Race Recap: Richmond Marathon

When I registered for the 2014 Richmond Marathon in mid-April, I really had no idea of what to expect. I knew the training would be long, as well as the race itself, but I was willing to put in the time & effort, in order to achieve great results. My incredible husband supported me endlessly, which played a huge part in even getting to the starting line! I had yet to endure the 26.2 miles & provide the marathon distance the respect it truly deserves. You can read my initial blog post about deciding on a marathon, here!

In case you don’t know, statistics have shown that only 1-2% of the U.S. population has completed a marathon. According to RunningUSA.org, there were more than 500,000 U.S. marathon finishers in 2013. If all of those people could run one, I could too…. right?! While searching the Internet one evening, I learned that the median time for female U.S. marathon finishers was just over 4 hours + 41 minutes. I could swing that, right? And so, my marathon training began on the final day of June. I prepared my personalized plan with 20 weeks to train for this new distance. I was determined to get to the finish line—all while remaining happy, sane, & injury-free!

Following my final training run last week, I calculated that I had run 540.25 miles during the prior 4½ months—all with my focus on the November 15^th marathon. Some might argue this was a low mileage plan {to each their own, right?!}, with an average weekly mileage of just over 27 miles. However, I was able to max out my weekly mileage at 45+ miles, with only a handful of missed runs. I had a few aches & pains, with 1 or 2 injury scares; but all-in-all my training went fabulously!

The marathon weekend festivities began on Friday at noon, when Scott & I started the trek towards Richmond. We stopped in Williamsburg for lunch & shopping, & then proceeded on to Richmond with our next stop as the expo. The expo itself was nothing fancy, pretty much a normal packet pick-up with a bunch of vendors. I was disappointed that much of the race-sponsored merchandise was sold out in my size & that Sweaty Bands did not make an appearance. But, neither was a huge deal. After the expo, we headed to our friends’ apartment—our gracious home for the weekend. Thanks Christian! We had dinner reservations at 7:15pm, so after freshening up & catching up with our dear friend, we headed to La Grotta. The restaurant was hopping!! Clearly a ton of other runners had chosen the same eatery for race day fueling up. My only regret on the day before the race was that I did walk a bit much, & all in a cute, but not 100% comfy pair of boots. Lesson learned—tennis shoes next time!

Because we had to travel to this race, my attire was already decided & ready to go. Once back at the apartment, I snapped a quick pic of “Flat Rhonda”, & then relaxed for a bit before bedtime. My head ultimately hit the pillow shortly after 11pm. My alarm dinged off almost 7 hours later at 5:50am. Overall, I slept pretty well, except for a random awakening at 4:04am, at which point I thought I for sure had overslept. Silly race day jitters!

At a quarter past six, I began the 1.2 mile walk from my friends’ apartment in The Bottom towards Downtown RVA. I had already eaten one Larabar ALT. When I arrived near the start, I met up with a fellow mother runner friend, Rachael, & then after a couple camera clicks we headed into the Marriott to stay warm in another friends’ room. Thank goodness there was no need for the port-a-potty line!! Thanks Kate! Another half of a Larabar ALT + a banana, & I was ready to go! Getting to the start line proved to be eventful—including bolting down 8 flights of stairs & running through an indoor pool area. Luckily, we arrived to the corrals just in time for me to power up my Garmin & give the legs a quick shake. I was placed in Corral 2; however, all of the 6 waves began at the same time {7:50am}. And then…. WE WERE OFF!

I noticed pretty early on that it was taking my body a bit to warm up. The temp at the start, according to my Garmin, was 30 degrees Fahrenheit with a “real feel” of 25 degrees Fahrenheit. It seemed like during the entire first 5K, things were pretty achy & cold. Finally at mile 3.5 I ditched my gloves along the side of the road. Ahh, warmth! I should mention here that at big races like this {& some small ones too!}, clothing that is tossed to the side is collected, washed, & then donated to local charities. That always makes me feel good about “throwing away” perfectly good clothing!

Mile 1 – 8:38

Mile 2 – 8:30

Mile 3 – 8:28

Mile 4 – 8:29

Mile 5 – 8:32

After hearing my watch beep at the 5 mile marker, I had my first “fuel” of the day. I had decided prior to the race that I would eat somewhere between a half & full bag of Sport Beans or Honey Stinger chews every 5 miles. This was more than I needed during long training runs, but I was terrified of hitting the wall at the end of the race. Luckily, my belly has proven to tolerate both of these fuel sources! This plan worked out great & my stomach did not complain!!

As I approached mile 6, I saw another yellow Running Etc. Ambassador Team singlet up ahead. Within a couple of minutes, I had reached this new friend; whose name I learned was Teddy. He & I would end up running together from just before mile 6 through approximately mile 11.5 {we got “disconnected” at a hill turn, I believe}. Congrats on your 2^nd marathon completion, Teddy!

Mile 6 – 8:30

Mile 7 – 8:24

When my watch beeped after completing the 6^th mile, I noticed how fast it was & I really needed to reel in my pace. However, I had been pre-warned by hearing other runners say at the start of mile 6, “get ready, this is the fastest mile”. And boy, they weren’t joking! One mile of nearly straight down hill. Nice! The next couple of miles ticked by beautifully.

Mile 8 – 8:39

Mile 9 – 8:36

Mile 10 – 8:30

As we began mile 10, the hills also began. Fun…. We had run up slight hills prior to that, but nothing like the straight uphill that mile 10 brought! I actually came to enjoy the hills & would play a mental game of, “get up this hill, then fly down the downhill portion”. It became a game of numbers, all while attempting to maintain my average pace at 8:35/mile. I recall encouraging a fellow runner that, “what goes up, must also come down!”.

Mile 11 – 8:56

Mile 12 – 8:38

At this point, I was still wearing my long-sleeve over shirt. That clothing item finally was shed just after the 12 mile mark {if I recall correctly!}. I should also mention here that I had a bit of a scare in the early miles because I had forgotten to “lift” my outer layer to expose my bib to the mat at the start {talk about an internal freak out!}. The lady at the expo had told me that this would be necessary in order for the race to be tracked. Thank goodness she was wrong! Luckily my bib was tracked without issue for the entire race, despite being covered up at the gun. I had planned to begin listening to my music after shedding my long-sleeve shirt, but instead, I decided to continue enjoying this great race & the camaraderie of all the amazing runners around me! Speaking of enjoying the race, just before the halfway point came one of the most awesome spectator cheering sections! That particular crowd was so loud & motivating—which made me feel like such a rockstar!! Thank you citizens of Richmond!

Mile 13 – 8:31

Mile 14 – 8:30

Mile 15 – 8:24

And now, the race turns from sugarplums & roses, to a true marathon! I recall many people telling me that, “the second half of the race begins at mile 20”. This was not true for me. My struggle, on this particular course, began after mile 15, specifically by mile marker 16….. otherwise known to me as “THAT EFFING BRIDGE”. Pardon my French, but I have no idea how many times that thought went through my head & out of my lips. Oh Lee Bridge {I later learned the name; which I now despise!}… you KILLED my race. I think I burned more energy crossing that windy, gusty, cold, awful bridge than I had during the entire prior 2+ hours of running! Forget drafting—it didn’t work well even behind big guys. After getting across that freakin’ bridge, I breathed a sigh of relief, but it was too late. I quickly knew the pace had dropped & my goal of 3:45 was adios! The only good thing that happened during this segment of the race was seeing my sweet hubby on the side of the road. He snapped a few pics & all I recall uttering {besides “THAT-you-know-what-BRIDGE!”} was, “where’s Julie”!?

Mile 16 – 9:12

Mile 17 – 9:17

Mile 18 – 9:06

By this point, Julie had joined me on the pavement; & boy did I need her!  Being the most fantastic running partner that she is, she had kindly trekked up to RVA to run some of my first marathon with me. Thank you, Thank you Julie! You have no idea how much that means/meant to me!! She motivated me to break the race up into pieces, 3 mile portions specifically. She also allowed me to vent & moan about not reaching my goal time. Very firmly, yet politely, just as only she can do {ha!} she told me to get that out of my head & just run the race. I will say that the hardest sign of the day to see was mile marker 19. Something about knowing I still had just over an hour of running was quite mentally defeating. I am so glad I was able to pull the strength from somewhere {who knows where… hehe} & keep going! I think Julie & the fellow runners around me take the credit for that one.

Mile 19 – 9:09

Mile 20 – 9:36

Mile 21 – 9:48

Mile 22 – 9:44

As I approached mile 23, this became unchartered territory. I had done my longest run of 22.2 miles a few weeks prior, so reaching mile 23 was a BIG deal! Somewhere along here, a kind woman gave me a piece of banana. Boy did I need that! My metabolism, being what it is, makes me so hungry sometimes, & during races is no different! I also recall the spectators, volunteers, & police officers along this portion of the course to be SO VERY encouraging & supportive. They called your name {glad I had written mine on my bib!}. Gave out water every mile. Smiled compassionately. All while being in temps just over freezing! I now understand why this race is dubbed “America’s Friendliest Marathon”. It truly was amazing!

Since I am a self-proclaimed math genius {jokes, not really!}, I had been calculating paces since the “downfall” of my race so that I could still cross the finish line with my Plan B goal—sub-4 hours. Even though I wasn’t sustaining paces of 10:00 miles, I would occasionally see 10:xx on my Garmin & start to freak out {mostly internal, but some externally… huh Julie?!}. With 4.5 miles to go, I knew I needed to be under 11:00 miles. Oh, I totally got this—I thought! Just.don’t.walk {for that piece of advice, I channeled my dear friend Laura—thanks girl!}. My tightening quads & sore right hip probably would not have restarted if I had stopped for a walk break!

Mile 23 – 9:32

Mile 24 – 9:32

Somewhere during those final miles, I realized that the numbers didn’t mean much at all, really. Sure, I would be in the “sub-4 hour club”. I would probably reach my goal of top 25% for my age group & females in general. I would likely achieve my goal of not walking at all. But, what I realized was that what was more important was that I was really doing it. I would be included in that 1-2% of the population that had completed the 26.2 mile distance. I am a strong woman. I work full-time in a sometimes stressful, but always rewarding ICU. I train people to run. I am the glue that connects a successful & busy household. I am a wife who has an incredible husband. I am a mother of very active 2 year old twin boys. I have the most amazing friends & family. But, I was actually doing it. Sappy & cliché, but oh so true.

Mile 25 – 9:47

Mile 26 – 9:18

The mile 26 marker. I’m not sure I even saw it. My hubby showed me a picture of it; but I don’t recall if my eyes glanced upon it as I was running. Hmm, that is likely because I was being propelled down the steepest hills of the day. For those who have never heard of the “Richmond hill finish”, it is NO joke! For the final half mile of the race, my goal & mantra became, “don’t fall, don’t fall, don’t fall”! Woozers! That 5^th Street hill was fun & scary, all at the same time!! Here is a link to my finish- views best on Apple devices, so please excuse the blur!

Final 0.36 miles to the FINISH – 7:52

Garmin Time: 3:55:04 (8:55/mile)

Official Time: 3:55:03 (8:58/mile)

Overall: 1,389 out of 5,094 (top 30%)

Gender: 443 out of 2,631 (top 20%)

Age Group: 86 out of 415 (top 25%)

 

Splits:

10K – 53:18 (8:35/mile)

Half – 1:52:48 (8:36/mile)

20 mile – 2:55:31 (8:47/mile)

As I reflect upon the day, I am most proud of having the courage & physical strength to actually train for 20 weeks & complete my goal of becoming a marathoner. It was pure sacrifice to get up some mornings at or before 5am to go run; or decline an offer to go have drinks on a Friday night. But, without that sacrifice, I would not have reaped the rewards of becoming a MARATHON FINISHER! I should note though, it wasn’t always this way. I recall vividly, years ago, saying I would never run a marathon. NEVER say never! Now, more than 48 hours after completing the race, I can truly say that I am happy I did it!! During the latter half of the race, I might have said differently. Ha! And, I ran it music-less—yeah! As for post-race aches & pains—yep, they are there; but nothing unbearable or far from the ordinary. Specifically, my calves & quads are screaming the most; but I can navigate stairs without walking like Frankenstein! Score. I do however have a VERY sore left heel; which I am hoping is nothing too serious. Time will tell & heal I hope.

Will I do another one? Probably… no, my answer is, YES. I know I will eventually check the NYC Marathon off of my running bucket list. And maybe a few others. Who knows?! For now, I plan to focus 2015 on picking up speed in the shorter distances. That’s the goal at least; we shall see what actually happens!

For today though, I am a marathoner.