St. George Race Report!

Those of you who have read my race reports before know that I have a hard time being succinct. This report is no different. Be warned!

Ever since my San Diego marathon experience went awry I've been really itching to simply lay it all out on the course, and see if I really have what it takes to run a sub 4-hour marathon, and eventually qualify for Boston.

I never thought I'd get into the St. George marathon on my first try. I entered the race through the lottery system, and was chosen the first year, not the second or third as I expected with a few thousand people vying to get in. Getting chosen for this race changed my fall running plans completely, and left me wondering how a person runs two marathons close together. Should I go all out for St. George or for Fresno?

The St. George marathon takes place five weeks before the EYE-Q Two Cities Marathon in Fresno. I've always considered Fresno to be my peak race for the year since it is a local race, and I like comparing my times from year-to-year. Since I have never ran marathons this close together before. I decided several months ago to play it safe and use St. George as a training run in preparation for Fresno. My only goal for St. George, having learned from the San Diego experience, was to have fun every step of the way which included the 9-hour car ride, the expo, the 3:00 a.m. wake-up call, everything. I was there to have fun--no exceptions.

The car ride went really well. The kids were great, and we passed the time mostly by listening to books on CD. After we arrived in St. George on Thursday, I went for a short run to stretch out my legs and see how I felt running at a higher elevation. I had no ill-effects. On Friday, I went to the expo by myself. The kids and Andy stayed back at the hotel. The expo was wonderful. I met so many nice volunteers. I chatted with other runners, and got some helpful first-timers advice from a man at a booth who had ran the course five times. His advice was to go easy the first half because of significant uphill portions. He advised me to turn on the speed the second half. I was also warned about the heat. It was unseasonably warm, and it was expected to be up to 80 degrees at the finish of the race.

On race day, I got up at 3:00 a.m. Andy, the wonderful husband that he is, drove me to the shuttle bus at 3:30. By 4:00 a.m. I was sitting on a bus, in the dark, headed to the starting line. The starting line was great. Because we were there so early, the organizers had bonfires blazing, emergency blankets for us, and an endless supply of porta-potties. I chatted with a wonderful group of people around the bonfire. Some were first-timers, and others had done many marathons over the years. I was struck by how much I enjoy the people who run marathons. They train through so many of life's variables, and they are generally such positive and fun-loving people. I ate a bagel and two bananas. I even took a 30-minute nap.

The race got started promptly at 6:45 a.m. and I crossed the starting mat 6 minutes later. It was still almost completely dark. The first mile was a slight downhill. I was determined to warm-up properly and stay at about a 9:20/mile pace. Mile 2 brought daylight and more downhill. I sped up to my marathon pace, and decided to hold it for awhile. I felt like a million bucks. Each mile seemed to get easier, and I sped up again. My head kept saying, "slow down or you'll blow up later!" However, there was another voice that said, "Why in the world did you come here? Go for it! This might be your race." That one spoke louder. I decided that even if I did blow up later, I was there for some fun, and running hills was exactly what I liked to do.

I was warned that the uphills would start at mile 8. I held back a little, and before I knew it, I was on top of the first significant hill. There were more uphills until around mile 12. I still felt great. I was getting a little tired, but I was looking ahead to the downhill that I knew was coming.

I crossed the half-marathon mark around 1:59 (making it my first sub-2 hour half!). At about 15 miles, I was getting a bit tired. Overall, I felt good. I just felt my legs getting tired, and the weather was really heating up. I began taking Gatorade at each aid station instead of water. At mile 16, the 4 hour pace group passed me, and I got a little confused about my time. My garmin showed I was making great time, but getting passed by that group didn't make sense to me. I decided to run with them for a little bit while I tried to figure it all out. At mile 17, they got a bit ahead of me, and I momentarily lost my momentum. I thought that maybe I should turn it into a training run, and I slowed down a little. Then, I realized that I still had a chance to do this. I decided that if I hit mile 20 at the 3 hour mark, I would go for it. I knew I could do 6.2 miles in one hour.

At mile 20, I looked at my Garmin, and it read 3:01:12. That was all I needed. I dug deep, and ran like heck. Part of the time, I felt like I was propelling myself forward, and my legs were simply there to keep me from tipping over. Although they were tired, it was as if my legs were being moved by an alternate power source. I have never had that happen before. I began to drink two cups of gatorade at each aid station. I paid close attention to how I felt in order to make sure I was taking in a proper amount of liquid for the heat level.

There was all sorts of heat-related carnage from mile 21-24. The ambulance went by a couple of times, and many people were stopped beside the road stretching out after extended periods of intense downhill running. There were lots of blown quads, hamstrings, and calves.

At mile 24, the crowds along the route really picked up. There was lots of cheering and excitement. I was still holding a great pace, and I knew I could do it. At mile 25, someone was handing out cold wet towels. I wrapped one around my neck, and it felt like heaven. At mile 26, I could see the finish line in the distance. I looked down at my Garmin, and saw it read about 3:56. I saw Andy and the kids shortly after. I was thrilled to see them there cheering me on. It felt fantastic, and gave me the last kick I needed. On semi-wooden legs, I crossed the finish in 3:58:56. A sub 4-hour marathon finish!

I walked through a wonderful cold shower mist, and a volunteer placed a finisher's medal around my neck. I found out later it was about 85 degrees at the finish. I ate an ice cream and drank about 7 cups of various liquids (Yes, really!). I opted to take a salt tablet at that time due to my huge liquid consumption. Then I exited the area to rejoin my family. I was so excited to show Andy my time. He and the kids were very excited for me.

From start to finish, I accomplished my goal of having fun. I enjoyed every minute of this race, and I got an exciting personal record in the process.

Chip Time 3:58:56
Overall Place 2082 / 5697
Gender Place 626 / 2457
Division Place 155 / 464