My primary goal was to run a PR at
the Harrisburg Marathon. I had planned to go
out at a 6:20 pace and progressively pick it
up. I stood at the
start with Chris and Barb chatting casually when
the race started. The three of us were caught
a little off guard because there was little warning
that the race was about to begin when the horn
sounded.
The first mile was around the State Capitol building. I went out at 5:58 and
then told myself to back off and stick to the game plan. Early on I had some
trouble settling in. I was sitting in the top 3 in the early miles. Around mile
7 another runner and I were running side by side leading the race when the guy
sitting in third made a move and took off down the course. The consensus was
that if he can maintain that pace for the next 19 miles then the race was his
and we were not going to run ourselves into the ground trying to stay with him.
I finally was able to settle into a comfortable pace, but it was faster than
what I had planned. I felt good so I threw the game plan out the window knowing
that I could be risking a huge breakdown late in the race.
I slowly started to pull away from the guy running next to me. Two hundred meters
up the road I could see the race leader. Over the next mile or so I realized
that his lead had not increased and that it appeared as though I was gaining
on him. By mile ten I had cut his lead to 75 meters. Around mile twelve we were
even and proceeded up an overpass running shoulder to shoulder. At the halfway
mark I was leading the race (1:20:48).
I ran behind the lead bicycle down a long industrial road. At one point the bicycle
started to veer off right and I began to follow then realized that there was
a water station straight ahead so continued down the road. I told the biker to
let me know where turns are because I was not familiar with the course. I was
hoping that this would prevent any future miscues.
The industrial road seemed endless. When the turn-off finally came the biker
said to me "Up ahead you are going to make a left at the light, but you
have to let the tractor trailer pass before you cross the road [we were running
down the right side of the road and the truck was approaching from behind]." The
truck passed and then the cyclist says "You're going to have to let
one more pass too." At this point I am thinking "Since when
does
traffic have the right of way in the middle of a marathon?"
Not long after (about mile 16) there was a turn around in the Harrisburg Area
Community College parking lot where I could assess the situation. My lead was
maybe 150 yards and I was afraid it was all going to come back together. I tried
to stay focused on maintaining my pace. The course entered a park where I knew
the biggest hills awaited. The climbs were short and steep, but not too bad.
The downhills were brutal. My quads felt shot and I was certain I went out too
hard I exited the park just after mile 19. The course, from this point on, doubles
back on itself. I had no idea how much of a lead I had. Fatigue was really starting
to set in. I felt like I was slowing down, but my watch was telling me that I
was running an even pace. I focused on the bike and the ground in front of me.
I was very worried I was going to be caught in the last mile or so.
Around mile 21 I had a moment of panic. Two other course marshals on bikes came
from behind. One said to the one leading me "We caught up." I was
afraid that this meant that second place was not far behind; I did not dare turn
around. Soon after, I saw Leslie on the course and she looked strong and was
cheering hard. I took this as a sign that she was going to have a good day.
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