Race Report: 2024 Atlantic City Marathon

On October 20, I ran the Atlantic City Marathon.  I needed a New Jersey Marathon for my fifth circuit of marathons in every state.  This was the only one I could fit into my schedule.  It wasn’t an ideal fit, as it meant running marathons on five consecutive weekends.  After pushing to my limit in my previous four races, I wasn’t sure how fast I would run this one.

Friday night, I went to bed feeling fine.  I woke up during the night with discomfort on the left side of my lower back.  I was able to get back to sleep, but in the morning, I found that I sometimes had sudden pains on that side just standing still.

I didn’t have time to do much about it.  I had an early flight, so I had to get ready quickly, so I could get to the airport.

My back didn’t bother me during the flight, but I started to notice it after getting off the plane.  It got worse while I was standing in line waiting for my rental car.

I flew to Philadelphia Saturday morning and drove from there.  I rented my car from Dollar.  I did their online check-in, which was supposed to allow me to skip the counter and go straight to my car.  After answering all the questions, I got a screen telling me they were sold out of economy cars.

I went inside to the counter, and I saw about 20 people already in line.  They all did the online check-in too, but they were waiting for cars to become available.  I was there for about an hour before I finally got my car.  There’s no excuse for that.  The whole purpose of a reservation system is to manage inventory.  I’d rather be told they don’t have enough cars when I’m trying to make a reservation.  I’ve had good experiences with Dollar at other airports, but this is the last time I’ll ever rent from them in Philadelphia.

The headquarters hotel for the race was Bally’s Atlantic City Resort & Casino, but I stayed at The Claridge Hotel, which is in the adjacent block.  The Claridge is connected to Bally’s by a skyway, so staying there was just as convenient as staying at Bally’s.

The drive to Atlantic City took about an hour.  I was originally planning to do some sightseeing, but I went straight to the hotel instead.  That’s when I thought my luck might be improving.  The advertised check-in time was 4:00, but I was able to get into a room as soon as I arrived.  That gave me time to do a workout before going over to Bally’s to pick up my race packet.  I noticed my back while doing my exercises, but no more than when I was just standing or walking.

After my workout, I turned on my GPS watch, just to make sure it was charged.  It’s a good thing I did.  It was completely dead.  I tried to charge it, but it didn’t seem to be taking a charge.  For the race, I needed to use my Timex.  I normally use that watch just to know the time of day, but it also has a stopwatch.  For the second straight week, I was going “old school.”  If I wanted to know my pace, I would just read my time at each mile marker.  Alternatively, I could run with a pace group.

When I was growing up, my friends and I used to play Monopoly.  The names of the properties in that game are based on the streets and railroads of Atlantic city in the 1930s.  Most of those streets can still be found in Atlantic City today.  I was initially planning to drive around and find them all.  I decided to settle for just taking pictures of Boardwalk and Park Place.  That was easy.  My hotel was next to Park Place, and about a block from the boardwalk.

Packet pickup was at Bally’s.  I didn’t see any signage in the lobby, so I asked the bellman.  Once I got up to the right floor, I saw signage leading the rest of the way.  As it turns out, there were signs in the lobby.  I just came form the wrong direction to see them.

Bringing my race packet back to my room took longer than it should have.  The Claridge has 23 floors.  There are five elevators, but two of them were out of service.  There were several large groups staying at the hotel, including two wedding parties, so there were always dozens of people waiting for elevators.  I had to wait more than 20 minutes before I could get an elevator.  If I was on a low floor, I would’ve taken the stairs, but my room was on the 17th floor.

I had some time before dinner, so I went to Tennessee Avenue Beer Hall to have a pre-dinner beer flight, since they have 40 different beers on tap.  I ended up staying there for dinner.

Before going to bed, I took some Tylenol.  That allowed me to sleep comfortably for about half the night.  By 2:00 AM, however, the Tylenol wore off.  After that, the pain came back.  I felt it when I got up to go to the bathroom.  I also felt it when I rolled over in bed.  Most likely, I strained a muscle in my lower back.

After 3:30, I couldn’t get back to sleep.  I rested in bed for the next two hours.  Then, I finally got up and started getting ready for the race.

When I ran this race two years ago, it was rainy, and we had a strong headwind in the second half of the race.  This year, the weather was much nicer.  It was a sunny day, and there wasn’t much wind.

When I got up, the temperature was 42 degrees.  I was expecting it to be warmer than that.  I took a look at the hourly forecast and saw that it wasn’t as warm as the last forecast I saw on Saturday.  I was planning to wear shorts, but I made a last-minute decision to wear tights instead.

When I was ready to go, I decided to take the stairs, rather than risk an unpredictable wait for an elevator.  I only had to go down to the 2nd floor.  From there, I could take the skyway over to Bally’s.

The race organizers provided a gear check, but I didn’t need to use it.  The starting line was right outside of Bally’s, so I could wait until 15 minutes before the race before going outside.

When I went out onto the boardwalk, I was more comfortable than I thought I would be.  For the second straight week, I misjudged the weather.  I would have been OK in shorts.  Now I had to wonder if I would get too hot in the tights.

The race started on the boardwalk, but we only ran for about three blocks before turning onto Martin Luther King Boulevard.  I was hoping to run with the 3:50 pace group, but I had to go at my own pace until we got off the boardwalk.  On the boardwalk, I had to pay close attention to my footing.

The leader of the 3:50 pace group warned us that he would probably start a little fast.  As we turned to leave the boardwalk, we ran down a short ramp before getting onto the street.  He and the rest of the group accelerated.  I waited until I was off the wooden ramp before trying to catch up to them.  Then I had to work hard to catch up.

As we got onto the pavement, I started to pay attention to how my lower back felt.  Running wasn’t causing any additional discomfort.  If anything, it was helping.  As I got warmed up, my back seemed to feel better.

The first mile was about 15 seconds faster than our target pace.  That wasn’t a surprise.  It’s what our pace leader told us to expect.

Over the next several miles, we looped through the Venice Park neighborhood.  We ran over a few bridges and through a tunnel.  Those were the only real hills in the race.  The rest of the course was pretty flat.

At one point, another runner noticed my Comrades Marathon shirt and asked me about it.  As I was talking to him, I missed an aid station.  I was overdressed for the conditions, so it was inevitable that I would get hot later in the race.  I couldn’t afford to skip any other aid stations.

I realized I was getting to far ahead of the group when I found myself right behind the 3:45 group.  Then I had to slow down.

I fell back to the 3:50 group, but after a few more miles, I found the pace to be tiring.  I wasn’t sure if I could keep up that pace for the whole race, but I wanted to stay with the group until we reached the boardwalk.  After that, I might have to slow down.

In the middle of the eighth mile, we reached the beginning of the boardwalk.  At first, we were on a section that runs from north to south.  Then we turned a corner.  The rest of the boardwalk ran from east to west.

I’ve run on some boardwalks that were springy.  This one was fairly firm, which helped.  The boards were at an angle to the direction we were running, which minimized the risk of tripping on the gaps between boards.  What made the boardwalk somewhat hazardous were the screws holding the boards in place.  Most of them were flush with the wood, but sometimes a whole row of screws would be stick up about an eighth of an inch.

The lines of screws weren’t uniform.  Sometimes they would be as much as two feet apart.  More often, they would be only about a foot apart, which made it difficult to run between them.  I had to focus all my attention on watching where the screws were, so I wouldn’t catch a shoe on one.

Shortly after we got onto the boardwalk, I saw a section on the right that seemed safer.  I was able to pick up my pace there, and I got a little ahead of the group.  After that, I managed to stay ahead of the group for the entire length of the boardwalk.  I knew they were right behind me, because I could hear them.

The boardwalk was five miles long, and maintaining my focus for that long was mentally draining.  After one mile, I was already getting tired.  It was also more tiring physically.  I altered my stride so I could pick up my feet more than I usually do.  I tried to pretend I was running on a trail.  That was something our pace leader suggested before the race.

About halfway down the boardwalk, I got far enough ahead of the group that I could no longer hear them talking.  I rarely took my eyes off the boards, but at one point I glanced ahead and saw that I was getting close to the 3:45 group.

By the end of the boardwalk, I could hear the 3:50 group talking again.  As I was about to turn to leave the boardwalk, I heard the pace leader say, “right turn ahead.”

We ran inland for one block and then turned onto Atlantic Avenue.  We would follow Atlantic Avenue west for three more miles before turning around.

As I turned onto Atlantic Avenue, the group caught up to me again.  I was pleased to have made it through the longest section on the boardwalk without falling behind.  I paid a price, though.  That section was really tiring.  I still had to work hard to keep up with the group.

At the halfway point, we were about a minute ahead of schedule.  We would eventually have to come back to the boardwalk again.  We would be on it for the last three miles of the race.  I wanted to have a little bit of a cushion when we got there, so I would have the option of slowing down in those last three miles.

At about 16 miles, we reached The Point.  This was the westernmost point on the course.  We made a small loop and then doubled back on Atlantic Avenue.

I didn’t realize it at the time, but we had a slight headwind before the turn.  After the turn, it was a light tailwind.  Now that I no longer felt the wind, I started getting hot.

We ran east along Atlantic Avenue for about a mile and then turned to begin a loop through a neighborhood in Margate City.  In miles 17 and 18, I was finding it increasingly difficult to keep up with the group, which had gradually thinned out to just three runners.  The other guy who was still keeping up with the pacer said that his watch was showing a current pace of 8:10.  Our pace leader acknowledged that we had sped up, and he slowed us down again.  After that, it was much easier to keep up.

I took more of an initiative in leading the conversation.  As I did, I may have inadvertently sped up.  Soon, our pace leader said we were speeding up again, and we needed to slow down.

The loop through Margrate City was about four miles.  When we got back onto Atlantic Avenue, we had less than five miles to go.  I was hot, but I was hanging on.

We retraced our route back to the boardwalk.  Then we had just over three miles to go.  I didn’t know if I would need to slow down on this section, so I asked our pace leader how much of a cushion we had.  He said we were about 30 seconds ahead of schedule.  Over the last three miles, I could afford to slow down by about 10 seconds per mile, if necessary.

I had to stop paying attention to the guys I was running with and focus 100 percent of my attention on watching my footing.  I felt like I was slowing down, but I was staying ahead of the others.

The only things that might trip me up were those screws.  When we were on the boardwalk earlier, I was watching them constantly, but on three separate occasions I felt one of my shoes momentarily catching on one.  This time, I saw a few screws that stuck out by more than a quarter inch.

At times, I caught myself starting to take a longer stride.  When I did, I immediately switched back to a short stride, so I could pick my feet up.  I was getting fatigued, but I couldn’t afford to get careless.

Even though I felt like I was slowing down, I was actually getting farther ahead of the pace group.  As I started leaving them behind, there was only one other guy who was still with the pace leader.

I didn’t know my current pace, but I assumed I was OK as long as I stayed ahead of them.  Then I started to wonder what would happen if the other guy couldn’t keep up with the pacer.  What would the pacer do?  Would he maintain a consistent pace, even though nobody was still with him.  Would he stay with the guy who was slowing down to help him finish?

That last thought made me realize I needed to pay attention to my own pace.  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the “24” banner, so I glanced at my watch.  My time at 24 was 3:29:xx.  I didn’t look at my watch long enough to see how many seconds.  I was too afraid to take my eyes off the boardwalk for more than a split second.

I had at least 20 minutes to run the last 2.2 miles.  Even if I slowed down to nine minutes per mile, that would be fast enough.

I maintained my same effort for another mile.  I encountered a few spots where the boards were a little bouncy, but I stayed on pace.

At 25 miles, I made a point of noticing my exact time.  It was 3:38:25.  I was easily still on pace to break 3:50.

Just then, I reached a section of the boardwalk where the boards were all in good condition and none of the screws were sticking up.  That gave me the confidence to speed up.  I ran faster all the way to the finish.

While the boardwalk was mostly wood, there were spots where it crossed a sidewalk leading to a pier.  Then there would be five to ten feet of concrete.  I used those brief concrete sections as opportunities to look ahead.  Ahead of me, I could see one of the Bally’s towers.

When I was running on the boards, I didn’t dare look ahead, even briefly.  At 26 miles, I knew the finish line was just ahead of me, but I couldn’t look for it yet.  I had to get much closer. 

When I could actually see the finish line, I accelerated.  Before crossing the line, I had to remind myself that I was wearing a different watch.  I had to think about where the Stop button was.  I finished in 3:49:07.  It was my fourth consecutive Boston qualifier.  After getting my medal, I waited for the others.  They both came in under 3:50.

The finisher medal has a cool design.  The anchor swings from side to side.

As I left the finisher chute, I started looking for two things: the beer tent and a results tent.  I found the beer tent, but I didn’t see any place where I could look up my result.  The fact that I didn’t have any Garmin data made me somewhat paranoid until I saw my official result.

While I was drinking my beer, I was spotted by two other Marathon Maniacs, and we took an impromptu post-race picture.  When I asked one of them if he had seen a results tent, he offered to look up my result on his phone.  When he entered my bib number, it showed my name, but no time.  That certainly wasn’t reassuring.

I walked back to the timing tent that was next to the finish line.  When I told them my result wasn’t showing up online, they said nobody’s result was online yet.  Then the finish line announcer made an announcement to that effect.

I went back to the hotel, where I had left my phone.  I had several text messages with my times at the various chip mats.  One had my time at the finish line.  Now I felt reassured.

I had been too preoccupied to think about my back, but I suddenly realized I had not noticed any discomfort since the first mile of the race.  I’ll have to wait and see if it bothers me later.  Pain has a way of melting away when you’re exerting yourself.  That doesn’t mean the pain is gone.  I was probably just suppressing it.  Still, it’s helpful to know that running didn’t make it worse.

I never bothered to look for post-race food before leaving the finish area.  I usually don’t eat a real meal until later in the day, but I was starving.  After taking a long hot shower and getting into clean clothes, I went over to Bally’s to have lunch in one of their restaurants.  I also rehydrated with a glass of water and two glasses of orange juice.

I just need one more state to finish my fifth circuit of marathons or ultras in every state.  I’ll finish next month in Oklahoma at the Route 66 Marathon.

Race statistics:

Distance:  26.2 miles

Time:  3:49:07

Average Pace:  8:44 per mile

First Half:  1:53:59

Second Half:  1:55:08

Lifetime Marathons/Ultras:  531

Boston Qualifiers:  172

New Jersey Marathon:  5

Race Report: 2024 Chicago Marathon

On October 13, I ran the Chicago Marathon.  This is the sixth time I’ve run this race.  I’m usually able to get into the race with a qualifying time.  Running this race is usually an excuse to travel to Chicago for the pizza.  Chicago-style pizza is my favorite.

Hotels in Chicago are expensive on race weekend.  The flight from Minneapolis to Chicago is relatively short, so I didn’t fly to Chicago until Saturday morning.

I took a train into the city from the airport, and arrived at my hotel around 9:30.  I stayed at the Palmer House, which is just a block away from Grant Park, where the race starts and finishes.  I’ve stayed at this hotel twice before.

It was too early to check into a room, so I left my bags at the hotel and went to the McCormick Place, where the expo was held.  After the expo, I had lunch at Giordano’s., which is one of the better restaurants for deep dish pizza.

After lunch, I went back to the hotel, and I was able to check into my room.  After bringing my bags up to my room, I did a workout in the fitness room.  Then I organized my clothes for the race.

When I travel, I sometimes look for styles of beer that I can’t find at home.  I learned that a local brewery had collaborated with a brewery in Kiev to produce a Ukrainian Golden Ale, which is a style of beer I had never tried before.  I had some free time before dinner, so I took a train to a bar/beer store on the north side that had this beer.

My friend Mary traveled to Chicago to volunteer at both the 5K race and the marathon.  I had dinner with Mary and three of her other friends who were either running or volunteering.

We went to Chicago Pizza & Oven Grinder Company.  I had never been to this restaurant before, but they have something called a pizza pot pie.  It’s like a deep-dish pizza, but it’s baked with the crust on top.  Then they flip it over and cut it out of the pan, so the crust is more like a bowl.

Sunday was race day.  I was conflicted about what to wear.  I was expecting temperatures in the 50s, but with strong winds.  Normally, when the temperature is above 50, I’ll wear shorts, but I didn’t know how cold it would feel with the wind.  Also, this is a race where you spend a long time in the start corrals before the race actually starts.  I was worried about my legs getting too cold while I was waiting in the corrals.

When I got up, it was 60 degrees.  That was warmer than I expected, but it looked like the temperature was still dropping.  I still expected the temperature to be in the 50s for the whole race.  I was still worried about cold winds, so I reluctantly wore tights.

The marathon was divided into three waves.  The first wave started at 7:30.  I was in the second wave, which didn’t start until 8:00.  The race organizers recommend arriving in Grant Park two hours before your wave starts.  I’ve learned to take that recommendation seriously.  There are security checkpoints to get into the start area, and they need to inspect everyone’s bags.  If you don’t allow enough time, you can get stuck in a long line.

I arrived at Grant Park at 6:00.  I got through the security checkpoint quickly, so I had lots of time before I needed to be in my corral.  I had a jacket, gloves, and a pair of wind pants, so I didn’t have to worry about getting cold while I waited.

The gear check tents were near Buckingham Fountain.  There are also benches around the fountain, so that’s where I was planning to wait.  When I got to the fountain, I didn’t see any port-o-potties.  I saw some portable changing rooms, but no port-o-potties.  I asked at one of the information tents, and a volunteer told me the nearest port-o-potties were on the other side of the street with the start corrals.

I found the port-o-potties.  There were near the corrals for people in the third wave.  When I got there, there wasn’t any line.  I did my business and then went back to the fountain, where I found a bench I could sit on.  I still had an hour and a half before I needed to be in my corral.

I relaxed by the fountain for about half an hour.  I needed to make another bathroom stop, but first I took off my wind pants and checked my gear bag.  I kept my jacket on.

I went back to the same port-o-potties.  It was harder to get to them now, because more of the street was blocked off.  There were lines, but they weren’t unreasonably long.

After my second bathroom stop, I still had 55 minutes before the start of my wave.  I expected to make one more bathroom stop before going to my corral.  I was tempted to immediately get back in line again, but I didn’t know how long it would take it get to my corral.  It was a long walk, and I would have to get through thick crowds.

There were more port-o-potties that were closer to my corral, so I went there instead.  That was a mistake.  The lines there were insane.  There was a separate line for each port-o-potty, and there were about 50 people in each line.  I waited in line until it was obvious that I didn’t have time.  Then I gave up and went to my corral.  By then, the first wave had started.

I was assigned to corral F, which was the first corral of the second wave.  When I got there, it looked like the corral was already packed.  There were dozens of runners trying to get in, but there was only one entrance, and the volunteers had to check each runner’s race bib.

There was hardly any room to get into the corral.  Some runners were getting into the corral and then stopping near the entrance.  One of the volunteers was telling us to keep moving after we got into the corral.  I didn’t see any room near the back of the corral, so I started moving forward.  The farther I moved forward, the more room I found.  The corral was only overcrowded near the back.

I ended up lining up farther forward than I probably should have.  Near me, I saw a 3:35 pace group.  Just a short distance in front of me, I saw pace groups for 3:20, 3:25, and 3:30.  There was also a 3:40 group, but they were lined up at the back of the corral.  I couldn’t get anywhere near them.

Fifteen minutes before my wave was due to start, they closed the entrances to the corrals, and started moving us forward into the area where the runners in wave one had previously lined up.  As we slowly walked forward, we had to step over clothing and water bottles that were discarded by the runners in wave one.

Five minutes before our start, we moved forward some more.  I took off my jacket and tied it around my waist.  It had been a long wait, but I knew it was about to get serious when I heard them play “Sirius.”  That’s the same music they played just before the first wave started.

I knew two of the runners who were leading the 3:45 group, but they were lined up in corral G.  My plan was to start running on my own and join the 3:45 group when they caught up to me.  Until then, I was planning to pace myself for about 3:50.  That works out to about 8:46 per mile.

This race gets larger every year.  This year, there were more than 50,000 runners.  In a race that large, the start is always congested.  I didn’t have a good feel for my pace.  I just moved my feet quickly and tried not to bump into anyone.  That forced me to start at the pace of the other runners in my corral, even though I had every reason to believe that would be too fast.

In the first mile, we crossed a bridge over the Chicago River.  It’s was one of those steel grate bridges that’s uncomfortable to run on.  There were a few bridges like this, and they put carpet over the bridges to make them more comfortable for running.  I saw another runner trip on the carpet.  He almost fell, but he managed to keep his balance.

Shortly after we made our first turn, I heard my watch vibrate.  It was already recording my split for the first mile, even though I was sure I had not run that far.  It said I ran the first mile in 6:38.  I knew that was wrong.  I’m not capable of running that fast.

When you’re surrounded by tall buildings, you don’t have a direct line of sight to the GPs satellites.  Instead, the signal can bounce off the sides of buildings.  That can really fool a GPS watch, so you see some weird results.  It was almost two more minutes before I reached the one-mile sign.

I checked my watch when I finished the first mile.  My actual time for that mile was 8:31.  That was too fast, but it wasn’t crazy fast.  I kept running and didn’t worry too much about it.  I could settle into a slower pace later.  For now, I was just trying to make it around the corners without bumping into people.

After the next turn, I reached an aid station.  In crowded races like this, I’m always worried about bumping into other runners at the aid stations.  I waited for other runners to move in and grab cups of Gatorade.  When it looked like there was nobody in the way, I angled toward one of the volunteers who was holding out a cup.  Just then, a much faster running darted between me and the volunteers.  He bumped my shoulder, pushing me away from the aid station.  I had to wait until that runner had taken his cup and moved past me.  Then I was finally able to grab a cup.

The aid station volunteers at this race all know what they’re doing.  They hold the cups out, sometimes at arm’s length.  They hold them delicately and let you grab them as you go by.  I was always able to grab a cup on the run and drink it without spilling.  Normally, I slow to a walk while drinking.  In this race, I drank on the run at every aid station.  I never walked a single step in the whole race.

The only problem at aid stations was the other runners.  More than once, a runner sped between me and the volunteers, just as I was going to grab a cup.  More than once, the runner in front of me suddenly stopped, forcing me to slow down or switch directions.  Thankfully, this became less of a problem later in the race.

Long before I finished the second mile, my watch was already recording a split.  I ignored the splits my watch was recording, because I didn’t trust them.  I went “old school.”  I read my watch each time I reached a mile marker.  I used to do that all the time.  The hard part is remembering your time at the previous mile marker, so you can subtract to get your current pace.  When I reached the second mile marker, I saw that my pace was only one second slower than the first mile.

By the third mile, I was already getting hot and sweaty.  There wasn’t as much wind as I expected, and I was noticing some humidity.  I was still running faster than I planned, and getting too hot was likely to make the pace feel more tiring.

I never saw the sign for three miles, but I saw the sign for 5K.  My time there was consistent with my time at two miles.

We were heading north now.  The last forecast I had seen showed the wind coming mostly from the north.  We should have had a headwind now, but I still wasn’t noticing much wind.  Either I was wrong about the wind direction or the wind wasn’t as strong as I was expecting.  Either way, I was regretting my decision to wear tights.  I was overdressed.

I also regretted that I wasn’t able to make another bathroom stop before the race.  I could feel some pressure building up in my intestines.  I was sure I would need to make a bathroom stop at some point, but I wanted to wait as long as possible.  I had two concerns.  My first concern was that stopping this early in the race might cause me to fall behind the 3:45 group that was somewhere behind me.  I don’t know how much stagger there was between corrals.  So far, I was running slightly faster than their pace.  If I stopped for two or three minutes, they might go by me.  I didn’t want to have to try to catch up to them if I fell behind.  My second concern is that stopping might take me out of my rhythm.  The runners around me were keeping me on a fast pace.  If I dropped back too far because I stopped, I might suddenly be surrounded by slower runners.

By the time I reached the five-mile mark, the sun came out.  I was expecting it to stay cloudy.  Now I was even more concerned that I would get too hot.  I hold up well when I’m hot, but it would make my pace feel more tiring.  I was still averaging about 8:32 per mile, and I questioned whether this pace would wear me down.

In mile six, I sped up a little.  For the first time, my pace was under 8:30.  Before, my pace just seemed too fast.  Now, it was starting to seem crazy fast.  Mile seven was also faster than 8:30.

The aid stations usually had music.  Somewhere around seven miles, I heard them playing “Maniac” from the movie Flashdance.  I don’t listen to music during races, but I’ve sometimes thought about creating a playlist where each song fits the emotions you’re feeling at a specific point in the race.  “Maniac” is a song that would definitely go in my playlist, but I wouldn’t listen to it this early in the race.  It’s an energetic song, and it might make me run too fast, which is exactly what I was doing.  It would be better for later in the race, when you’re fighting to hang on.

By now, mostly of the runners around me had settled into a similar pace, but I saw one guy weaving around people like mad as he tried to move up.  He came up on my left, and then suddenly cut in front of me.  As he did, one of his feet hooked my left leg.  I didn’t lose my balance, but he did.  He barely avoided falling.  Then he continued weaving around people.  He was adding all kinds of extra distance.  I sometimes get bottled up behind slower runners, but I try to be patient about finding an opening that makes it easy to get around them.

In the eighth mile, I saw a dump truck blocking the road ahead of us, so I knew we were about to turn.  We had reached the northernmost point on the course.  After turning the corner, I saw someone dressed as Superman, complete with cape.  Then I saw a runner next to him dressed as Captain America, complete with shield.  I wondered if they were friends and they were running together.  Then I wondered if they knew that their characters were from rival comic book companies.

We didn’t go very far before turning again.  Now we were heading south, back towards the downtown area.  I didn’t notice as much wind now.  If I was right about having a headwind before, we would have a tailwind on our way back.  I was still hot and sweaty, so I needed a cooling breeze.  I wasn’t going to get one for several miles.

I felt like I was going at a pace that might break me, especially if I was too hot.  The sensible thing to do would be to slow down to the 8:40s, which was the pace I was originally planning to run.  Somehow, I was afraid to slow down.  It wasn’t rational, but I thought if I unhitched myself from the runners around me, I would slow down too much, and then I wouldn’t be able to speed up again.  Experience told me my current effort wasn’t going to be sustainable for the whole race, but I stuck with it out of this irrational fear of slowing down.

At one point, I saw a spectator holding up a sign that read, “Bears 7, Jaguars 3.”  The Chicago Bears were playing in London.  It was an afternoon game there, but in this time zone, it was a morning game.  I had a similar experience last weekend at the Twin Cities Marathon, when the Minnesota Vikings were playing in London.  If I didn’t know better, I would think the NFL consults marathonguide.com before planning their schedules.

At 10 miles, if was easy to compute my average pace.  I was averaging 8:31 per mile.  That’s 15 seconds faster than my target pace.  Already, I was two and a half minutes ahead of schedule, but I pressed on.

At another aid station, I heard them playing “Walking on Sunshine” by Katrina and the Waves.  That’s another fast-tempo high energy song.  I just fed on it.

I was also feeding off the energy of the spectators.  There were thick crowds everywhere, and they were cheering us on.  It reminded me of how I always feel running through Brooklyn during the New York City Marathon.  The crowds get you so excited that you just can’t contain yourself.

Sometimes during a race, I’ll reach a particular mile or kilometer marker and I’ll think about where I would be on a different course that’s familiar to me.  At 20K, it occurred to me that if I was running the Boston Marathon, I was be arriving at the “Wellesley Scream Tunnel.”  I always feel fresh at that point in the race.  I was at the 20K mark of this race, and I definitely didn’t not feel fresh.

I’ve had lots of other races where I ran the first half at a pace that felt like this.  About 95% of the time, the wheels came off in the second half.  The other 5% of the time, I went on to do something special.  At this point in the race, I fully expected to blow up in the second half, but I kept going at the same pace.

Ever since the first mile, my watch was consistently recording splits long before I reached a mile marker.  I usually looked at it, but I didn’t trust what it was telling me.  When it prematurely recorded a split for mile 13, the time it had for that mile was much slower than my previous miles.  I didn’t think I slowed down in that mile.  It was easy to believe I might run out of gas at any time, but I was still keeping up with all the runners around me.  When I finished mile 13, I saw that I actually sped up in that mile.

I reached the halfway point in 1:51:32.  I was almost three and a half minutes ahead of my target time.  I was roughly on pace to finish in 3:43.

I can still remember my all-time fastest marathon.  It was the only time I every broke three hours.  For the first half of the race, I thought I was running way too fast.  I expected to blow up.  When I still felt OK at the halfway point, I started to believe that I might not blow up.  I was now at the same point of this race.  I didn’t have that same confidence.  I still expected to blow up.

I began to lose my fear of slowing down.  My primary goal was to run a Boston qualifying time.  After running the first half of the race at a pace that was at least 15 second per mile too fast, I could now afford to slow down by roughly 30 seconds per mile in the second half.  I could, but I didn’t.  Knowing I had room to slow down emboldened me to keep up the pace.

My watch gave me another wonky split for mile 14.  It said I sped up to 7:02 in that mile.  We were back in the downtown area, so we had been near tall buildings in that mile.  I had every reason to distrust my watch, but I did suspect I may have sped up a little.  I was curious to know what my time would be when I actually finished that mile.  Unfortunately, I got distracted and forgot to look.

That was the beginning of a pattern.  For the next several miles, I was only remembering to look at my watch every other mile.  My two-mile splits were usually 17 minutes or faster, so my average pace per mile was 8:30 or faster.

We were heading west now, and I felt much more wind.  I don’t know what the wind direction was before, but now it was definitely a headwind.  That was a huge relief.  The wind went a long way toward cooling me down.  Also, it wasn’t sunny any more.  For the rest of the race, we had cloud cover.  That was just what I needed.

Somewhere around here, I realized that my digestive system had stabilized.  I no longer felt like I needed a bathroom stop.  I wouldn’t stop until after the race.

Maybe it’s because I was running with more confidence, or maybe other people were starting to slow down.  I started to notice lots of slower runners in front of me.  I had to look for openings, so I could move around them.

We crossed a street that runs diagonally.  Chicago has lots of those.  As I looked down that street, I saw a Church’s Chicken restaurant.  I suddenly remembered running past one in this race in a previous year.  As I looked closer, I saw a stream of runners going the opposite direction on a different street.  They were going right by Church’s Chicken.  This was the restaurant I remembered.  We just weren’t there yet.

Soon, I entered a block with a sign saying, “Charity Block Party.”  On both sides of the street, there were dozens of canopies set up.  Each one had the name of a different charitable organization.

Shortly after the charity block party, I saw a huge Mexican flag on the side of a building.  It was the Mexican consulate.  As I entered that block, I saw spectators holding up Mexican flags.  There are several ethnic neighborhoods in the second half of the race.  I knew we would go through a Mexican neighborhood at some point, so I thought we were there.  I was wrong.  That neighborhood would come later.

We reached the western edge of this section of the course and turned left.  We passed the 25K mark.  Then we turned again.  Now we were heading back toward the city center.  Ahead of me, I could see the 16-mile sign.

We continued toward downtown, and we eventually passed Church’s Chicken.  It’s funny the things that stick in your memory during a race.

As we turned and briefly headed south, I recognized most of our surroundings, but one thing seemed different.  We ran by a CTA station on the blue line.  There was a roof that extended over the street from that station.  I don’t remember running under that before.  Was this a new building, or is my memory faulty?

We turned and headed west again.  Soon we ran through a neighborhood where I saw posts painted with the colors of the Italian flag.  We had reached the Italian neighborhood.  I heard a spectator say we had three more neighborhoods, but I don’t know which ones he meant.

Somewhere between 18 and 19 miles, we reached the westernmost part of this section.  Even before I turned the corner, I remembered exactly where the 19-mile mark was.  I also remember how I felt when I got there in previous years.

As I turned the corner, I looked ahead and saw a large digital clock.  That was the 30K mark.  When I reached 30K, my watch was already recording a split for 19 miles.  The 19-mile mark wasn’t visible yet.  It was under a bridge.

When I reached 19 miles, I had 7.2 miles to go.  I remembered another year when I reached this point and wondered if I could run those last 7.2 miles in an hour.  I was almost on pace to do that this year, but not quite.  The more relevant question was whether I could run those last 7.2 miles in 69 minutes.  If I could do that, I would run a Boston qualifying time.

I had a lot of room to slow down.  At this point, I could slow down by a minute per mile and still be on pace for a BQ.   Knowing that gave me the confidence to keep running hard.  I didn’t feel like there was much risk now.  Even if I ran out of gas, I wasn’t likely to slow down by more than a minute per mile.  I felt like I didn’t have anything to lose, so I went for it.

As we turned the corner and headed east again, we ran through the Mexican neighborhood.  There was music, and lots of Mexican flags.

As we continued east, I eventually spotted a bridge in the distance.  I remembered this bridge.  I also remembered, that there was a slight ramp coming up to the bridge.  In any other race, you wouldn’t call it a hill.  In Chicago, it may be the biggest hill on the course.  If not, it’s the second biggest.

This was another bridge with carpet, but only on one side.  There were runners walking the bridge, and there was barely enough room to get around them while staying on the carpet.

Just after the bridge, I reached the 21-mile sign.  After another block or two, I entered Chinatown.  This is my favorite neighborhood in the whole race.  It’s a colorful neighborhood, and the crowds really turn out for the race.

After Chinatown, I had to run one more mile to reach Michigan Avenue.  The last few miles of the race are on Michigan Avenue, running north toward Grant Park.  First, however, we had to turn right and head south on Michigan Avenue.  It bothered me to know I was running away from Grant Park.

On the other side of the street, I could see runners who were already heading north.  Looking ahead, I could see the 24-mile sign, but it was on the opposite side of the street.  I wasn’t even to 23 yet.

This was another area where I had to work to get around slower runners.  It was more understandable now.  Most people start to slow down in these late miles.  I wasn’t showing any sign of slowing down.  With fewer miles to go, I was running with more confidence.

When I finished mile 23, I checked my time.  The first thing I asked myself is if I would still break 3:50 if I slowed to 10 miles per mile the rest of the way.  The answer was yes, by a wide margin.  I could slow to 11 minutes per mile, and I would still break 3:50.  My BQ was absolutely in the bag.  I could afford to slow down, but I didn’t want to.  I wanted to finish strong.  Now, it was a matter of pride.

We made a small loop, and then we got back onto Michigan Avenue going north.  This is the part of the race where I’ve always struggled to maintain my pace.  Some years, I’ve struggled just to finish this section.  I had been looking forward to getting there, but it’s a part of the course I usually dread.

The wind had apparently shifted.  Earlier it seemed to be coming from the west.  Now, it was definitely coming from the north.  It was also much stronger now.  This was the wind I had been expecting.  Running into this wind, my hands got cold.

I heard another high-energy song.  It was “Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now).”  That’s what I needed to hear.  It pumped me up, and I put even more energy into my pace.

One of the impressive things about this race is that they have signs for every kilometer, in addition to every mile.  When I reached the 39K sign, I had 3,200 meters to go.  That’s the equivalent of eight laps around a track.  That thought wasn’t actually all that helpful.  I wouldn’t know when I completed each 400 meters, so I couldn’t count down those laps.

When I reached the 40K sign, I had the equivalent of five and a half laps around a track.  That’s better than eight laps, but it still wasn’t all that helpful.

After the 25-mile sign, there’s a one mile to go sign.  I looked at my watch.  If I kept up the same pace, I would run negative splits, but it might be close.  That lit a fire under me.  I had a new goal now.  I ran much faster the rest of the way.

I reached the 41K sign.  Now I had just 1,200 meters.  That’s like three laps around a track.  From there out, there were signs every 400 meters, so that was now a useful way to look at the remaining distance.

When my watch recorded a split for mile 26, I was nowhere near the 26-mile mark.  It was still about half a mile away.  It said I sped up to 7:59 in that mile, but I didn’t know if I could trust it.  I was speeding up, though.

I reached the 800 meters to go sign.  Now, it was just two laps around a track.  I poured it on.

I made the turn at Roosevelt and started climbing up to the bridge over some railroad tracks.  If the bridge at 21 wasn’t the largest hill, this was.  I ran up the ramp as hard as I could.  I don’t know if I maintained the same pace, but if I didn’t, it wasn’t for lack of effort.

At the top of the bridge, there was a 300-meters to go sign.  I started running downhill, and then I reached the final turn.  There was a 42K sign.  There was also a 200-meters to go sign.

After that last turn, I could see the finish line.  I tried to run hard, but I was running out of gas.  Then I reminded myself that I was running for negative splits.  I still thought it might be close.  It wasn’t even remotely close.  Those last two miles were my fastest of the race.

I finished in 3:41:07.  I ran negative splits by almost two minutes.  I still can’t believe how strong I ran.  Two of my fastest races this year were on courses that descended at least 3,000 feet.  Excluding those two races, this was my second fastest marathon of the year.

As I moved through the finish area, I knew it wouldn’t be long before I started getting cold.  I was going to put on my jacket, but then I saw the volunteers handing out heat sheets.  That was easier.  Best of all, this is one of the races where there are volunteers taping the heat sheets in place, so your can keep your hands free for other things.  The only other races I know that do that are New York City and Boston.

Post-race food included bananas, apples, energy bars, Rice Krispy bars, and donuts.  Beverages included water, Muscle Milk, and beer.

Mary was volunteering in the food area, so I was hoping to see her after I finished.  I stayed in the finisher chute longer than I should have so I could look for her, but I wasn’t able to spot her.

I made my way to the gear check tents to retrieve my gear bag.  Then I made a bathroom stop before leaving Grant Park to walk back to my hotel.  They had a post-race party area with more beer, but I just wanted to get back to my room and get cleaned up.

I spent the rest of the afternoon refueling, recovering, and relaxing at the hotel.  In the evening, I went to Navy Pier to have dinner with friends who traveled here from England.  We have a few friends in common, so I also knew some of the runners from the US.

I had to get up early on Monday to get to the airport for a morning flight.  It was much colder, and there was some rain.  I’m glad we didn’t have those conditions for the race.

Race statistics:

Distance:  26.2 miles

Time:  3:41:07

Average Pace:  8:26 per mile

First Half:  1:51:32

Second Half:  1:49:35

Lifetime Marathons/Ultras:  530

Boston Qualifiers:  171

World Marathon Majors:  27 (Boston x 13, Chicago x 6, New York x 4, Berlin x 2, London, Tokyo)

Race Report: 2024 Twin Cities Marathon

 On October 6, I ran the Twin Cities Marathon, which starts in downtown Minneapolis and finishes at the state capitol in St. Paul.  This is the 15th time I’ve run this race.  It’s a home town race, so it’s too convenient to pass up.  I also like the course.

Last year, this race was cancelled because of hot, humid conditions.  This year, the weather was much better.  Race day temperatures were in the 50s.

The expo was held at River Centre in downtown St. Paul.  I could’ve gone on Friday or Saturday.  I assumed runners coming from out of town would be going on Saturday, along with any local runners who had to work on Friday.  I went on Friday, since it was likely to be less busy.  While I was at the expo, I bumped into a few friends.

After the expo, I had dinner at Cossetta’s.  This is one of my favorite Italian restaurants, and it’s just a few blocks from River Centre.

Saturday was a warm day, but a cold front moved through overnight, bringing cooler temperatures and strong winds.

I returned from a trip to Germany on Thursday, so I only had a couple days to adjust back to my own time zone.  I usually have an easy time adjusting when I travel to Europe, but it takes longer to adjust back to my own time zone.  Since getting home, I’ve been waking up too early.  On race morning, I woke up at 1:30, and I never got back to sleep.

There was a ramp in downtown Minneapolis where we could park for free.  Parking near the start would’ve been convenient for before the race, but I chose to park near the finish area in St. Paul, so I could get home quickly after the race.

There were two easy ways to get to the start from St. Paul.  One way is to take a light rail line.  Runners could use it for free on race day by showing their race bibs.  The other way is to take buses provided by the race.  They left from two different hotels in downtown St. Paul.  I chose to catch a bus at the Radison (formerly Best Western, Kelly Inn).  I always park in a lot that’s right next to the Radison.  It’s not free, but it’s convenient.

The buses left between 5:00 and 6:45.  The marathon didn’t start until 8:00, but there was a 10-mile race that started at 7:00.

I was up early, so I started getting ready.  I arrived around 5:00, but I didn’t board a bus right away.  I wanted to get to St. Paul early to get a good parking spot, but I didn’t want to get to the start area too early, knowing it would be cold.  The temperature was in the 50s, but the wind made it feel like low 40s.

I waited until 6:15 to board a bus.  In the meantime, I waited in the lobby of the Radison, talking with other runners.

As the crow flies, it’s only 10 miles from downtown St. Paul to downtown Minneapolis.  The route the buses take is mostly on the freeway, so it didn’t take long to get there.  I was in the start area by 6:30.

The start area is right next to US Bank Stadium, which is where the Minnesota Vikings play.  As soon as I got there, I got into line to use a port-o-potty.  The lines were somewhat long, because the 10-mile race had not yet started.  That race is much larger than the marathon.  I didn’t mind waiting in line, because it didn’t have anything better to do.  I had an hour and a half before the marathon started.

After my bathroom stop, I found a place to sit down.  Other runners were sitting on the steps in front of the stadium.  Behind the steps, there were a few stone slabs.  I sat on one of the stone slabs, but they were cold.  Also, I was high enough above street level that I was exposed to the wind.

The race had a gear check, so I was able to wear extra layers.  Even so, I was shivering as I sat there in the cold wind.

While the wind was miserable before the race, I realized it would be helpful during the race.  The first 19 miles of the course make a large circle through south Minneapolis, but the last seven miles are mostly going straight east to get to the finish in St. Paul.  The wind was blowing from west to east.  We would rarely have to run directly into it, but it would be at our backs for a good portion of the race, including the last five miles.

Outside the stadium, there’s a small mock-up of a Viking ship.  I thought it was just a façade, but I noticed other runners inside it.  As turns out there’s an entrance in the back, and a bench you can sit on.  I went in and sat on the bench.  It was more comfortable than where I had been sitting, and it was partially sheltered from the wind.  I waited there until it was time to make my final bathroom stop.

By now the 10-mile race had already started.  With all those runners gone, the bathroom lines were much shorter.

When I was done with my bathroom stop, I took off my wind pants and checked my gear bag.  I kept my jacket with me until the race started.  Then I took it off and tied it around my waist.

I started running with the 3:50 pace group.  Before the start, I had a chance to talk to the pace leader.  His name was Mike.  I didn’t know for sure if I could run the whole race at that pace, but I wanted to start at that pace and see how I felt.

The first mile was through downtown Minneapolis.  It was flat, but it was directly into the wind.  At first, the runners around me sheltered me somewhat from the wind.  Within a few minutes, I started to feel the wind resistance.  That made our pace feel tiring, but I knew we would only have a headwind in the early miles.

Before the end of the first mile, I got ahead of the pace group.  As I turned the corner onto Hennepin Avenue, I looked for Mike, but I wasn’t able to spot him.

My first mile was a little fast, so I eased up a bit and kept looking for Mike.  Before long, I made the next turn onto Lyndale Avenue, which took me past the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden and the Walker Art Center.  Since I was ahead of the group, I was able to stop briefly to take a picture.

Lyndale Avenue was uphill.  I was still ahead of the 3:50 pace group, so I could afford to slow down on the hill.  As I made the next turn, I was able to look back and spot Mike.  I kept running at an easier pace until he and the group caught up to me.

Now we were running into the wind again as we ran through the Kenwood neighborhood.  It was tiring, but I knew this was the last time we would have a headwind.  When we turned again and were finally out of the wind, I was much more confident that I could keep up with the group.  For the next few miles, the wind was at our side.

I got ahead of the pace group again, so I once again used it as an opportunity to take a picture.  We were getting to the chain of lakes in south Minneapolis.  The first lake was Lake of the Isles.

After I stopped to take a picture, the group caught up to me again.  After that, I made a point of getting ahead of them whenever I was planning to take a picture.

After Lake of the Isles, we crossed Lake Street and ran around the west side of Bde Maka Ska (formerly known as Lake Calhoun).  This is typically where the crowds are loudest.  This year seemed to be an exception.  I saw big crowds later, but hardly anybody was watching here.  Maybe people were deterred by the cold wind.  Maybe some people were staying home to watch the Minnesota Vikings.  The Vikings were playing the New York Jets in London.  It was an afternoon game there, but in our time zone, the game started at 8:30 AM.

Years ago, this race always coincided with peak fall colors.  As you can see in the picture above, the leaves are just starting to turn.  With climate change, the leaves aren’t changing color as early as they used to.  Now, we don’t see peak colors until a few weeks later.

The next lake was Lake Harriet.  The first 10K race I ever ran was two laps around this lake.  There are a lot of races here throughout the year.

By the time we left Lake Harriet, we had already run more than seven miles.  We ran on residential streets for a few blocks, but then we turned onto the Minnehaha Parkway, while follows Minnehaha Creek.  Along Minnehaha Parkway, we had a tailwind.

This parkway has some rolling hills, but they’re all short.  I didn’t have any trouble maintaining a consistent pace.  The tailwind may have helped.

Around nine miles, we ran under the Nicollet Avenue bridge.  There’s always a band of some type set up under the bridge.  It’s a strategic location.  In rainy years, the bridge provides shelter.  There wasn’t any risk of rain this year.  We just had strong winds.

Before long, I started to wonder how the Vikings game was going.  It had been about an hour since the game started.  I tried to ask the spectators if anyone knew the score.  With the strong wind, nobody could hear me clearly.  Finally, one spectator told me the Vikings were ahead 10-0.

Shortly after that, I got too far ahead of the pace group.  When I looked back, I couldn’t see them.  As we turned onto Cedar Avenue to run around Lake Nokomis, I eased up a little.  I ran the next mile a little slower, but I still didn’t see Mike.

Around 12 miles, I saw a few spectators handing out bananas.  Then I saw something that impressed me.  Just down the road, another spectator was holding out a trash bag to collect the banana peels.  That guy wins spectator of the year.

Lake Nokomis used to be the race venue for the FANS 24-hour race.  I’ve logged hundreds of miles around this lake, so I always feel at home on this part of the course.

As I continued around the lake, I saw a spectator holding up a white board with the score of the Vikings game.  They were now ahead 17-0.

I paused to take a picture of the lake, and the 3:50 group caught up to me.  It wasn’t really the best place to get a view of the lake.  A short time later, there was a place where you can look across the lake and see the downtown buildings.  I wanted to stop again, but I would have fallen behind the group.  I didn’t want to have to work hard to catch up to them, so I had to skip that photo op.

We reached the halfway mark in 1:54:49.  We were 11 seconds ahead of schedule.  Shortly after that, we reached an aid station that had pickle juice.

In the next mile, we left Lake Nokomis and got back onto the Minnehaha Parkway.  We passed the 14 mile banner.  A short time later, I saw a banner that said 1 mile.  It had been one mile since we passed the halfway mark, so I realized it was the one mile banner for the half marathon.  This race never used to have a half marathon, but they apparently added one since I last ran it.

At this point, I was still with the pace group.  Then I inadvertently got ahead of them.  The 15 mile mark was in Minnehaha Park.  When I got there, I saw that I had run that mile about 25 seconds too fast.  After that, I eased up, but I remained ahead of the 3:50 group for a long time.

Soon, we turned onto West River Parkway, which follows the west bank of the Mississippi.  We were on this parkway for almost four miles.  We no longer had a tailwind, but this section was mostly flat.

We ran under another bridge that had a drum band set up nearby.  They didn’t bother to set up under the bridge.  That was a vote of confidence in the weather.

Soon, I heard one runner tell another that the score of the Vikings game was now 17-7.  The other runner said he knew that.  He was listening to the game with his earbud.  I decided to run with him for a while.

After running under the Lake Street bridge, we had to come back up a ramp.  I started to fall behind the guy who was listening the game.  Keeping up with him going uphill took too much effort.  As the road leveled off, I was able to catch up.  Then, before I knew it, I was ahead of him.  The fact that I kept running away from people was a good sign.  With nine miles to go, I wasn’t having any trouble keeping up the pace.

Just before the 19-mile mark, we went up a ramp to get onto the Franklin Avenue bridge.  This was where we crossed the river.  I stopped to take a picture and the 3:50 group passed me.  I didn’t realize they were that close to me.  I had to use the downhill side of the bridge to speed up enough to catch up to them.

As we got off of the bridge, we turned onto the East River Road.  The next two miles were along the east bank of the Mississippi.  The first mile was slightly downhill, and I pulled ahead of the 3:50 group again.  The second was slightly uphill.  This was the first mile of a three mile stretch with an uphill trend.

The toughest part was a hill just past 21, where we turned and ran out of the river valley.  I often see people walking on this hill.  I didn’t need to walk, but I slowed down a little.  I was still ahead of the 3:50 group.  As long as they were behind me, I wasn’t too concerned about slowing down temporarily on the hill.  Overall, I was on pace.

After that hill, we made two quick turns, and then we were on Summit Avenue, which would take us all the way into downtown St. Paul.  All along Summit Avenue, we had a tailwind.

Early in the race, I was cold, but now I was getting sweaty.  The sun was out now, and with the wind at my back, it wasn’t cooling me off.

After turning onto Summit Avenue, I spotted the guy who was listening to the game.  He said the score was now 17-10, and it was about halfway through the fourth quarter.  A few minutes later, we reached an aid station.  As we were leaving the aid station, he said the score was now 20-10.  That was the last score I heard until after the race.  We had four miles to go.  The next mile was uphill, but the last three have a slightly downhill trend.  I picked up my effort to make sure I wouldn’t slow down in that last uphill mile.

I was within sight of the last hill when I heard Mike giving the group a pep talk.  He was encouraging them to conquer the hill.  I stayed with the group to the top of the hill.  Then I raced ahead as the road turned downhill.

When I crossed the bridge over Ayd Mill Road, I knew I had about two and a half miles to go.  I was confident I could keep up the pace.  In mile 24, I sped up by about 20 seconds.

With a mile and a half to go, I saw a sign on my right that said “free beer.”  I veered to the right side of the road, where there was a beer stop.  There has always been a beer stop somewhere along Summit Avenue, but it’s not always in the same place.  I usually don’t stop.  This year I did.  That’s a reflection of how confident I was that I would break 3:50.

I had been drinking Nuun at every aid station, and I was getting sick of it.  The beer was refreshing.  It was a nice change of pace.

Mile 25 wasn’t as fast, but it was fast enough.  Mile 26 had a more noticeable downhill slope, so I was able to pick up the pace again.

The last seven miles of the marathon were the same as the last seven miles of the 10-mile race, so I was occasionally seeing their mile markers as well.  When I saw the “9” banner, I had exactly one mile to go.  I should’ve looked at my watch.  It would have been useful to know how fast I needed to run the last mile.  I wanted to know if I had time to stop for two more pictures.

The road curved to the left.  Soon, I could see the dome of St. Paul’s Cathedral over the trees.  A minute or two later, we ran right by it.

From here, it was sharply downhill to the finish.  I had to get around one more small curve before I had a clear view of the finish line.  Behind it, I could see the state capitol.

After pausing to take that last picture, I had trouble getting started again, even though it was downhill.  The miles were finally catching up with me.  I got there as quickly as I could, but other runners were passing me.

I finished in 3:49:02.  I broke 3:50 to notch another Boston qualifier.  I also ran negative splits by 36 seconds.  After crossing the finish line, I waited for Mike to finish.

Almost immediately, I put on my jacket.  Then I made my way to the gear bag retrieval area as quickly as I could.  Once I had my gear bag, I made my way to the beer garden.  I was thirsty.  They had a variety of beers, including one that was non-alcoholic.  I chose the NA beer, because I could drink it quickly to quench my thirst, but still be safe to drive.

I’ve done this race enough times that I know which streets are blocked off and the best alternate routes.  One part of the drive home was slow.  There’s only one place in St. Paul where you can get across Summit Avenue, and that’s Ayd Mill Road, which goes under a bridge.  Everyone else going that direction had to take the same road, so it was a bit congested.

I had a great race, but I may pay a price for it.  It’s the third straight weekend that I’ve pushed to my limit, and that may jeopardize my chances of running a fast time next weekend in Chicago.

Sunday night, my sleep was restless.  I usually sleep best after a hard effort.  Instead, I woke up during the night feeling jittery.  That could be a symptom of overtraining (or in this case, overracing).

Race statistics:

Distance:  26.2 miles

Time:  3:49:02

Average Pace:  8:44 per mile

First Half:  1:54:49

Second Half:  1:54:13

Lifetime Marathons/Ultras:  529

Minnesota Marathons/Ultras:  104

Boston Qualifiers:  170