Carlsbad Marathon

the running gang post Carlsbad Marathon & Half Marathon races

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I ran the Carlsbad Marathon this morning and finished in 4:05. It was my fourth marathon over the course of 9 years (!!) and today's time was 22 minutes faster than my previous best which I got in St. George just three months ago.

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I was really nervous going into this race, probably more so than any race I've ever done. STG was a disaster. I had trained really well for months, but that day none of it mattered. It was certainly not what I was expecting and incredibly disappointing. I knew I had to redeem myself soon and quietly almost all of us exchanged our Carlsbad Half Marathon bibs for the (full) Marathon.

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The training started out great because we had already been in training. The weekend after STG I ran 10 miles and that kicked off the new training session for Carlsbad. But winter marathons are tough, esp. when they are right after the holidays. I was sick for several weeks and had a cough that took 5 or 6 weeks to shake. There was also a week of travel in November and frigid conditions in Portland. My training got off track and I was very concerned. I started really wishing I hadn't exchanged my bib because I was not feeling ready at all.

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Tapering was a nightmare. I began to have difficulty sleeping, I couldn't think of anything else but the marathon, I lacked patience... all the typical behavior but it hit me harder this time than in previous races. But suddenly just 4 days before the marathon I felt a sense of calm. All the self-doubt went away. Despite some spotty training, I began to think that maybe I could finish this one okay.

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Running the hometown marathon is a much different experience. I had been waking at 4:50am to run with the group for 7 months. I knew what to eat, when to wake, what things I needed to lay out ahead of time. I also knew the course like I know the back of my hand. I know when to ease up, when to give a little more, which hills I needed to mentally prepare for, etc. I carbo-loaded with friends the evening before and woke marathon morning feel fresh and ready.

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The 6am start meant the first hour of the marathon was dark. It also meant the miles flew past. I was totally suprised every time I approached a mile marker. I couldn't believe how fast the first 11 miles went by! Miles 14 to 16 are run with the half marathon racers. They were all fresh since it was miles 5-7 for them while some of us were beginning to look a bit more ragged. The hill at 15 is along the coast and I knew it would be a tough one. It's really not a tough one, but 15 miles into the race it feels really big. I shuffled up that one and was so happy once I got to the top.

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I had run races with my husband and friends before and during those shorter events we had even run together. But for the marathon, it's always been just me by myself. At Chicago, Mike and I split up pretty early on. And at STG, my friends trudged up the killer hill at mile 7 while I had to slow to a walk due to breathing difficulty. I was very relieved and happy to see my husband waiting for me at mile 16.5, ready to run the last 10 miles with me.

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Miles 18-21 were the toughest. All along I had kept an incredibly steady 9:00 pace. I wanted to maintain this pace the entire race to finish in just under 4 hours. However, just before the turn around at mile 18 I started feeling sick. Like really, really sick. I thought I might vomit. My stomach was in knots. I had to take my first walk break for a minute to calm my stomach. It didn't help so I shuffled along until it eventually passed -- three miles later! That was a little disappointing but I'm so thankful it passed.

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From that point on, the last 5 miles were really slow. They were steady and strong, but very slow. I couldn't get myself to move faster than a 9:45 pace. At this point we were once again running alongside the half marathoners all the way to the finish and this helped tremendously. For them, they were looking at a 2.5 hour+ finish so their pace was like 11 or 12 minute miles. Many of them were walking and stopping to stretch. Despite my slow pace, I was passing people and that felt incredible! It was a huge motivator and kept me moving because nothing is better than picking out a person, passing them, and then picking the next person to pass.

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I gave it my all in the end. I had hoped a strong, steady pace would bring me home in under 4 hours but today that strong, steady pace in the final miles were just way too slow. Regardless, I'm absolutely thrilled with my 4:05 finish. I finally have a finish time that reflects my running ability (or non-ability, depending on who you are!). I couldn't be happier with the finish time or the fact that I felt great after the race. No injuries. No lost toenails. No blisters or chafing. And really, can you ask for much more than that?