On July 4, I ran the Flat Marathon in Portland, OR. “The Flat” is a nickname for Sauvie Island, which is a large, relatively flat island in the Columbia River Valley. This race was the third and final race of the Firecracker Triple.
The first two races of
the Firecracker Triple were relatively small races organized by Steve
Walters. This race is a larger race
sponsored by Foot Traffic, which is a chain of running stores in the greater Portland
area.
Sauvie Island is mostly farmland,
and several of the farms have fields of berries. The race starts and finishes at a country
market called The Pumpkin Patch. The
island has a distinctly rural feel, yet most of the island is within the city
limits of Portland. The bridge to the
island is only 20 minutes away from downtown Portland, yet you feel like you’re
way out in the country.
There’s only one bridge
onto the island, so you need to arrive early to avoid getting stuck in a
traffic jam. The regular start for the
marathon was 6:10 AM, but there was also an early start at 5:30, for people
needing extra time. The half marathon started
later.
The road we started on is
the same road you need to drive to get to The Pumpkin Patch. For that reason, you want to get there well
before the earliest wave of runners. Deb
and I got up early, so we could get to The Pumpkin Patch by 5:00.
When we arrived, we were
directing to park in a field across the road from the Pumpkin Patch. Runners are encouraged to carpool or take a
shuttle from downtown, but there are still more cars than they could accommodate
in the paved parking area. Deb and I got
there early enough to get a parking spot right next to the road.
My expectations for this
race were framed by my miserable experience at yesterday’s race. I knew I’d be slow. I knew I’d be sore. I just wanted to finish. I was hoping it wouldn’t be a suffer fest like
yesterday.
As I was talking to other
runners, I was reminded that the marathon has a time limit of 5:30. When I signed up, I thought that would be
plenty of time. After taking 5:16 to
finish yesterday, I was no longer confident that I could finish within the time
limit. I asked the people from the
timing company if I could switch to the early start. They said I didn’t need to let anyone
know. I just needed to line up and start
at 5:30 with the other early starters. I
gave Deb my warm-up clothes, made a bathroom stop, and got back just in time
for pre-race instructions. Because I
started early, I wasn’t there for the pre-race group photo of everyone doing
the triple.
Dan Chapman, who ran the
seven-hour races on Saturday and Sunday, was also doing the early start. I lined up next to Dan and we started running
together. We started at a nice easy
pace. Yesterday, I tried to force myself
into a faster pace. Today, I just wanted
to finish, so I ran at the pace that felt most comfortable.
Dan and I were both starting
at the same pace, so we started talking, and ended up running the whole race
together. Our conversation made the
miles go by easier and helped keep me going.
The course is a single
loop with two out-and-back segments. The
only time we had to run a section of road we had seen before was on the
out-and-back sections. That was easier
psychologically than doing multiple loops.
I don’t mind a multiple loop course when I’m feeling good, but it can
make everything feel worse if you’re struggling.
About two miles into the
race, we ran by the Sauvie Island Bridge.
I stopped to take a picture and told Dan I would catch up to him. I saw a line of cars stopped on the bridge.
Catching up to Dan took
some effort, but as soon as I caught up, I was able to ease back into a more
sustainable pace.
After running under the
bridge, we reached a junction where all the cars coming from the bridge had to
stop and wait for the runners before they could turn onto the same road. This is why you need to get to the Pumpkin
Patch before 5:30. Anyone still on that
bridge was in danger of not getting to the start on time.
About five miles into the
race, we left the loop to begin the first out-and-back section. This section is about six miles each
way. On our left, we had views of the
channel. On our right, we had views of
farms, including this one that was growing
flowers.
The aid stations had
water, Nuun electrolyte drink, and gels.
At first, I was drinking water or Nuun.
Then I remembered that Nuun doesn’t have any calories, so I needed to start
eating gels. At one of the aid stations,
Dan made a bathroom stop. That gave me
extra time to eat a gel.
Eventually, the fastest
runners from the regular start caught up to us.
I didn’t know any of the fastest men.
Just before the turnaround, we were passed by Sadie Smith, who was
leading all the women.
The water and Nuun were
in small cups. To make sure I was drinking
enough, I started drinking one of each.
I usually also had a gel.
About halfway through the
race, Dan stopped at an aid station to refill his hydration system. That gave me time to make a bathroom stop
without falling behind.
Before this series, I was
concerned about a sore spot near my left hip, where my hamstring connects. Yesterday, I barely noticed it. Instead, I noticed soreness in just about
every muscle in my legs. Today, I noticed
it whenever I picked up the pace to catch up to Dan after stopping to take a
picture. On the bright side, I wasn’t
noticing much soreness anywhere else.
Starting at an easier pace seemed to make a pic difference.
On the way back, we got
to see the channel from the opposite direction.
I stopped a couple times to take pictures, but it was getting harder to
catch up to Dan after stopping. Eventually,
I had to just run.
Early in the race, I
could hear my watch recording splits, but I didn’t look at my watch. By the halfway mark, it seemed obvious to me
that I was running faster than yesterday.
We reached the halfway mark in 2:22.
That was already eight or nine minutes faster than yesterday, and I felt
better.
After about 16 miles, we
finished the long out-and-back section and returned to the loop. Just a few minutes later, we began the
shorter out-and-back. This section is
only about half a mile each way, but it has the most noticeable hill on the
course. I was glad to be done with that section.
Next, we turned back onto
the loop, which would eventually take us back to the Pumpkin Patch. The rest of the loop was more exposed to the
sun, but it wasn’t an unusually lot day.
The next few miles felt manageable.
At about 21 miles, it started to get more difficult.
I wasn’t sure if I was
getting tired or if Dan was speeding up.
I eventually realized we were speeding up. For most of the race, we were going slower
than 11 minutes per mile. By the time we
reached the last three miles, we had sped up to about 10:30 per mile.
As we passed runners who
had started walking, Dan would encourage them to join us for the last few
miles. I would remind them that there
would be ice cream at the finish.
Several runners joined us for at least a mile. We usually had at least four other runners
with us.
In those last few miles,
I once again felt that sore spot near my left hip. I stayed with Dan as long as I could, but he
was still accelerating. We were almost
to the 26 mile sign when I had to let him go.
Dan finished, and I came
in shortly behind him in 4:48:46. That
was 28 minutes faster than yesterday. I
also felt more comfortable.
After I got my medal for
today’s race, I walked over to the Steve’s tent to get my medal for finishing
the triple. Steve also gave each of us a
plaque and drinking cup.
I wasn’t kidding about
the ice cream at the finish. On our race
bibs, we each had a tear-off tag that we could redeem for an ice cream sandwich.
While I was running, Deb
had a change to explore the market and the animal barn. She didn’t have any breakfast before we left,
but she was able to get a grilled cheese sandwich and strawberry shortcake at
the café.
I was pretty disappointed
with yesterday’s race, but I felt much better about today. Now I need to recover.
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