Race Report: 2026 Split Marathon

On February 15, I ran the Split Marathon in Croatia.  This race wasn’t originally part of my plan.  I had plans to visit Croatia, but I was going to run the Zagreb Marathon in October.

As I was planning my race schedule, I was having trouble finding a race for this weekend.  Ideally, I like to space marathons two weeks apart, and I already had races scheduled for February 1 and March 1.  There were good races this weekend in Fort Lauderdale and the Phoenix area, but the flights were outrageously expensive.  If I was going to spend that much on a flight, I might as well fly to Europe.

As I expanded my search to foreign races, I noticed the Split Marathon was this weekend.  Split is a popular tourist destination in the summer, but February is low season.  That was both good news and bad news.  The good news is that it wasn’t crowded, and hotel rates were incredibly affordable.  The bad news is that very few airlines have flights to Split at this time of year.

I could get to Zagreb on a Delta/Air France itinerary, but to get from there to Split, I had to book a separate itinerary with Croatia Airlines.

Thursday, February 12

I arrived in Paris on an overnight flight from Minneapolis.  I was hoping to get a nap on the flight, but turbulence made it impossible to sleep.

From Paris, I continued to Zagreb on an Air France flight that was operated by Croatia Airlines.  Because my flight to Split was booked separately, I spent one night in Zagreb before continuing to Split.  It’s risky to book flights with two different airlines on the same day.  If a delayed flight causes you to miss a connection, neither airline is responsible for rebooking you on a later flight.  Waiting until the next day gave me a cushion.  It also gave me a chance to visit Zagreb, which made this trip a two-for-one deal.

I took a taxi into town and checked into a hotel near the city center.  Then I had the rest of the day to do some sightseeing in Zagreb, which is the capital of Croatia.

I booked a free walking tour, but it didn’t start until 4:30 PM.  That gave me time to do a workout at the hotel and explore some nearby parks.

I’ve done free walking tours in several other cities.  It costs nothing to sign up.  After the tour, you tip the guide whatever amount you feel is appropriate.  I met the guide for this tour, Robert, at the Meteorological Post, at the north end of Zrinjevac Park.

Our first stop was Zagreb’s main square.  While we were here, Robert explained some of Zagreb’s history.

Our next stop was a smaller square with a relief map of the city.  Robert pointed out where we would go on this tour, as well as some places in the lower town that I might want to explore on my own.

Next, we went t the cathedral.  The outside of the cathedral is being restored, so I didn’t take any pictures.  By the time we were done touring the inside of the cathedral, it was already starting to get dark.  Consequently, I didn’t take as many pictures as I ordinarily would.

As we continued exploring the upper town, Robert pointed out several restaurants and museums and made a few recommendations.  Then we passed through the Stone Gate and continued climbing to the highest part of the city.

Zagreb’s best-known landmark is St, Mark’s Church.  It was already dark when we got there, but the church is lit up at night.

After descending several stairways, we detoured through a network of tunnels that were built during World War II.

We finished back in the main square.  It was already getting late, so I walked straight to dinner from there.

Whenever I visit someplace new, I have to try the local pizza.  I had dinner at a pizzeria that was more or less on my way back to my hotel.  After dinner, I had some rakija, which is an after-dinner drink that I discovered last year on a trip to Serbia.  It’s common in the Balkans, but I’ve never seen it anywhere else.

After dinner, I was able to get to sleep almost immediately.  I slept well for a few hours, but then I woke up and had trouble getting back to sleep.  I was just starting to sleep well again when it was time to get up.

Friday, February 13

My hotel was in the lower town, where there are lots of green spaces.  After breakfast, I went for a morning run through a series of connected parks, squares, and botanical gardens.  They form a U shape, so they’re collectively called “Lenuci’s Horseshoe.”

I flew to Split in the afternoon.  I stayed at a hotel that was just a few blocks from where the marathon starts and finishes.  Conveniently, it also made a good base for sightseeing.

My hotel was located within the walls of Diocletian's Palace, so you can’t drive right to the entrance.  I had my taxi drop me off at the waterfront, where a porter from the hotel met me to lead me to the hotel.  We entered the palace through this gate.

Then we walked through the lower level of the palace.  If you’re a fan of Game of Thrones, it might look familiar.  Some of the scenes were filmed here.

Next, we walked up these steps to get to the main courtyard.

After going up more steps, we walked through the vestibule.

On the other side of the vestibule, we walked through this courtyard to get to the hotel entrance.

After checking into my room and unpacking a few things, I went to packet pickup, which was under a large tent in the promenade, next to the waterfront.

By the time I got back to my room, the sun was already setting.  It was getting too late to do any sightseeing, so I went to dinner at a restaurant that was recommended by one of the hotel employees.

I slept better that night, but I still wasn’t able to sleep through the night.

Saturday, February 14

This hotel only has seven rooms.  Breakfast is included, but it’s not economical to have a buffet for so few guests.  When I went down to breakfast, I was told to sit anywhere, and they would bring everything to me.  They weren’t kidding.  After the server brought me a pot of tea, she came back and set down a stand with three plates.  One had pastries and various spreads.  The next had various slices of fruit.  The third had meats cheeses, nuts and olives.  There was also a basket of bread.  She also gave me a menu, in case I wanted to order anything else.

After breakfast, I did a workout.  About the time I finished my exercises, I heard a loud clap of thunder.  It had been raining lightly, but soon it was pouring.  I didn’t venture out until the rain started to wind down again.

The vestibule has good acoustics, so people often gather there to sing.  From my hotel room, I could hear different groups singing.

I was signed up for a free walking tour of Split that started at 11:30.  As luck would have it, the rain had stopped by then.

I met the guide at the “Split” sign at one end of the promenade.  At least half of the tour was within Diocletian's Palace.  The palace is like a small city.  It was built for the Roman Emperor Diocletian, who used it as his retirement home.  Some of the features I saw on the tour were familiar.  Others I had not seen before.

This is the bell tower, which was built later than the rest of the palace.

Just outside the cathedral, there’s a sphinx.  The original parts of the palace are 1,700 years old, but this sphinx is 3,500 years old.  It was brought from Luxor, Egypt.

This passage is the world’s most narrow street.  The name translates to “let me pass.”

We left the palace through this gate, which was originally used only by the emperor.  After that, the rest of the tour was through other parts of the old town.

Outside this gate, there’s a statue of Gregory of Nin.  They say if you rub the big toe and make a wish, it’ll come true, but only if you don’t tell anyone your wish.  I rubbed the toe and silently wished for dry weather during the marathon.  My wish didn’t come true.

This is the altar from an ancient monastery that was only recently excavated.  It’s the only remaining part of the structure.

This is the main square of Split’s old town.  The city’s oldest restaurant and hotel are both located here.

This clock, near another gate to the palace, is noteworthy because it's partitioned into 24 hours instead of 12.

This building, next to a different square, is the only baroque building in the city.

After the walking tour, I took a brief rest break at the hotel.  Then I went back out to do some sightseeing on my own.  I started by climbing to the top of the bell tower.  The stone steps are much taller than normal steps.  Going up was tiring.  Coming back down was a bit scary.

The views from the tower were great, but I wasn’t prepared for how windy it was at the top.

Next, I went for a hike through Marjan Park, which is on a hilly peninsula at the western edge of the city.  I hiked to three observation decks.  From the first one, I had a view looking back toward the old town.  From the second one, I had a view across the bay to the other end of the city.  From the last observation deck, I could look out across the Adriatic Sea.

After that, I went to dinner at another restaurant that was recommended by an employee at my hotel.

Walking back from dinner, I was surprised how many runners I saw doing last-minute shakeout runs along the waterfront.

I got to bed earlier that night, and I slept well for most of the night.

Sunday, February 15

Sunday was race day.  The race didn’t start until 9:00, so I didn’t have to get up too early.  Nevertheless, I was awake before my alarm went off.

The first thing I did when I got up was to check the weather.  It was raining.  I showered, got dressed, and went down to breakfast, not knowing if the rain would stop in time for the race.

Knowing how much food they bring you for breakfast, I told the server to only bring bread and a pot of tea.

We had to be in the start corrals by 8:45.  My hotel was close to the start, so I didn’t leave until 25 minutes before the start.

It was still raining, and it looked like the rain would continue for the first half of the race.  The temperature was about 50 degrees, but with the wind and rain, it felt like low 40s.  I didn’t expect it to warm up noticeably during the race.  I started the race wearing a plastic rain poncho.

At packet pickup, we were given color-coded wrist bands.  According to the pre-race instructions, we needed these to get into the start corrals.  In practice, nobody was checking.

I wasn’t sure what my goal should be.  The course is moderately hilly, with roughly 1,000 feet of total elevation gain.  I was also concerned about the wet conditions.  I knew there were sections of cobblestones where we ran through the old town, and they can be dangerously slippery when they’re wet.  I started the race with a wait-and-see attitude.

I was assigned to corral B based on my estimated finish time.  I saw a 4:00 pace group who were also in corral B, so I lined up next to them.  I didn’t know if I could run that pace for the whole race, but it seemed like a reasonable pace to start.

We started on the promenade.  From there, we followed the waterfront toward Marjan Park.  The pavement was mostly smooth asphalt, but we sometimes ran over crosswalks that were paved with cobblestones.

I was paying so much attention to the cobblestones that it was difficult to keep an eye on where the pace leaders were.  The first kilometer or two were congested and people weren’t all starting at the same pace.

I found myself getting ahead of the 4:00 group, but I saw a 2:00 group for the half marathon.  They had the same target pace, so I followed them.

The first seven or eight kilometers were an out-and-back section that took us around the southern edge of Marjan Park.  As we ran up a hill, my impression was that it wasn’t as tiring as I expected.  Later, we reached a bigger hill, and I had to work harder to stay on pace.

There were timing mats every 5K and at the turnaround points of each out-and-back section.  Each time I crossed a timing mat, I briefly lifted the front of my rain poncho, so it wasn’t covering my race bib.  In all likelihood, my timing chip would have registered through the plastic poncho, but I didn’t want to take any chances of missing a timing point.

The aid stations didn’t all have the same beverages.  Most had water and Isotonic (sports drink).  Some just had water.  A few had Coke.  Even at the stations with Isotonic, there was typically only one or two volunteers handing out cups of Iso.  At most of the tables, I just saw water.  On the rare occasions that I got a cup of Iso, I drank the whole thing.  When I had to settle for water, I just drank a sip.  Conditions were cold enough that I didn’t need to drink much to stay hydrated.

Coming back toward town, I started to notice a strong headwind.  I was running behind a large group, so I was somewhat sheltered from the wind.

As we came back through the old town, I reached another aid station.  I was trying to reach for a cup of water, but a few other runners suddenly darted between me and the volunteers.  I had to briefly come to a stop to get around the other runners to get a cup of water.  That caused me to fall behind the pace group.

As we turned away from the waterfront, I had to fight the wind by myself at the same time I was going up a hill.  I quickly realized that it would be too tiring to catch up to the pace group.

I knew the 4:00 group was somewhere behind me, but I didn’t want to slow down enough for them to catch up.  I continued running at the same pace, even though it meant fighting the wind by myself.

For the next few kilometers, we were running through the old town.  We made a number of turns, and some of the streets were cobblestone.  I managed to keep up a consistent pace, but I was cautious about my footing.

By the 10K mark, we were beginning another out-and-back section that took us through more modern neighborhoods.  Going out, we had a strong headwind, and I really wished I was still running with the 2:00 group.  Fighting the wind by myself took a lot of extra energy.

I saw a group of women who were singing.  They were really good.  They sounded like a professional choir.  As I got closer, I noticed they were all nearing red scarfs.  During my walking tour on Saturday, our tour guide told us about groups of professional singers who would sometimes gather in the palace vestibule to sing for the tourists.  You can recognize them by their red scarfs.

In addition to running into the wind, I was also going uphill.  When I saw that I was getting closer to the pace group, I worked hard to catch up to them.  It took a lot out of me, but I caught up to them near the top of the hill.  After that, I had a group of runners in front of me to shield me from the wind.

We were still a distance from the turnaround, but now we were running downhill.  I started to get ahead of the pace group, but I was able to follow a line of runners who had all moved to the same side of the street.  Running behind them gave me shelter from the wind.

I was relieved when I reached the turnaround.  Now, instead of a headwind, I had a tailwind.  I had to run back up the hill, but it was much easier with the wind at my back.

Before long, I crested the hill again.  Now I was going downhill with the wind at my back.  That gave me a chance to recover from that long section that was into the wind.

Somewhere around 16K, we reached the end of that out-and-back section.  After two turns and another kilometer, we reached the point where the marathon and half marathon courses diverged.  Runners doing the half marathon turned left.  Those of us doing the marathon turned right to begin another long out-and-back section.  Like the previous one, this one was into the wind going out.  Also, we again had to go uphill on the first part of this section.

By now, the rain had stopped.  I no longer needed my rain poncho to keep me dry, but I had mixed feelings about getting rid of it.  The wind was cold, and I was worried I would get too cold without having the poncho to help retain heat.  The downside of keeping it was the added wind resistance.  When there was a strong wind gust, my poncho acted like a sail, increasing my wind drag.

At one point there was a gust of wind so strong that it briefly brought me to a standstill.  Then I had to fight hard to get back up to pace.

I could no longer follow the 2:00 pace group, as they were doing the half marathon and had turned the other way at the previous junction.  I could see a runner who I had been following on the previous out-and-back section, but I didn’t know if I could catch up to him.

I found a different runner to follow, but it seemed like the wind was slowing him down.  My choices were stay behind him but go at a slower pace or continue at the same pace but have to fight the wind myself.  I chose to keep going at the same pace.

I caught up to another runner, but before long I passed him.  That happened a few times.  As I started to pass one runner after another, I assumed everyone was slowing down on this section.  After all, we were going uphill into a strong wind.  Then I got a split from my watch for mile 13.  I sped up to 8:36 in that mile.  It was my fastest mile of the race.

I saw a pace group coming back on the other side of the street.  It was the 3:00 group.  At this point in the race, I figured they were about 30 minutes ahead of me.  That meant I still had to fight the wind for 15 more minutes before reaching the turnaround.

A few moments later, a pace group caught up to me.  It was the 4:00 group.  I was surprised to see them right behind me when I had just run such a fast mile.  They apparently were going a little faster than their target pace.  When I reached the halfway point, I saw that I was two and a half minutes ahead of schedule for a four-hour finish.

As the road turned downhill, I got ahead of the group again.  As we neared the end of this section, we made a couple of turns.  After the first turn, the wind was at our side.  After the second turn, we had a tailwind.  That’s the good news.  The bad news is that I could see it was uphill on the last leg before the turnaround.

I reached the turnaround right at 22K.  Now I was running into the wind, but it was downhill.  I continued to stay ahead of the 4:00 group.

At the bottom of the hill, we turned out of the wind.  After another turn, I had a tailwind.  My rain poncho was still acting like a sail, but now it was helping me instead of hurting me.

Coming back, we again had to go uphill at first, but after cresting that hill it was downhill with the wind at our backs.  This was another chance to recover.

I eventually reached the end of that out-and-back section.  Then we merged back in with the half marathon course.  We continued in the same direction for a short distance and then turned to enter a stadium.  I had seen this same stadium from one of the viewpoints during my hike through Marjan Park on Saturday.

We ran one lap around the track and then left the stadium again.  There was an inflatable arch at the entrance to the stadium, and the wind almost blew it over.

After leaving the stadium, we had to run up a short hill.  This hill was steep enough to force me to slow down.  It was tiring, but it was brief.  Then I turned the corner and started heading back toward the old town.

Just after that turn, I reached an aid station.  This one had water and Coke, but only in bottles.  I grabbed a bottle of Coke and started to take the cap off.  Immediately, foam poured out of the bottle.  My motion as I ran was shaking the bottle.

I had to pour off the foam before I could drink.  I drank what I could, and then I tossed the bottle to the side of the road.  I couldn’t drink the whole bottle without stopping to walk, and I didn’t want to slow down.

Soon, I was running downhill again, but the previous mile was a slow one.  I didn’t get discouraged.  I reminded myself that it was only a slow mile because of the hill.

After another turn, I was running into the wind again.  My rain poncho was a liability again.

I saw another runner stop and put something into a trash bin.  I considered taking off my poncho and stuffing it into the same bin.  Then it occurred to me that we were running through a residential neighborhood, and that trash bin belonged to one of the local residents.  I didn’t feel it was appropriate to be using someone else’s trash bin, so I continued to run wearing the poncho.

As the miles got tougher, I questioned whether I would be able to stay on pace to break four hours.  I was on pace for now, but I didn’t know how much longer I could keep it up.  My backup goal was to break 4:05, which would still be good enough for a Boston qualifier.  At this point, I could do that just by averaging 9:40 the rest of the way.  My slowest mile so far was 9:30.  I kept that in mind, but in the meantime, I was still fighting for 4:00.

As we got back into the old town, I was seeing kilometer markers for the half marathon and the 10K race, but I couldn’t remember when I last saw one for the marathon.  I was relieved when I finally saw the 31K sign.  I didn’t know when the courses diverged again, so I was relieved to know I had not missed a turn.

As we got close to the promenade, I saw the 42K sign.  Apparently, we would come this way again at the end of the race and finish the same way the half marathon finished.

As I reached the promenade, I finally saw where the courses separated.  Runners who were finishing turned onto the promenade to run toward the finish line.  Those of us doing the marathon would reach this same junction twice.  The first time, we continued straight just a little farther to turn onto a sidewalk right at the water’s edge.  We were running parallel to the promenade, but a short distance away.

We still had to do one more out-and-back before coming back into the old town.  It was a little more than 5K each way.  I already knew that we would have a headwind going out and a tailwind coming back.

At one of the aid stations, I saw volunteers holding out white cups that I assumed were water.  Then I heard one of them say, “Cola.”  I was almost past her, so I had to stop and reach back to get a cup.  It was much easier drinking Coke from a cup.

This out-an-back section was always close to the shoreline.  At times, we ran by different bays.  That’s where the wind was always strongest.

Early in this section, I saw a hill.  I was relieved to see the runners in front of me turning to leave the road.  Instead of going up that hill, we followed a sidewalk alongside some railroad tracks.  Our route was level – for now.

We only followed the railroad tracks briefly.  Then we turned and ran past one of the bays.  There were several ladders at the water’s edge, making this bay look like a giant swimming pool.

A wind gust briefly halted my progress.  The next 5K weren’t going to be easy.  I was constantly fighting strong wind gusts.

After that bay, we went up a ramp.  Halfway up the ramp, there was a switchback.  That gave me an opportunity to look for the 4:00 group.  Looking back across the bay, I couldn’t see them coming.

I was slowing down, so it was a relief to know that I still had a comfortable lead over the pace group.  That gave me confidence that I could still break four hours.  If I could stay ahead of the group until the turnaround, it would be easier coming back.

I ran over a hill that was gradual going up but steep going down.  I knew I would eventually have to go back up that steep hill.  I wasn’t looking forward to that.

I ran by another bay that had a beach area.  There were metal barriers on either side of our route, but the wind had toppled them.

There was a line of palm trees between the sidewalk and the beach.  From the way the wind was blowing the trees, it looked like I was running in a powerful storm.  That’s what it felt like too.

When I started to see pace groups coming back, I was able to estimate how much farther it was to the last turnaround.  It always seemed too far.

When I saw the 35K sign, I figured I probably had about one more kilometer of fighting the wind.  That turned out to be a pretty close estimate.

Suddenly, two runners passed me.  It wasn’t the pace group, so I didn’t panic.  Still, it occurred to me that it had been a long time since anyone had passed me.

In the distance, I saw a yellow truck.  I wondered if that was where the turnaround was.  It was actually an aid station, but when I got there, I could see the turnaround a short distance ahead of me.

After making the turn, I looked for the 4:00 group.  I couldn’t see past the crowd of runners at the aid station.  When I reached the aid station, I could see the pace group.  I estimated that I was about a minute ahead of them.  I still had about six kilometers to go, but the wind was at my back now.  I was pretty sure I could stay ahead of them.

When my watch gave me a split for mile 23, it was slow.  That mile had been mostly into the wind.  My previous two miles were also slow, but they were also into the wind.  When I eventually finished mile 24, I saw that I had brought my pace back down.  I was running out of gas, but the toughest miles were behind me.

With about a mile and a half to go, I had to run up the steep hill that I had run down earlier.  I saw other people walking the hill.  I ran most of it, but I had to walk for five or six steps at the very top.

When I got my split for mile 25, it was slow, but I attributed that to the hill.  As far as I knew, that was the last major obstacle.

In the final kilometer, I crossed the promenade to come back into the old town.  The course would loop back around to the other end, but first I had to run up a hill.  I also had to fight a headwind on this hill.  Then I reached a lumpy cobblestone section.  Could this hill get any more difficult?

I breathed a sigh of relief when I reached the top of the hill, turned out of the wind, and got back onto smooth pavement.  Then, I accelerated.

I still had to cross two more short sections of cobblestones.  Those were the only places where I wasn’t fighting to pick up the pace.  On the cobblestones, I just wanted to get through safely.

With just over 200 meters to go, I turned back onto a street I had run before.  Then I saw the 42K sign again.  Just past that, I made the turn onto the promenade.  As I reached the finish line, I made a point of lifting up my rain poncho so it wasn’t covering my race bib.  Then I stopped my watch.  I was a little slow stopping my watch, so it read 3:58:11.  My official time was 3:58:09.

I had been worried about the rain, the hills, and the cobblestones.  It turns out the wind was the toughest part of this race.  Somehow, as tiring as it was, I still broke four hours.  It’s reassuring to know that I can still do that, even under tough conditions.

As I continued through the finisher chute, I received my medal.  I saw a long line for medal engraving.  I didn’t know if that was something they did for everyone, or if it was an option we paid for when we registered.  If so, I didn’t pay for it.  Without knowing, I didn’t want to wait in a long line.  I headed back to the hotel, so I could take a long hot shower.

My race packet included a gel packet, a bottle of Powerade, and a protein shake.  I refueled with those and waited until later to eat a real meal.

When I was ready to venture out again, I went to a restaurant that was inside Diocletian's Palace.  I didn’t want to walk any farther than I had to.

Monday, February 16

I slept so hard that the 6:00 AM church bells didn’t even wake me up.  I also slept through my phone’s alarm.  Fortunately, I didn’t need to be up early.

When I got up, my Achilles tendons were so tight I could barely walk to the bathroom.  After a hot shower and some stretching, I could walk normally, but they were still tight.

My flight back to Zagreb wasn’t until the afternoon, so I was able to have a leisurely breakfast and do a workout before getting ready to leave.

The hotel arranged for my taxi to the airport.  They told the driver where to park and escorted me to meet my driver outside the palace.

My flight to Zagreb was on Croatia Airlines, but my remaining flights were booked through Delta.  For that reason, I’m spending one more night in Zagreb.  I need to be at the airport in time for a 6:30 AM flight on Tuesday, so I checked into a hotel that’s close to the Zagreb airport. 

Race statistics:

Distance:  42.2 kilometers

Time:  3:58:09

Average Pace:  5:39 per kilometer (9:05 per mile)

First Half:  1:57:28

Second Half:  2:00:41

Marathons/Ultras in 2026:  5

Lifetime Marathons/Ultras:  577

Boston Qualifiers in 2026:  3

Lifetime Boston Qualifiers:  190

Countries:  58

Race Report: 2026 Surf City Marathon

On February 1, I ran the Surf City Marathon in Huntington Beach, CA.  This was the 10th time I did this race.  I keep coming back for three reasons.

First, it always has nice weather.  While I can’t rule out the possibility of rain, I know it won’t be cold.  In the winter, you can travel pretty far south and still encounter frigid temperatures.  Two weeks ago, it was 25 degrees in Savannah.  As recently as last weekend, much of the southeastern U.S. got snow or ice.  In Huntington Beach, I know I’ll have favorable temperatures for running.

Second, it’s a nice change of scenery.  I live 1,000 miles from the nearest ocean, so it’s nice to see beaches and palm trees, especially in the winter, when everything at home is covered with snow.

Finally, I know I’ll see some friends.  Over the years, I’ve met lots of runners from southern California.  I’ve rarely gone to the expo without bumping into someone I know.  I also see friends during the race.  It helps that the course has two long out-and-back sections, giving me the chance to see runners who are going the other way.

Friday, January 30

I’ve sometimes flown into LAX for this race, but it’s a long drive, and picking up a rental car at that airport is a hassle.  I prefer to fly into the Orange County airport in Santa Ana.  There’s just one drawback.  If I flew in on Saturday, I would arrive too late in the day for packet pickup.  On Friday, however, I could get a direct flight with a morning departure.  For that reason, I decided it was worth it to arrive a day earlier.

I arrived at the Orange County airport around noon and drove to my hotel in Huntington Beach.  In the past, I’ve often stayed at a hotel in Santa Ana.  This year, I stayed at the Waterfront Beach Resort, which is right next to the starting line.  You can’t beat the convenience of this location.

After checking in at the resort, I went for an afternoon run alongside the beach.  My running route included part of the marathon route.

After my run, I picked up my race packet.  As usual, packet pickup was under a large tent in the beach parking lot, which was across the street from my hotel.

For dinner, I went to a restaurant that was walking distance from my hotel.

Saturday, January 31

I don’t usually go running the day before a race, but the weather in southern California was much nicer than the weather at home.  I couldn’t resist going for another short run.  This time, instead of running by myself, I joined a shake-out run that was organized by the Huntington Run Club.  The route we ran was roughly the same out-and-back route I ran on Friday.

After having lunch at the resort, I went back to the expo to hang out and look for friends.  Then I spent the rest of the afternoon at the resort.

Although I had a car, I didn’t feel like driving anywhere.  For dinner, I stayed close to the resort again.  Then I did my best to get to bed early.

I slept well for about half the night.  After that, I struggled to get back to sleep.  I had the same experience the previous night.  Shaking off a poor night’s sleep isn’t too hard.  When it’s two in a row, it’s a much bigger deal.  I wondered how much that might affect my race.

Sunday, February 1

Sunday was race day.  I didn’t have to drive and park or take a shuttle.  The start corrals were right next to my hotel.

It was about 50 degrees at the start, but I expected it to warm up to 60 by the time I finished.  My legs were a little cold as I lined up to start, but I knew that wouldn’t last too long.

This race is large enough to have pace groups.  I started the race with the 4:00 pace group, to make sure I wouldn’t go out too fast.  I did a good job of staying with the group through the first mile, but it wasn’t always easy.  The pace leaders sometimes moved into different lanes.  I tried to be careful about crossing lane lines, because there are reflectors between the lanes.  The last time I ran this race, I tripped on one and hard a hard fall.  It also didn’t help that I had to navigate around people who lined up in front, but weren’t starting as fast.

Before that mile was over, I already realized I would need a bathroom stop.  I did my best to empty out before the race, but shortly after I started running, I could already feel pressure building in my intestines.

Our time for the first mile was right on pace for four hours.  In the next mile, I allowed myself to get a little bit in front of the group.  That mile was faster, but only by about 10 seconds.

In the third mile, I eased up a bit.  I continued to run at a faster pace than the 4:00 group, but not by much.

Just before the end of that mile, we made our first turn.  We had been running north on the Pacific Coast Highway, but now we turned inland to run through some neighborhoods and through a large city park.

Right at that turn, I saw a long row of port-o-potties.  I knew I would eventually need a bathroom stop, but I didn’t want to stop this soon.  I was worried that after stopping, I would re-enter the race surrounded by slower runners.  Before I could make a decision, I was already getting past the port-o-potties.  I committed to waiting until my next opportunity.

As we were running away from the coast, another runner saw my Comrades shirt and told me she was going to run Comrades this year.  I talked to her and another runner for the next few minutes.  Then we turned and started up a small hill.  I realized at this point that my pace was starting to feel tiring, so I eased up and let them go ahead.

I was just past the four-mile mark, when I saw a row of four port-o-potties.  By the time I got there, they were all occupied, and another runner was already waiting for one to open up.  I didn’t want to wait, so I pressed on.

In miles two, three, and four, my pace was about 10 seconds faster than a four-hour pace.  Then, in mile five, we ran down a steep hill.  Without trying, I sped up some more.  That mile was 15 seconds faster than the previous mile.

In the next mile, we entered the park.  Here, there were lots of turns, so it would have taken more effort to stay in a consistent rhythm.  I allowed myself to slow down running through the park, and I got back onto the right pace for a four-hour finish.  I was still running well ahead of the 4:00 pace group.

As I continued through the park, I saw a building with bathrooms.  Unfortunately, they were all occupied before I got there.

I knew I would pass a row of port-o-potties before leaving the park.  When I got there, they were all occupied, and there was already a guy waiting.  I was feeling increasingly uncomfortable, and it was making it harder to stay on pace, but I didn’t want to stand around waiting.  I pressed on.

At the eight-mile mark, I was about 30 seconds ahead of schedule.  Now, I was starting up the only significant hill on the course.  It was the same hill we ran down a few miles earlier.  Since I was ahead of schedule, I didn’t worry about losing time on the hill.  I continued up the hill with an effort that wouldn’t wear me out.

At the top of the hill, I reached the same four port-o-potties that I had passed about four miles earlier.  Not only were they all occupied, but there were two runners waiting in line.  I continued around the next corner.  Then I was pleasantly surprised to see a long row of port-o-potties at the end of the next block.  Finally, I had a chance to make a long overdue bathroom stop.

It turns out that the pressure I was experiencing was mostly gas.  Since I had already stopped, I took the time to force out any solids that I could.  That took time, but the most aggravating part was the time it took to get my shirt tucked back into my shorts when I was done.  I was wearing a fanny pack, and I also had a jacket tied around my waist.  They were both getting in the way.  I must have wasted at least a minute, just trying to tuck in my shirt.

When I emerged from the port-o-potty and resumed running, I knew I was now well behind the pace group.  I expected the runners around me to be slower, but it seemed like they were faster.  It took quite a bit of effort to get my pace up to the pace of the runners around me.

What I failed to notice is that we had merged with the half marathon when we turned the previous corner.  The half marathon was much larger than the marathon, so most of the runners around me were doing the half marathon.  I had no idea what pace they were going.

Shortly after turning another corner, I got a split from my watch.  I ran mile nine in 11:54.  That was almost three minutes slower than my previous pace.  I would never be able to make up that much time.

I continued to run at the pace of the people around me, but it was tiring.  On the other side of the streets, I could see a huge crowd of half marathon runners still coming from the PCH, as we were headed back.

The half marathon started later than the marathon, and they ran a shorter route to reach this point.  I didn’t know for sure that they were going faster until I saw a 2:00 pace group on the other side of the street.  They were a significant distance behind the runners on my side of the street, so the runners around me were clearly going faster than a 2:00 half marathon pace, which is the same as a 4:00 marathon pace.

Before long, we turned back onto the PCH.  Then I reached the 10-mile mark.  I ran that mile in 8:32.  That was my fastest mile of the race, and it was clearly much faster than my target pace of 9:09.  After that, I had to ignore all the half marathon runners and settle back into a more reasonable pace.

Over the next few miles, I gradually found the right pace again, but I was tired now.  Stopping for a few minutes and then accelerating to a pace that was too fast took a huge toll on me.  I realized now that the rest of the race would be a struggle.

We continued running north on the PCH for about three miles before reaching the turnaround.  On my way back, I reached the halfway mark.  My time for the first half was about a minute and a half slower than I planned.  I knew I wouldn’t be able to make up for that.  Breaking four hours had been one of my goals, but I knew that wasn’t going to happen.  I was already feeling much more tired than I should be at this point in the race.  At best, I might still run the second half in two hours, but even that seemed optimistic.  A more realistic goal at this point was to break 4:05.  That would still be a Boston-qualifying time.

Over the next few miles, I was able to run at the right pace to run the second half in two hours.  Part of this section was uphill, so I felt good about my pace over this section.

I was just past the 15-mile mark, when I was passed by a pace group.  It was the 1:50 group for the half marathon.  Their pace was the equivalent of a 3:40 marathon.  That’s a good indication of how much faster the runners around me were running.

Shortly after the 16-mile mark, I reached the point where the two races diverged again.  Runners in the half marathon continued along the PCH toward the finish.  Those of us doing the marathon made a U-turn onto the bike bath.  We still needed to do another long out-and-back alongside the beach.

Now, the only runners in front of me were all running the same race.  In theory, I could stay on pace just by following the runners in front of me.  In practice, that wouldn’t be fast enough.  Most runners, at this point, were beginning to slow down.

I challenged myself to keep up with the runners who looked strongest, while passing the runners who weren’t keeping up.  That still wasn’t fast enough.  I found, over the next several miles, that my average pace was a few seconds per mile too slow.  I wasn’t quite keeping up the pace I needed to run the second half in two hours.

As I got closer to the turnaround at the far end of the bike path, I saw a few runners I know.  I heard a familiar voice call my name, and I realized it was Rainer, who is a fellow 50sub4 member.  Later, I saw Eliot, who is also a 50sub4 member.  Finally, I saw the 4:00 pace group.

I knew at this point that I was getting close to the turnaround, but I couldn’t see it yet.  I had to get around one more bend.  Then I could see it.

After making the turn, I had just over five miles to go.  At each mile marker, I figured out what average pace I would need to break 4:05.  It became more and more obvious that I would beat that time easily.  The challenge was trying to stay on pace to run the second half in two hours.  I was close, but I wasn’t quite doing it.  I still tried.

With about two and a half miles to go, I reached the point where I had turned around on my two training runs.  Eventually, I would turn back onto the PCH, but until then, everything looked much more familiar.  That made it just a little easier to push myself.

In mile 25, I ran my fastest mile since the first half of the race.  In the next mile, I encountered a spectator who was encouraging us enthusiastically.  She shouted, “How much do you have left?  Pick it up!  Pick it up!  Empty the tank!”

I responded to that and pushed harder.  In mile 26, I had my third fastest mile of the race, but it was too little, too late.

Although my watch said 26 miles, I really had much more than 0.2 miles to go.  Ever since my bathroom stop, my watch had been off.  I couldn’t even see the 26-mile sign yet.

Now that I was back on the PCH, I was surrounded by half marathon runners again, but these runners were going much slower.  Earlier, I saw the 1:50 pace group.  Now, I saw the 2:50 group.

The street was congested, and there wasn’t a separate lane for the marathon.  I had to weave around slower runners for the last few minutes of the race.  It wasn’t until we could see the finish line that other runners started to speed up.

I finished the race in 4:02:01.  I didn’t break four hours, nor did I run the second half at that pace.  On the plus side, I easily broke 4:05, earning another Boston qualifier.

As usual, the finisher medal included a surfboard.  The design varies from year to year, but I now have 10 surfboard medals.

As I continued through the finish area, I picked up a water bottle, and I ate a banana.  I skipped the beer garden and went straight to the results tent.  In theory, I could have looked up my official result by scanning a QR code, but with 20,000 people in the finish area, it was tough for anyone to get cellular reception.

The volunteer at the results tent also had trouble looking up my result.  When she entered my bib number, it showed my name, but no finish time.  The runner before me had the same problem.  She eventually determined that my times at each mile were in their system, but there was an extra data point that was confusing things.

When I was able to call Deb, she told me that she had been tracking me, but after I reached 23 miles, the tracking showed me back at 16 again.  It’s worth noting that when we finished the out-and-back on the bike bath, we re-entered the road near the 16-mile mark.

Eventually, the timing people were able to resolve the problem.  Later in the day, I could see my result online.

I hurried back to the hotel to take a bath and change into clean clothes.  Then I joined three other 50sub4 members for lunch at a restaurant that was about a mile from my hotel.  Walking to and from the restaurant was slow and uncomfortable, but I think it helped me recover.  Even still, I was pretty tired for the rest of the day.

Race statistics:

Distance:  26.2 miles

Time:  4:02:01

Average Pace:  9:14 per mile

First Half:  2:01:26

Second Half:  2:00:35

Marathons/Ultras in 2026:  4

Lifetime Marathons/Ultras:  576

Lifetime Boston Qualifiers:  189

Race Report: 2026 Daufuskie Island Marathon

Twelve years ago, I completed a long-term goal to qualify for the Boston Marathon in every state.  At the time, I was running qualifying times so consistently that one of my friends started calling me “Mr. BQ.”

Since then, I’ve hit a few bumps in the road.  I had groin injuries, tendinopathy, pulled hamstrings, a broken rib, a back surgery, a knee injury, and a few bouts of sciatica.  It’s hard to stay in shape when you can’t train consistently.  I managed to qualify at least once a year, but there were some years when I only qualified once.

I’ve stayed healthy enough for the past three years to keep up a good training base.  For the last a year and a half, I’ve been qualifying for Boston consistently again.

A few months ago, I started to wonder how close I was to completing a second circuit of BQs in every state.  I knew I had at least 40 states.  My best guess was that there were only eight or nine states where I had not yet qualified for a second time.

When I checked my records, I found out that I was closer than I thought.  I just needed six states to complete a second circuit of BQs.  One of those states was South Carolina.

As I started planning my race schedule for 2026, one of the races I considered was the Myrtle Beach Marathon, which has a nice flat course.  Unfortunately, the airfare was outrageously expensive.  Then I looked at the Daufuskie Island Marathon.

I’ve run this race before, so I was familiar with the course and the logistics.  The first time I ran it, I wasn’t in shape, but my recollection was that the course was fairly flat.  It seemed like a race where I could BQ with a good effort.

There aren’t any roads onto the island.  To get there, you need to take a ferry from Hilton Head Island.  Last time, I stayed in a hotel on Hilton Head Island, and I took the ferry on the morning of the race.

When I priced flights, I saw that I could get a direct flight to Savannah for a reasonable airfare.  From the Savannah airport, it takes about an hour to drive to Hilton Head Island.  If all went well, I could get there in the late afternoon.

When I’m traveling by myself to a race in the U.S., I typically arrive the day before the race.  For this race, I made an exception.  You never know when a winter storm will hit, and I didn’t want to risk a significant flight delay.

Thursday, January 15

The race was on Saturday, so I flew to Savannah on Thursday.  I’ve been to Hilton Head Island twice before, so instead of spending three nights there, decided to spend the first night in Savannah.

I found a hotel near the downtown area that was surprisingly affordable.  I could walk to any of the downtown restaurants, but my room rate was only $97.  The only catch was that I had to pay for parking.

After checking in at my hotel, I spent the rest of the afternoon walking around the waterfront.  I was surprised how cold it was.  It couldn’t have been any warmer than 40 degrees, and the wind made it feel much colder.  I found myself ducking into shops just to get out of the wind.

When I got tired of being out in the cold wind, I had an early dinner at a seafood restaurant on the waterfront.

Friday, January 16

When I got up, I checked my weather app.  I was shocked to see that it was only 25 degrees.  It was colder in Savannah than it was in Minneapolis.

After breakfast, I did a weight training workout.  While doing a set of push-ups, I felt like I tweaked something in my upper back.  It wasn’t a big deal at the time, but it would bother me later.

I didn’t need to be in any rush to get to Hilton Head Island, so I had a relaxing morning at my hotel in Savannah, and I didn’t head to Hilton Head Island until after lunch.

After stopping to check in at my hotel on Hilton Head Island, I continued to Palmetto Running Company to pick up my race packet.  The race shirt was a long sleeve, half zip turtleneck.  This is a cupless race, so my race packet also included a reusable cup to take with me during the race.  It was a different style than the cup they gave me last time.  This one was lighter and easier to carry.

I had an early dinner and went to bed early, in anticipation of an early morning on race day.

I slept well for a few hours.  Then I got up to go to the bathroom.  When I went back to bed, I couldn’t get comfortable.  I felt that muscle in my upper back.  After that, I was awake for most of the night.

Saturday, January 17

Saturday was race day.  I was up earlier than I planned, which gave me time for a long shower.  The warm water helped soothe my upper back and neck.

It was 36 degrees on Hilton Head Island, and I assumed the temperature was similar on Daufuskie Island.  I expected it to warm into the upper 40s by the time the race started, but I still opted to wear tights.

I had to leave early to take a ferry to Daufuskie Island.  I knew from past experience that the parking lots near the ferry terminal fill up fast.  If I didn’t want to park a mile away, I needed to get there by 5:30 AM.

I got a grab-and-go breakfast from my hotel.  I parked as close as I could to the ferry terminal.  I ate my breakfast while I was waiting for the ferry to load.  The first ferry of the day left at 6:00, but that was reserved for race volunteers.  I was on the next ferry, which started loading as soon as the first one left.

It was chilly in the morning, so I wore extra layers.  I needed them when I got to Daufuskie Island.  The marathon didn’t start until 8:30, so I was waiting for the better part of two hours.

They had tables and chairs set up under a huge canopy.  I was expecting it to be heated, but they had a problem with their electrical system, so there was no heat.  It also took a while before they had hot water.

After a while, they started some small bonfires, so we could gather around them to get warm.  They also told us we could go inside the mansion.  About an hour before the race, I moved indoors.  I stayed there until it was time to check my gear bag and make my final bathroom stop.

The course was a 13.1-mile loop that we ran twice.  There were sections of paved road, sections of dirt road, and sections of paved paths that were mostly used for golf carts.  I was racing for time, so I didn’t take any pictures during the race.  If you want to see what the course looks like, my race report from 2022 has pictures:  2022 Daufuskie Island Marathon

To qualify for Boston, I needed to finish in 4:05.  Ideally, I wanted to break four hours, but the important thing was to get the BQ.  That’s what I came here for.

The first challenge was establishing a fast enough pace in the first mile.  They didn’t have pace groups, so I was on my own to find the right pace.

We started out on a brick surface, so I had to watch my footing.  It was also congested for the first minute or so, which made it harder to start at a fast pace.

We quickly got onto smooth pavement.  I had more room to run now, so I accelerated until the pace had me breathing somewhat hard.  Then I maintained the same effort until I got my first split.

To break four hours, I needed an average pace of 9:09 per mile.  I ran the first mile in 8:20, which is way too fast.

In the next mile, I eased up a little, but not enough.  I was no longer keeping up with the runners around me, but nobody else seemed to be passing me.  That mile was a little slower, but still too fast.

Halfway through the third mile, we came to a junction where an aid station was set up.  We would pass through this same junction three times on each lap.  There were volunteers holding pitchers of water and an electrolyte drink.  I stopped long enough for a volunteer to fill my reusable cup.  I walked while I drank, and then worked to get back up to speed.

This was the drill at every aid station.  Because I had to stop briefly to have my cup filled, I always lost a little time at the aid stations.

After turning right at this junction, I started a loop that would eventually lead me back to the same aid station.  I was almost to the end of the third mile, when I reached the first section of dirt road.

As soon as I got there, I could see the footprints of the runners who got there ahead of me.  This section of road was mostly sand, and the top half inch or so was soft.  I didn’t remember this road being this soft when I ran this race before.  Maybe they had some recent rain, and the road was firmer.  This year, it was dry sand.

Running on this surface was tiring.  I worked harder in an attempt to keep from slowing down too much.

My time for mile three was 8:48, which was still faster than my target pace.  Most of that mile was paved.  The next mile would be all on the sandy road, so I knew it would be slower.

The next mile took me 9:11.  That wasn’t bad.  It was only a couple of seconds slower than my target pace.  Unfortunately, running at that pace through the sand was tiring me out.

The next mile started out on sand, but before the end of that mile, I got back onto pavement.  That immediately felt easier.  I worked hard to re-establish my previous pace.  I was able to bring my pace back under nine minutes per mile, but I was working way too hard.  I felt much more tired than I should after only five miles.

Since the first mile, I had been slowly falling behind the runners around me.  Each mile, a few more passed me.  In mile six, I finally started to keep pace with the runners ahead of me.

By now, I had gone through the aid station again, and I was beginning another loop that would eventually bring me back again.  After about two miles on pavement, I reached another section of dirt road.

This section wasn’t sandy.  It was gravel.  It was a much firmer surface, but it was peppered with small rocks, making it somewhat uncomfortable.  At one point, I tripped on a rock, and I was momentarily thrown off balance.  I didn’t fall, but it disrupted my momentum.  It also scared me a little.

I saw a canopy and a table with cups of water.  I dumped water from one of the cups into my own cup, so I wouldn’t waste a cup.  I’m pretty sure this was an unofficial aid station set up by some local residents.  They also had pickle juice.

In my first full mile on the gravel road, I slowed to 9:10.  That was similar to my pace on the sandy road, but it didn’t tire me out the same way.

By the nine-mile mark, I was back on pavement.  I was able to bring my pace down close to nine minutes, but no faster.  From here on out, the pace took more effort.

After going through the main aid station for the third time, I turned to head back toward the north end of the island.  Coming back, we took a much longer route.

In mile 11, we ran through a neighborhood with houses that were probably built in the 1800s.  Then we crossed two small bridges over streams.  As I finished crossing the first bridge, I caught one of my feet on some type of seam.  I kept my balance, but it scared me again.

On the second bridge, I was more mindful of the seams.  What I wasn’t watching for were the screws that held the boards in place.  Most of them weren’t flush with the wood.  The screw heads stuck out just enough that you could catch a shoe on them.  Once again, I stumbled, but didn’t fall.

I had been wearing gloves since the start of the race.  I didn’t feel like I needed them anymore, so I took them off and stuffed them into my fanny pack.

With about two miles left in the first lap, I crossed a longer bridge over a marshy area.  This bridge took us to a paved path that followed the shoreline.  On this bridge, I was so cautious that I couldn’t help but slow down.  When I got back on pavement, I worked hard to pick up my pace again.

The pavement was soon replaced by a gravel path.  This was a much nicer surface.  It was probably crushed limestone.  I didn’t have any trouble with this section.

There was one other aid station on the course.  When I got there, one of the volunteers recognized me.  We met on the ferry.  She recognized my jacket, even though it was tied around my waist.

For the rest of that lap, I kept up a pace that was slightly faster than the pace I needed.  It took much more effort now.  I didn’t know how I would hold up in the second lap.  I was already much too tired.

Ideally, I should have run the first lap in two hours.  I was a little faster than 1:57.  I was more than three minutes ahead of schedule.  I knew I would regret that in the second half. My average pace so far was about 15 seconds per mile too fast.

The good news is that I could now afford to run 15 seconds slower than my target pace in the second half.  The bad news is that I probably would, just because I was already tired.

As I started my second lap, I worked hard to keep from giving back time before I reached the sandy section.  In miles 14-16, I stayed pretty close to my target pace.  I wasn’t giving back any time … yet.

There was a half marathon that started an hour after the marathon.  By the time I reached the sandy section for the second time, all the half marathon runners had already been though there.  The faster marathon runners had been through here twice already.  That just made the road even softer.  In addition to being soft, it was now an uneven surface.

At first, I picked up my effort to keep from slowing down too much.  That quickly proved to be too tiring.  I had to accept that this mile would be slow.  I eased back to an effort that wouldn’t break me.

In mile 17, I was 30 seconds slower than my target pace.  Mile 18 was also about 30 seconds slower, even though that mile finished on pavement.  The good news is that I was done with the most tiring section, and I was still two minutes ahead of schedule.

I caught up to two runners who had been a short distance ahead of me through the sandy section.  They were alternating running with short walking breaks.  I asked them if they had a time they were targeting.  They said they wanted to break four hours.  I said, “Me too.”  Then I added that we were two minutes ahead of schedule.  With eight miles to go, we could now afford to be 15 seconds slower per mile the rest of the way.  They took another walking break, and I ran ahead of them.  I never saw them again.

By now I had started passing people at the back of the half marathon who were walking.  That made it harder to see the next runner ahead of me.  I eventually spotted a runner who I could follow, but they were at least a quarter mile ahead.  It was hard to gauge if I was going at the same pace.

I was expecting to get hot in the second lap.  According to the hourly forecast, the temperature was going to climb into the upper 50s.  I expected to get hot wearing tights, but I didn’t.  It was cloudy, and we had a light breeze.  At times, my hands got cold.

In mile 19, I was about 15 minutes slower than my target pace.  I could afford that, but it was scary.  At this pace, I would be cutting it close.  Also, I doubted that I could sustain this effort all the way to the finish.

When you’re running near your limit, there comes a time when you have to ask yourself how badly you want it.  My primary goal was to get a Boston qualifier.  For that, I just needed to break 4:05.  At this point, I could do that just by averaging 10 minutes per mile the rest of the way.  I felt like that was in the bag,

The question was how deep I was willing to dig to stay on pace to break four hours.  I expected it to be a fight all the way to the finish, and I wasn’t confident I could do it.  I continued to fight for it.

In mile 20, I didn’t give back any time.  With 6.2 miles to go, I still had a cushion of roughly 1:45.  Then I reached the gravel road for the second time.

This time, I didn’t take the time to stop at the unofficial aid station.  I couldn’t afford it, and I was pretty sure I was getting enough to drink.  I wasn’t as hot as I thought I would be.

This section had much better traction than the sand, but it still wasn’t as efficient as running on pavement.  I fought hard to maintain my pace, but I gave back 20 seconds in mile 21.  I also gave back about 20 seconds in mile 22, even though part of that was back on pavement.

I was now through the toughest parts of the course.  The only sections likely to slow me down were the bridges.  I had just over four miles to go, and I had a cushion of one minute.

After stopping at the aid station again, I fought hard to get back on pace.  I knew I couldn’t make up the lost time.  I didn’t know if I could speed up, but I was disappointed to see that I slowed down, even though that mile was all on pavement.  In one mile, I lost 30 seconds.  With more than three miles to go, my cushion was only about 30 seconds.

I could see the handwriting on the wall, but I didn’t give up.  I kept trying to pick up the pace, but then I would feel myself slowing down again.  The last straw was when I reached the two short bridges over the streams.  I didn’t trip on either bridge, but they slowed me down.  I couldn’t keep up the same pace while trying to be cautious.

In mile 24, I gave back another 30 seconds.  Now, I essentially had no cushion.  I didn’t know how much I could trust my watch to give me an accurate distance, so I double-checked when I saw the 11-mile sign from the first lap.  From there, I knew it was 2.1 miles to go.

My time with 2.1 miles to go confirmed that I was right on pace, but with no cushion.  All of my recent miles, however, were too slow, and I had no expectation that I would be able to speed up again.  I still tried.  I wasn’t ready to give up yet.

On the long bridge leading out to the shoreline, I had the same experience that I had on the other bridges.  I got across safely, but my caution was costing me time.

When I reached the last aid station, I didn’t stop.  I couldn’t afford the time, and I was confident I was drinking enough.  I didn’t have far to go.

I reached 25 before I knew it, but it was bad news.  I gave back another 30 seconds.  With 1.2 miles to go, I was now almost 30 seconds behind schedule.

That took the wind out of my sails.  I knew a four-hour finish was no longer possible.  I didn’t deliberately slow down, but I was no longer fighting as hard.  Now, I just wanted to finish.

Mile 26 was my slowest of the race.  I was getting close to the finish, but I still couldn’t see it.  There were still three more turns.  I ran harder from there, but it was too little, too late.

I finished the race in 4:01:10.  I didn’t break four hours, but I did get my second BQ for South Carolina.  I’m now just five states away from completing two BQs in every state.

The finisher medal was a sea turtle.  There was also a sea turtle on the race shirt.  It’s pretty much the logo for this race.

It was 12:31 PM.  The next ferry was scheduled to depart at 12:40.  I decided to skip the post-race food and beer and try to catch the next ferry.

I had to retrieve my gear bag.  Not knowing when I would get another chance to go to the bathroom, I also made a quick stop at a port-o-potty.  Then I ran, as best I could, to catch the ferry.

I got there before 12:40, and I got in line to board.  There was already a long line.  The ferry can only hold 100 passengers, and I wasn’t sure if there were already 100 people in line in front of me.

Fifteen minutes later, we were still waiting.  Then I learned from the person in front of me that the 12:40 ferry filled so quickly that it left 10 minutes early.  We were now waiting for the next ferry.

The next scheduled ferry was at 1:40, but we could see another ferry already coming.  The people who run the ferries apparently realized that there were too many people already waiting.  After a wait of about 30 minutes, we started boarding the next ferry.

While I was waiting, I put on all my warm-up clothes.  That kept me warm enough, but I got stiff after standing for so long.  When the line started moving, walking was painful.

I got on the next ferry, but all the indoor seating was taken.  I had to go upstairs and sit outside.  It’s much colder on the water than it is on land.  It took about 40 minutes to get back to Hilton Head Island.  By the time we got there, my hands were numb, even though I was wearing gloves.

I had a long walk back to my car, followed by a 15-minute drive back to my hotel.  I had the heat vents aimed at my hands, but they still felt tingly when I got back to the hotel.  It took a long hot shower to warm me up again.

Because I skipped the post-race food, I was starving.  There was a post-race party at 5:00, but I couldn’t wait that long.  I went to dinner at 3:30.  Then I went to the party from there.

I don’t have any regrets about rushing to catch the next ferry after the race.  At the party, I talked to runners who waited in line for two hours.  Getting in line when I did may have been my best decision of the day.

Sunday, January 18

I got a good night’s sleep, but I still felt like a train wreck the next morning.  When I went down to breakfast another runner said, “Aren’t you glad we didn’t have today’s weather for the race?”  On Sunday, it rained all morning.  Standing outside in a cold rain to wait for the ferry would have been miserable.

It was still raining when I drove back to Savannah to fly home.  The most direct route goes through low-lying areas that can flood.  I took a longer route, to be on the safe side.

Race statistics:

Distance:  26.2 miles

Time:  4:01:10

Average Pace:  9:12 per mile

First Half:  1:56:47

Second Half:  2:04:23

Marathons/Ultras in 2026:  3

Lifetime Marathons/Ultras:  575

Lifetime Boston Qualifiers:  188