The Bitch Almost Got Me Again!
Grandma's threw everything she had at me today. It wasn't pretty, and it wasn't fast, but I'm claiming victory over the bitch.
Sheila got this shot just before the finish
For the past week, the weather on the North Shore of Lake Superior has been highs in the 50's and 60's. Perfect marathon weather!! The Lake Superior water temperature rarely gets above 55, so any South or East wind keeps the area near the shore cool. All week long, they kept vacillating over the forecast: rain and 60's, sun and 70's, sun and 60's... This morning it was 63 at 5:00AM with a forecast for 80's. Grandma knew I was back in town.
It was downright hot out on the open roadway for the start of the race - probably low 70's. Since we were a half mile or so from the lake, all I could hope for was that the temperature would drop when we got next to the lake (never happened). I felt really good at the start, and quickly settled into a good pace. The only problem was that my heart rate spiked pretty high in the first mile, and it didn't want to settle into the normal range for the pace I was running. I didn't know if it was the heat, or the fact that I ran a marathon 3 weeks ago, or a combination of both. But, if it was going to get hot, this was not good.
At mile two I saw Sheila standing in front of of our friend Brad's jewelery design and Scandinavian gift shop. I blew her a kiss and continued on. For the next several miles I stayed on pace. I still felt good, but it was getting hot, and my heart rate was slowly rising. Finally by mile ten I decided it was best to "live to race another day". My heart rate was just too high, the course was getting dangerously hot and there was a lot of course left. I started to adjust my pace to regulate my heart rate - I desperately did not want a DNF, nor did I want to walk.
Along the way, it was an interesting game of pace strategy. After I slowed, I got passed by a considerable number of runners for many miles. However, after mile 20 the reverse was true. Lots and lots of people were walking or slowing to a crawl and I was now the one doing the passing. In the end I squeaked in under four hours at 3:54:45. I admit it was ugly, but I wasn't going to let Grandma's get me twice.
As a side note, I carried a hand-held bottle for the race, and was very glad for it. I kept it nearly full of ice and water/Gatorade (or whatever crap they were serving) from the aid stations. Plus, I still drank a cup or two at each of the stations. So, I was plenty hydrated and never worried about that aspect.
When we got to the car after the race, the temperature was 84, and it read 87 as we were driving through Duluth one block up from the course - with lots of runners/walkers still marching towards the finish.
My nephew survived the heat for a strong finish in his first marathon. We missed each other at the start, but I kept getting reports every time I saw his brother and girl friend out on the course. He was about 10 minutes behind me slogging through the long march to the finish, just like everyone else. I hope he recovers well and gets another shot at a race with better conditions.
At least I still have Boston in the bank for 2010, and Twin Cities this Fall with ScottI (3:30:59 or better)!
See you out there.
Doug
Sheila got this shot just before the finishFor the past week, the weather on the North Shore of Lake Superior has been highs in the 50's and 60's. Perfect marathon weather!! The Lake Superior water temperature rarely gets above 55, so any South or East wind keeps the area near the shore cool. All week long, they kept vacillating over the forecast: rain and 60's, sun and 70's, sun and 60's... This morning it was 63 at 5:00AM with a forecast for 80's. Grandma knew I was back in town.
It was downright hot out on the open roadway for the start of the race - probably low 70's. Since we were a half mile or so from the lake, all I could hope for was that the temperature would drop when we got next to the lake (never happened). I felt really good at the start, and quickly settled into a good pace. The only problem was that my heart rate spiked pretty high in the first mile, and it didn't want to settle into the normal range for the pace I was running. I didn't know if it was the heat, or the fact that I ran a marathon 3 weeks ago, or a combination of both. But, if it was going to get hot, this was not good.
At mile two I saw Sheila standing in front of of our friend Brad's jewelery design and Scandinavian gift shop. I blew her a kiss and continued on. For the next several miles I stayed on pace. I still felt good, but it was getting hot, and my heart rate was slowly rising. Finally by mile ten I decided it was best to "live to race another day". My heart rate was just too high, the course was getting dangerously hot and there was a lot of course left. I started to adjust my pace to regulate my heart rate - I desperately did not want a DNF, nor did I want to walk.
Along the way, it was an interesting game of pace strategy. After I slowed, I got passed by a considerable number of runners for many miles. However, after mile 20 the reverse was true. Lots and lots of people were walking or slowing to a crawl and I was now the one doing the passing. In the end I squeaked in under four hours at 3:54:45. I admit it was ugly, but I wasn't going to let Grandma's get me twice.
As a side note, I carried a hand-held bottle for the race, and was very glad for it. I kept it nearly full of ice and water/Gatorade (or whatever crap they were serving) from the aid stations. Plus, I still drank a cup or two at each of the stations. So, I was plenty hydrated and never worried about that aspect.
When we got to the car after the race, the temperature was 84, and it read 87 as we were driving through Duluth one block up from the course - with lots of runners/walkers still marching towards the finish.
My nephew survived the heat for a strong finish in his first marathon. We missed each other at the start, but I kept getting reports every time I saw his brother and girl friend out on the course. He was about 10 minutes behind me slogging through the long march to the finish, just like everyone else. I hope he recovers well and gets another shot at a race with better conditions.
At least I still have Boston in the bank for 2010, and Twin Cities this Fall with ScottI (3:30:59 or better)!
See you out there.
Doug
posted by Doug Johnston @ 8:16 PM
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