I might well have done so. I'm really happy about my finish today, I ran a good, no, a great race for me.
My other bonus, I didn't have to stop to pee during this marathon!!!

National Marathon's tomorrow

Tomorrow's race day and I'm excited. The weeks of training are over, no more twenty milers for a while! Am I ready, yes I am... Bring it on!

This time last year I was preparing to run my first 26.2 at the National Marathon and was full of nervous energy before the race. I had put in the training but had never gone the full distance, it was great unknown. One year later I'm ready to line up for my third marathon and have very different focus. I know I can finish the race, the question is how well will I be able to run on the day? 26.2 is no longer outside my comfort zone (although running 26.2 isn't comfortable!).

 

Over twelve months the question has changed from "can I do it?" to "how well can I do it?" Training makes us stronger, it makes us better at everything we do. If you have a goal, go for it, don't just say you'd like to try it some day, start training for it today and you will surprise yourself by what you can accomplish. I know I've surprised myself.

As for tomorrow's race...
The weather looks like it should be OK, perhaps a little cold with a low in the mid-30's and a high of about 55. Since the race begins right around sunrise it's going to be cold at the start. It's also going to be a little windy, 10-15 mph. Hopefully it won't impact my run too much.

Goals for tomorrow...

• Have fun
• Run 3:30
• Set a new PR

Time to go pick up the race packet.

Six days to marathon #3

With six days left the National Marathon I ran my last "long" run today, only eight miles as part of my taper. It was a great run at what felt like a very comfortable 7:47 pace. A little faster than goal pace... I hope to run an 8:00 pace for the first half and a 7:50-55 for the second... all depends on weather.

Twelve days to race

With twelve days to go to the National Marathon I am a week into my taper. Today was my last run over ten miles before the race, 11 miles ran at 7:56 pace.

It felt great to be out running with temps in the upper '40s and the sun shining brightly, doesn't get much better than that.

Second attempt at the National Marathon

I'm still sore today after chasing that soccer ball around on Monday evening. Muscles just aren't designed to run twenty miles and then sprint after a ball later in the day... hamstrings and quads are tight and full of lactic acid waste!

I finally took the time today to register for the National Marathon. This year they are using a corral start and I wasn't sure where to put myself! One corral is for 7:00 - 7:45 pace and the next one is for 7:46 - 8:30 pace. If conditions are perfect and I feel good I should be able to muster a 7:45 pace, so that's where I decided to put myself. I just have to remember not to run out of the gate to quickly.

Seventeen today

I'm one step closer to running the National Marathon again this year. Seventeen miles at a 7:59 pace. It wasn't an easy run but it was encouraging. It was a beautiful day for running, slightly overcast shy and 50 degree temperature.

Running and wondering about Boston

How great is it when you get to run outdoors in the sun and the temperature is hovering around fifty degrees? I don't think it gets much better than this.

This afternoon I headed out at 4:00 pm for an eleven mile jaunt to see if I could keep up a schedule that would allow me run the National Marathon at the end of March. The bigger question for me is whether I might possibly be able to run a 3:20 and qualify for Boston in 2009. I think if I did this I would be satisfied with accomplishing a significant level of marathon running.

Perhaps some of my readers will tell me this is not the way to train but my long runs are going to be run as close to race pace as I can manage to see if I can maintain a 7:40 pace over the longer distances. If I'm crazy please tell me. The last two (my first two) marathons I ran I did all my training at the pace I planned to run on race day and I accomplished my goals and never hit the wall, but I'm trying to take 23 minutes off my last race time which is a huge chunk. I may yet change my mind and push for a Boston time in the fall but that's when I'd like to take on the JFK 50!

Today run 11 miles at 7:34 pace, felt great, breathing a little harder than I'd like to have been but then I ran the Dam Hill, not the damn hill but the hill beside the dam, steep and long on the way out and really steep on the way back!

Will I Run the National Marathon This Year?

I'm trying to decide if I should run the National Marathon again this year? Last year it was my first marathon and I was delighted to break four hours. I'm in the middle of a two week trial right now to see if I feel like I can do it justice this year. If I do run I'd like to run a 3:30.

For a first marathon it was a blast, I was one of the featured runners on NBC4 as I worked to raise funds for the AIDS orphans through Team World Vision. This gave me a great motivation to run and I'm delighted to have raised some funds for a great cause.

This past Monday I pounded out 14 miles on the treadmill at an 8:00 pace, if the weather doesn't allow me do my long runs outside then there's no way I'm running it. (I can only tolerate about 4-5 miles on the treadmill). This coming Monday will be a fifteen mile run, if I feel good after that then I may be on for my first marathon of 2008 and my third overall.