Some things are somewhat predictable. One of them is that if I don't get enough miles in, I'll do poorly when I run a marathon. Winner takes all. And I had a tough day.

Over the summer and into the fall, I was plagued by various ailments and these kept me from getting the training done. By the time we headed to Harrisburg, I had managed only a couple of LLSDs (18+ miles) and they were ugly. So I got there with very low expectations. And I wasn't disappointed :-)

I drove from Annapolis to Harrisburg with another runner/sailing friend and we did the usual packet pickup deal.  There was no expo that I could see and that was probably a good thing - saved me a few bucks. Then we went out and drove the course, tryng to get a feel for the lay of the land, so to speak. And it looked good - a few hills, but nothing to write home about. We couldn't drive back into the lakewood area because it's all park trails, but from the road, it didn't look too rough. So back to the hotel, met up with my regular RB and his wife, dinner and hit they sack by about 10pm.

Sunday morning, up and dressed about 7. 8:30 start is late which was kind of nice - I wasn't the groggy-eyed slob I usually am on race mornings.  Got a bagel and banana at the Hampton Inn buffet and then headed over to the starting area. Question of the morning was "how do I dress"? It was chilly, but no wind to speak of. So I opted for my race-ready shorts, a green T (from the 07 B&A marathon, my first - and more on that later!), and a running vest. Parking was easy and we had time to queue up at the porta-pot for some last-minute.weight-loss. I put gels, electrolyte caps, my mini-first-aid kit and my camera in my pockets and then wandered around taking pictures and staying warm. Hooked up with Spencer and wandered up to the starting area on the bridge.

There were a lot of folks at the starting area - more than I expected! Last I had looked at the registrations, there were only a few hundred runners, but the starting area was pretty filled up! The picture shows that we were all a bit conflivted about clothes - it was chilly prior to the start - the car thermo read 37 degrees.

Soon enough, the starting gun fired and we were off, turtles that we are. Spencer was hoping to get his time under 4:39:13 and since I didn't expect to do particularly well, I planned to help him keep the pace through the early miles and we would do our own thing whenever that happened. The start took us over the market street bridge and into the south-east area of Harrisburg. Old industry and houses in want of TLC, mostly flat. We saw these signs all over the place that there were runners ahead of us, but being tutles, that's always a given!

Then a nice return to the waterfront of the Susquehanna river via a railroad park trail. Great running, warmed up and moving well. Starting to get warm.

Coming back into the river area was just beautiful! It was so pretty running along there, with parks and the river and the fall foliage. It was just fantastic. One of the prettier 'thons I've run.

The houses were all old victorians, many keptbeautifully, others in need of repair. The day was definately warming up! We were warned by the race management at a couple of points to drink lots - that the day was going to be a warm one. Spencer changed his short (nice to have spectator support!) to a light-white one. We ran along the waterfront for quite a ways, finally turning off toward the lake park area. At first, this was still residential, and then we turned out towards the industrial section. Not so pretty, though not too long either so it was easy to just ignore and keep running. Shortly after, we came to the Harrisburg community college campus and things got nice again. Well, except for me! I started to seriously fade. I crossed the 15 mile mark and had to stop and walk for a while.I walked to about Mile 16 and then shuffled along until in the park area. Now that's a very pretty running area.

But I was seriously tired. I was trying to continue a run-walk but it was more of a run/shuffle. And it was getting warmer. Oh - and it turns out, there are real hills in that park! One long and quite steep one leading up to mile 18 - and I just walked it. But as I was heading p that hill, I heard my name and saw Ed Peters, a 50-stater whom I met a year earlier at the Rehoboth marathon coming back down towards me! What a surprise to see him again.

After that monster hill, we were rolling up and down hills that would have seemeed normal and okay if I was doing better, but I wasn't going to push - I knew I wasn't going to finish well, so I decided to just enjoy the scenery and the other runners around me and chat and push forward, walking whenever I felt the need.

The above doesn't quite convey they steepness of the hills!

We finally had to leave the park. As you can see from the clock, I was waaaay off pace - I'm usually able to get to this point in under 3:30. But not this day. So we headed out and back to the riverfront, staying in the very pretty scenery, which was getting harder to see. I ran for a few miles with Lou, (in the picture above) - a very nice gentleman.

From, there on to the end was numbing, but flat. Until the very end, when we had to ascend up onto the railroad bridge and cross that to the finish area.

At the very end, I was neck-and-neck with another runner to the gate. A fun way to sprint into the finish, even though we were all suffering out on the course! At the finish area, I met up with Bruce, Spencer and Ed Peters to drink and eat some and chat about the course.  None of us did as well as we'd hoped though perhaps Spencer had the biggest disappointment of us all - he missed a PR by about 30 seconds. Bruce was about 30 minutes off (at around 4:30) and I had a dismal 5:13 (second worst time ever for me). But, I now have 9 in the books.

Below are a couple of shots taken by my RB's wife - my neck-and-neck sprint to the finish, and Spence, Bruce, Me and Ed Peters after finishing.

I liked this marathon a lot even though I did very poorly. It seemed very well run. Also, it seemed like the the race officials added more water stops in the last miles that weren't there when were heading out - I'm guessing they knew it was getting hot out. And that was both very welcome and very smart on their part.  It also seemed like there were lots of volunteers on the course - more than on any other I can remember running. And, the crowd support was better than I expected for a small marathon - there were folks cheering us on, even late in the race in most of the neighborhoods. It was great.

In retrospect, I got bitten by three things. I didn't get enough miles, and especially enough hills in before the race. I was surprised by the challenge of the hills. And it was warmer than I was ready for. After the finish, we read 74 degrees on the car thrmometer. That's pretty warm for a marathon, especially in bright sun. I was hot for the entire second half, and perhaps dehydrated too (though I made a point of drinking a lot). I'm guessing that my green T was too warm - should have opted for a white one (which I had in my bag, but didn't wear). Looking back, my two hardest marathons were run in that same green T - maybe I should retire it :-)

But, no complaints - and a special thanks to the race volunteers and the town of Harrisburg for hosting this great event. Thanks also to my running partner Spencer who puts up with my inconsistent training patterns. And especially to my wife for not only putting up with, but encouraging my foibles.

On to number 10!

It's been a while since I wrote - have not had a good training season this summer for a bunch of reasons. I sprained my right ankle in May (after the Frederick Marathon) and had to take about 6 weeks off of any serious running for that. Also developed a sinus infection that slowed me down a bunch even after I got back into it. And work heated up a lot. Oh - and I got a new toy - a 35' sailboat. That has taken some of my time and interest! And travel and vacations, etc.

So I'm very late getting ready from Harrisburg. I got one 20-mile LSD in a week ago. Will attempt a second tomorrow (Saturday). But I'm way off my game. So I'm heading to Harrisburg in 2 weeks+ with no more expectation that to just finish. And then get started over the winter, training in earnest again.

After the ankle injury I dropped almost all the speedwork out of my training. Not sure if this was smart, but I was scared of a reinjury. So I am doing some speedwork now, but it's too close to the event to do anything major. Have to start back on that after recovery!

Okay, I've done two decent runs - one tempo and one easy this week and my ankle is okay. A little tired, and somewhat achy, but no sharp pains or anything. So I'm cool (well, hot this time of year) and starting back into the training. I've lost some time - I should be about at the 16-mile LSD point (and about 7x800 intervals) and I'm not there on either. I'll shoot for a 14 mile LSD this weekend and see how bad off I am.

But if all goes well, I'm hoping to do the Marine Corp again this fall. 

Well, nothing is as inexorible as time and the fall marathons will be here soon enough, whether I'm trained or not. I'm still a bit undecided about which 'thons to run. I've signed up for the Harrisburg PA marathon November 8. I'm thinking about either the Marine Corp (again) or Baltimore (again). The MCM is only two weeks before Harrisburg, so Balto may make more sense. But I have a hankering to run the MCM again (oh -- and I didn't sign up before it closed, so I have to beg/steal/borrow a bib). But no matter which I end up running, it's time to get back to the training program. Which means LSDs. In the summer. With Heat. And humidity.

So Wednesday evening, my interpid RB and I headed out for the first (of many) LSDs of the summer. This one, relatively short at 16 miles. From Crystal City up to the Zoo and back. Slow. Painful. Welcome back!

I am trying something new this summer. I always seem to have issues starting at about mile 21 and going thru about mile 24 of a full marathon. I know, it's the wall. But how to train for it? This summer, I'm trying runs two days in a row that put me well into that milage.  So on Tuesday evening, I ran a 6.5 mile tempo run. Then Wednesday I ran a 16 mile LSD. Sure enough, at about mile 14 of the LSD, I started to feel wiped out. So this might work -- get some solid, simulated training in those late-miles. I'll write more on it as the program progresses.

I discovered RaceReady shorts about 2 years ago when training for the Marine Corp Marathon in 2007. And I love them, especially the LD-6 shorts which are a little longer. They're light and very comfortable and the pockets are; well, I carry a lot of **** so pockets are a must. Did I say that I love these shorts? One of my disappointments has always been that the local running stores (Annapolis anyway) don't really carry them, or at least not a variety of them. So I always mail order them. But that's okay too.

So I was visiting a new running shop near me (Charm City Running, Parole, MD), and happened to ask if they stocked these shorts. And they responded that they didn't, but that there is a new pocket-ready short from Asics. Interesting - I guess I had assumed that this was a small enough market that no one (besides RaceReady) would want to play. So I bought a pair.

I wore them on several LSDs and also in the Frederick Marathon this year. I have to say, I prefer the RaceReady shorts. Though the pockets are about the same, The Asics are heavier and bind a bit too much in the liner. Not a big deal, but they are also $10 more expensive. So, for me at least, the RaceReady shorts are better.

Signed up for Frederick (May 3) today. I plan to eat the hills this time, instead of last year when they ate me!

Guess I'd better get some long runs in. It's been a few weeks.

So yesterday I ran the B&A trail marathon for my third time. My seventh marathon in two years. Each time I run this I set a new PR! So I like it a lot. But it was a bittersweet day.

I had been watching the weather forcast -- the Annapolis area was expecting a winter storm starting Sunday, but with a preceding front coming through on Saturday overnight.  It seemed like we had a good chance of an ice/snow-covered B&A trail for running on Sunday morning. I layed out my kit with about 5 clothing options the night before. When I got up at about 5:15 am, my back deck and yard were covered with a sheet of slush and I thought it might be a long, wet, rough day. But it wasn't all that cold -- about 32 at that hour, so I was hopeful that the trail would be no more than wet.

So I chose my clothes, got dressed, extracted my wife from her cocoon (she drives me -- for which I'm very grateful, though mostly afterward when I hurt) and made my ritual marathon-day breakfast - a banana and a sesame bagel with a little butter. And drank a pint of gatorade G2 (just for the preloading of electrolytes). Double checked everything and headed out the door. I didn't bring my camera on this one - it seemed like it might be a wet day.

Got to the Severna Park HS starting area at about 6:30. Plenty of time. The place was packed. The event was sold out (possibly for the first time ever?) and the auditorium was  crowded. I think I heard that there were 1,00 registrants. Found some friends (Bruce) and shed some clothes, went to the bathroom and chatted. My RB (Spence) showed up and got ready. Spence was planning to run the half and our goal was that he would keep me on pace (about 10:18) for the first half so that I had a shot at breaking 4:30. My previous PR was 4:35. My hope was for even or negative splits.

Then we headed outside to the starting area.  I pulled my customized trash bag on and stayed warm enough. Seemed like it was warming up. Then we started. Spence and I had stayed back a bunch in the field, so it took about a minute to cross the starting mat. Then we were off, headed out through the local neighborhoods and onto the B&A trail. Very crowded on the trail. I can see why they have to limit the numbers. But, as usual, it thins out a bit as runners hit their paces.  And the weather wasn't bad. We had a little snow aff and on, but it was mostly clear all day.

We ran south for a ways. About mile 4, Spence had a bit of an accident. The trail has 6x6 posts implanted  to keep cars from turning onto the trail. Spence didn't see one and tripped over it. Went down hard - face first. At firs, he thought he got bumped and bruised, but would keep going. But blood was pouring from above his eye. He dropped out to get it checked out   and said he would catch up with me. Met a pair of youg guys who had decided saturday night to run the full marathon. They were cyclists, so they were in good shape. They were having a great time. Also met "Naptownrunner" from this site. He was volunteering (thanks)!

Up to that point, we were running a very consistent 10:18 pace (thanks to Spence). But after that, I seemed to pick it up a bit. Reached the 6.5 mile south-side turnaround and headed back up the one real hill on this course. Took it easy, but steady. Then hit my stride. Got to about mile 10 at about 1:40 or 10/mile. Faster than I had planned to go. But I felt great. I held back a bit because I felt good enough to run fasterbut I knew that would hurt me later on. I got a call from Spence saying he was heading to the hospital to see about stitches over his eye (ouch).

I got back to mile 13 which is where the 1/2 marathoners turn off to finish.   The pack thinned out very significantly after that. Of the 836 finishers, 590 were half-marathoners, 246 ran the full. Passed 13.1 at exactly 2:11 and headed north. The second half of this marathon is mostly a head game. It's mostly flat (two "bumps" which are overpasses) but just goes on and on. I fell in behind a young man doing his first full. We kept the same pace for a bit, up to the northern turnaround point, about mile 19.5.

Coming back south, I started to flag a bit. I did the math (which is simple except that late in race) to figure out the pace  I neededin order to break 4:30. Close to 11. So I forced myself to slow down a bit to that pace. I always seem to have a bunch of juice left at the end and knew that if I was close, I would make it. I stopped briefly to pee at about mile 21. Then just slogged along. Felt awful, but after 6 marathons, I know this game pretty well.

But then at mile 24, realizing that I  only had about 25 minutes left to run, I knew the goal was in sight and my pace just picked up. Back to 10 and then to 9/mile.  Got back to the final turn off the trail and onto the road to the finish and I was flying. Actually passing people. Hit the final stretch, felt great and was running like it was a 5k. I saw the clock and that it read about 4:28 and knew I was golden. As I ran down the chute, I heard a bunch of my peeps cheering me on, heard the finish timers announce my name. And then flew across the mats for a chip time of 4:27:46. Well below my target

I got a call from Spence. He ended up with 4 stitches, a shiner, and a huge lump on his forehead. So it was a bittersweet day -- a PR and a disaster.

I do want to say thanks to the volunteers. They really came through for Spence. And at every water sop, the start and finish, and at all the street crossing. Also a special thanks to the AA County police -- they were geat. And a special thanks to my wife for driving me and picking me up, and for putting up with all the traning time.

I'm in the final 10 days before the B&A Marathon, 3/1/09. Feeling very ready, psyched.

Been thinking about what runs to do for this last stretch. I'll try and get an LSD in Saturday morning - maybe 11-12 miles, but at a slow. easy pace. Then maybe some track work on Sunday, but easing up on the intensity a bit.  That will put me at about 28 miles for this week, which is probably a good taper number.

Next week, I'll run an easy 8 miles or so on Monday and maybe 6 easy on Wednesday. I might go for a "wake-up" 2-3 mile easy run on Saturday. Or not!

This will be the 3rd time running the B&A, so I have a very good mental picture of the route. My RB is  planning to run the half, so we'll stay together that far. I've worked a lot on pacing over the past few weeks, so am hopeful I won't make the same mistake this year as last - going out way too fast and then dying at the end.

Optimistically...