I did it again...

http://blog.timesunion.com/running/no-bq-no-pr/7738/

No BQ, no PR....

May 21, 2012 at 7:43 am by Mary Katherine Ibbetson

...but I got a great tan and lost 4 pounds!

Every marathon (in Mary's Universe) has a theme...

• Newport, RI - The First
• Mohawk Hudson - The Wedding
• Syracuse - The Successful Run/Walk
• Albany Winter Marathon - The Loopy Loops
• New Orleans - Under FOUR
• New Jersey - The Clock Was Not Wrong in NOLA

and

• Pocono Run for the Red - It Seemed Like A Good Idea at the Time

I have been eyeing this marathon for a month or two but was worried that it would be too difficult to get to after my daughter's graduation in Syracuse on Saturday.  I could have driven directly from Syracuse and stayed in a hotel but my marathon budget is getting tight and I didn't want to stay in a hotel. 

Enter Todd who I coerced bulliedmentioned the marathon to on Monday. I told him to check out the course elevation and mention it to his wife.  Todd ran NJ 2 weeks ago also so his wife's reaction was somewhere between shaking her head and wondering if hanging around the Ibbetsons was a really, really bad idea (for the record, Joe is OK).

Pocono Run for the Red Elevation profile (http://www.poconomarathon.org/)

Runner's World magazine listed Pocono Run for the Red as one of the top courses for running a personal best and went as far as to say you could gain 7 minutes on the downhills.  As compared to what? Rock climbing???  This was a much tougher course than I anticipated, especially since my last two marathons have been flat - I pretty much trained for flat.  There was nothing flat on this course, every downhill ended in an uphill and though there were 2 fairly large downhills there were lots of shorter uphills that were just cruel. Actually in looking at the elevation profile now, I can see that them, but I certainly didn't last week, nor did I believe the race reviews that said it was a much hillier course than expected or that the hills and 19 and 23 were killers.

Todd and I signed up on Wednesday evening before online registration closed and by Thursday morning the race director announced that they were offering deferrals due to the heat.  Huh?  Widespread panic sets in on facebook and the weather obsession starts.  Todd and I honestly were not even a little worried about the heat (which we obviously should have been), I grabbed a bandanna so I could keep it wet (and me cool) and decided that I would wear a pretty sports bra under my shirt "in case I got hot".

7am

When I am running around in a sports bra and shorts at 7am - it's hot. We even LOOK hot. My friend, Stephanie, drove the course the night before said it was mostly shady so I didn't worry too much...onward. By mile 6, I was overheated and spent from running along a highway in the full sun with the added bonus of torn up roads that were mid construction. I was on pace and knew there was a long downhill coming so I held on.  The downhill was shady, fast and beautiful and that may have been the last happy thought I had. The hills went up and the hills went down and then they went up and then they went down.  You get the idea.

The aid stations were fantastic.  The people super friendly and encouraging and they handed out not only cups of gatorade and water but water bottles for people who wanted to carry them due to the very quickly increasing heat.  I did. By mile 10 I knew I would not be Boston qualifying and by mile 16 I knew I would be lucky to get under 4.  By mile 20 I knew that was not going to happen. There were a multitude of ambulances and police on the course (the sounds of sirens is always encouraging (not) though I am glad they were there) and I knew I didn't want to be in one so I walked when I needed to and poured as much water on me as in me. As I slowed down I tried to encourage other runners, especially the newer ones.  We had some camaraderie going and were just trying to get it done.

The finish line was a loop around a track and as I was running that last quarter mile I saw Todd who was shaking his head and the runner in front of me collapsed and two other runners walked/carried her in.  That was when I realized the magnitude (and maybe the stupidity) of what I had just done.  Just when I was thinking how ridiculous the whole thing really was, a woman came up behind me and said, "We've been together since the start, I've been trying to stick with you for miles- let's finish it together" .  With a that little boost, we finished with smiles on our faces and upright (I later found out it was her first marathon and maybe her last).

The cool down

The finish line was like a war zone.  People passed out, puking, stretchers, 4 medical tents.  I was very dizzy and Todd kept trying to find me shade but there was none to be found.  I made it over to the medical tents and sniped some ice which helped cool me down and eventually we did get out of there and back to the start where we realized, literally, how far we had come.

Ice in the misting tent

We got up around 3am, drove 3 hours, ran 4 hours and 11 mins (Todd ran 3 hours 30 mins) and then drove 3 hours home.  We didn't get hurt, we didn't get end up in an ambulance and I think it would be a safe bet that every marathon (or maybe everything in life) we do from this point on will be easier.

Wasn't the day, wasn't the course but it wasn't a fail.

Got this email last night...

Congratulations on your finish in the RUN FOR THE RED MARATHON Your official time was 4:11:40, a pace of 9:36 per mile.  You finished 177th out of 386 women and 59th out of the 132 Women 40 - 49. Your HM was 1:54:20, and your CLOCK was 4:12:26.

Complete results are available at http://runhigh.com/2012RESULTS/R052012AA.html.

Next year's date is May 19. Hope to see you back!

I'm going to need some time to think about that.

Mary Katherine Ibbetson