1 mile skied, 1250 meters swam, 48 miles biked and 218.3 miles run in 2013 races
Race: Foot Traffic Flat Marathon
Place: Portland, OR
Miles from home: 17 miles
Weather: 60-70s; mostly sunny
I always have reservations about races that have a shuttle to their start. It is not that I don't trust people (OK, I don't trust people) it is that I trust myself a little bit more (OK, an infinite amount more.)
So, even though I had paid the ticket to ride the shuttle to the start of the Foot Traffic Flat Marathon, the night prior to the race I made the executive decision to drive to the start. Bestie Shannon was also doing the marathon (marking the 2nd marathon in 5 days with another 24 hours later - ridiculous) and she trusted me to get us both there on time. Well, let’s say I cut it close. Let’s also say that I made the right decision with regard to the shuttle, too.
As we parked our car and raced across a field to the start, we had about 90 seconds before the race began. As we streamed down the road, a hundred or so cars and three shuttles, inched along in the opposite direction.Undoubtedly, we would have been on one of those shuttles. And we would have been pissed. But we listened to the nagging feeling in our guts and instead were beyond relived to not be like the fuming line of runners wishing they were not still stuck in traffic.
First 6 miles: 7:06, 6:37, 7:15, 7:34, 7:05, 7:17
This race has gotten immensely popular in Portland the last few years for a variety of reasons. It bills itself as “flat” (it is in the name) but I guess that is all relative. Other than the rolling hills in the course here and there what most concerned me were the aid stations – or lack thereof. While the 90-degree plus temperatures of a few days prior had abated, there was still a call for some warm temperatures for the day. Given the nature of the course, with little shade and open spaces, this could be quite a problem. I thought perhaps the race might add an aid station or two, or even move them to locations which mesh better (having one aid station from mile 21.9 to 25.5 doesn’t seem to make much sense even on a cool day) but alas nothing was changed. As such, my pre-race plan of a mid-range 3:05 was scraped and I decided to see if I could squirm in under 3:10.
For the first three miles or so I was on pace. I heard the mile markers were guidelines only and decided to go by my gut. (Mile markers, I have always said, do not have to be certified and are there only as a bonus.) I trust it more than I do mile markers anyway. So do others evidently as a chap I began running with, Michael-John, repeatedly asked me for splits. I told him that Timex was having an awesome sale on their Run Trainer 2.0 and perhaps he might want to invest in one.(Seriously, this watch is awesome.) Instead, we were in lockstep and cruised out along the one road on the western shore of Sauvie Island where this race took place. Over the small inlet of water and onto the mainland to our left, boathouses and condos were crammed together on top of each other taking advantage of what I can only guess is valuable real estate. I always have wondered if a race passed in front of my home if I would go out and cheer those running. In the few cases where anything like that has happened, I have done so. But not a peep from anyone as the only sound we heard was our feet and the hysterically comical bleating of a large herd of sheep.
A small respite from the already high in the sky sun came surprisingly from a half-mile stretch of trees that I was very happy we would be returning to in a few miles. Right on pace and maybe even a smidgen under at the 10k mark, we soldiered on. I was drenched in sweat and my running partner had one bead on his back. I know it is healthy to sweat and efficient but it never feels good on the chafing. I can only thank Body Glide for being my savior on these ultra-sweaty days.
