33 was a war

Preparing to compete in a marathon is similar to a boxer training for a big fight. You can put all the miles in, lift all the weights, and plan a strategy, but when it comes down to it, there’s really nothing you can do to be prepared for the many factors that you might encounter on your 26.2-mile journey. I was taught this lesson once again by Mother Nature last Saturday, as I tackled the Newport Breakers Marathon.
Now that I’m an experienced marathoner I set my goals high going into each race. On this day I really felt well prepared so I set my goal very high. I wanted to cover the 26.2-mile course and cross the finish line in less than six-and-a half hours, however this was not in the cards for me on this day.
The race started off very well. I was on pace to set a personal best time through six miles. I was at 1 hour and 28 minutes, two minutes under my goal pace of fifteen-minute miles. As we reached the six-and-a half mark the skies opened up and it began to rain. This usually is not a big deal. I actually enjoy running in the rain, but this course was a loop course with long steady uphill stretches. Some hills felt that they were never going to end. The rain and wet leaves also hampered my leg drive, which slow my pace drastically.
As I reached the halfway mark of the marathon I knew this was going be one of my slowest times in years, but I was still determined to finish and keep my consecutive marathon streak going. This was not a race anymore; instead it turned into a test of will.
As each mile went by slower and slower I began to get frustrated. My two friends/guides, Randy and Karleen, who accompanied me the entire way kept me in a positive mind frame. They told me just keep pushing hard and concentrate on finishing the race. I took their advice and pushed on. After injuring my foot in between miles 15 and 16, the task became that much harder. Now along with all my other aches and pains I had from going 16 miles I had to baby the one part of my body that I can always count on; my left foot.
This injury made me have to change my strategy once again. I usually do 80 percent of the work with my left foot, now because I felt a sharp pain each time I push off of it, I was forced to use my weaker leg to compensate. Although it was painful, I was more frustrated. As the clock hit eight hours, I was really beat both mentally as well as physically. I decided I was going to use whatever I needed to win this battle.
Cold, soaked to the bone, and hurting, I crossed the line in a time of 8 hours 41 minutes, and 11 seconds. This was much slower than I planned, but I really feel it was one of my rewarding performances. Sure I enjoy when I have a perfect race and am able to set a personal best, but it’s almost or even more fulfilling to have to overcome a series of events to achieve a goal.
Now I’ll take a few days to heal before starting to prepare for the New York Marathon on November 6th. Although I enjoy a good challenge, Newport was enough to last me awhile. Next week I’ll be praying for sunny skies and mild temperatures, as I look to take a bite out of the Big Apple by completing the 2005 INC New York City Marathon. If I am successful I will only have 16 more steps to my ultimate goal of 50 career marathons.