Thursday, June 26, 2008

• Grandma's Marathon--that's 8 states down, 42 to go!

  Grandmas Marathon 2008-06-21 Duluth, Minnesota United States 80F / 27C Sunny

  Run - Marathon Total Time = 5h 56m 1s Overall Rank = 6531/6876 Age Group = 40-44 Age Group Rank = 308/324

  
  
  

  Pre-race routine:

  
  We were in a hotel in Proctor that was VERY supportive! They were awesome. They opened the breakfast up at 3:30 a.m.! How is THAT for service? Gotta love it! I so appreciated that. I had a waffle (fresh) with peanut butter and a little sugar free syrup on it, and grabbed a banana for later. I had brought a breakfast cookie, but figured the waffle would be good enough and I'd save the BC for later.
  
  Kim and I grabbed the bus to the start line. We rode it and chatted with other racers. It was already warmish at about 5:30 so I figured we were in for a TOASTY run! I wasn't wrong!

  
  

  Event warmup:

  
  When we got there it was already buzzing. Loud music was playing all over the area in Two Harbors. The two-lane road we were going to run on was closed, and an old fashioned train was parked on the tracks parallel to the course. About 7:25 two F-16s flew overhead, which was breathtaking. The sky was DEEP blue so it was awesome to see them against the beautiful sky. Both Kim and I shed our shirts we brought since it was already probably 65. Someone sang the Star Spangled Banner and all the people on the train started to cheer for us as the gun went. It was a crowded start with self-seeding, so it was a little jostle-y at the start, but not too bad. We crossed the start within a few minutes.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  We started out running 5:1 (5 min runs with 1 min brisk walks) right off. I know it was hard for us both at the beginning. It's so hard to see people pass you right at the beginning, but I know that if all things remain constant, I'm passing them at the end. I think this was the first time Kim tried the run/walk combo and I'm not sure she was completely convinced it was the way to go at the beginning. We were running pretty consistent 10:30 miles up until about mile 8. At that point, Kim started having pretty painful IT band problems. By mile 10 we were walking. She was SO frustrated and kept telling me to go ahead and leave. But I had come to run WITH her not from her, so I didn't consider it for a second.
  

  
  
  

     Run Comments:

  
  We started out running really strong. Kim had had some IT band issues coming up to the race, so she'd been cross training the last three weeks. But her doctor had okayed her running today, so we were confident that it would be good. Unfortunately it started to twinge at mile eight and I felt SO bad for her. There is nothing worse than training for months for a race, only to have your body betray you on race day! So we extended the walk breaks a bit hoping that she could keep running, but by mile ten it was too painful. She kept saying "You don't have to wait for me" but like I said, I wouldn't have left her. After all, the reason I signed up for Grandmas was to run with my sister! We had run the same race in September when we both traveled (with our awesome husbands) to run the Disneyland Half Marathon, but hadn't run together. Since both Roy and Mike have officially retired from marathons, we decided to sign up for Grandma's and run together. The guys declined to run the half marathon because they wanted to support us. (How altruistic of them. Ha!)
  
  My only concern was that I have lower back problems due to loose joints and some slight arthritis, and walking can cause problems. But I figured if it came to that I'd just run ahead a bit, then run back if I had to. I think I'm in good enough shape to handle some extra mileage and it would have been preferable to just leaving or the pain that walking might have caused.
  
  Fortunately after a few medical tent stops, we found one just after the halfway point with a massage therapist. He worked on her leg, and at first she thought it made it worse. But at mile 14 she decided to give it a go and found that she could run again. Yay! I don't think either of us wanted to admit out loud how LONG it would take us if we had to walk 16 miles. It sure gives me an even GREATER appreciation for people who walk marathons! That's no mean feat!
  
  We resumed 5:1s and continued that for most of the race, with a few longer walk breaks if the IT band commanded it. When she stopped to stretch, I would go ahead and run and then circle back. My back was just threatening to cause issues after about mile 16, so I was unsure about doing too much walking or stopping. That worked out well.
  
  At mile 23 Roy and Mike met us to run us in. Unfortunately Roy wasn't able to keep up due to his knee problems. But Mike was able to run in with us and it is SO nice to have someone else to distract you at that point. I know we both REALLY appreciated it! WE also appreciated that they tried valiantly to get to us many places along the route. We did see them about mile 12 or so, but unfortunately they weren't able to get to us in the other areas. Both of them had made signs too, which was awesome.
  
  The last two miles take you into Duluth and then into Canal Park. As always, I found myself getting emotional at the end. Every marathon is special, but running it with family made it even moreso. I was so thankful for this and for the fact that we had this gorgeous memorable day together.

  
  
  

  What would you do differently?:

  
  Nothing, really. I was feeling really good for most of the marathon.

  
  
  

  Post race

  
  

  Warm down:

  
  As soon as we hit the finish line, God blessed us with a drenching rain. No need to shower now! LOL! Since our legs were really tight, we'd agreed during the run to go and walk into the lake after the race. Since it's so large, it never really warms up and we heard it was about 43 degrees. So after grabbing some food (ice cream...man oh man that ice cream was good, for me and a bagel for her) we made our way to the beach and waded in. HOLY CRAP it was cold, but let me tell you. I think it made all the difference in the world! Honestly! My legs felt refreshened afterwards!
  
  We went back to the hotel and showered and rested a bit before heading back into Duluth to eat dinner at Little Angies. Even there they welcomed runners, with eat wait person wearing a shirt that read, "I ran once. I was quite proud of myself."
  
  Oh, one thing that was interesting...we got to keep our Champion Chip! So now I have two. One from Grandma's and one I chose to keep from NYC!

  
  
  

  Event comments:

  
  I would definitely give this race 4 stars, reserving 1 star because of the anti-MP3 stance they take. I could go on about how ridiculous I find it that someone tells me that I can't listen to my own music on a race that, on a good day, is going to take ME at least 4:45, but suffice to say I would not have registered if Kim hadn't wanted to run it. I'm so glad she did because Grandma's definitely ranks as one of my favorite marathons in the 12 I've run. It wasn't overwhelmingly big like NYC (and I loved NYC), nor was it lonely like Seattle. It's like Baby Bear's porridge...just right. The course support is amazing, and the community totally gets behind the runners. There were signs welcoming runners all over Duluth and Proctor. The newspapers had articles two days leading up to the race (big articles, too...not like the 25 word blurb I saw on the Seafair Marathon that I'll be running Sunday...thanks Seattle. You really know how to make runners feel valued.) The paper also had a HUGE section on the marathon with EVERY single finisher listed in it the day after the race. The hotels went out of their way to make us feel welcomed, which isn't always the case. We were even offered the opportunity to reserve a room for the following year. The transportation was outstanding to the beginning of the course (bus left right from our hotel). The festivities were well planned and organized. The restaurants the day before all catered to runners (I think I counted at LEAST four carbo-load "feeds" in the restaurants we walked past) both before and after.
  
  You know what the BEST part of a marathon is, though? The people you meet on the route. More than once we'd pass people on the side of the road (over 200 didn't finish) and someone near us (or us) would ask if they were okay. At one point this happened and I said to Kim, "This is why I love marathons. People are always so GOOD to each other on marathons!" The lady who I was referring to agreed and we had a nice chat then, and again at mile 26 when she said to her husband (who was running her in) "If I mention doing Grandma's again next year, you have my permission to slap me...I can't take this heat!" I replied, "Oh you know you'll be talking about it within two months."
  
  "Yeah, you're probably right...but this heat!"
  
  I invited her to join us in Seattle where not only would she NOT run in heat, but she might get rain, wind, or even SNOW and LOTS of hills with zero cheering spectators!
  
  Some of my favorite moments on the race:
  

  1. The F-16s flying over. I love the sound of loud planes and I always find things like that very moving.
  2. The kindness of the people in the medical tent, not just the volunteers but other runners who were consoling each other for having to drop out.
  3. The homemade wrought iron dinosaurs in front of a house, one of which spewed flames. This family was busily setting up a water stop for the runners, so I got a chance to tell the guy who COOL I thought his dinos were!
  4. The many MANY times people yelled my name on the route, especially the drunken frat boys chanting my name over and over again. I'm telling you, you gotta put your name on your shirt! It makes SUCH a difference when you're staring down the wall to hear someone say "You can do it, Tory!"
  5. The line of trolls on the ground "for luck".
  6. The yard filled with flamingo statues. What was THAT all about?
  7. The many people with sprinklers, hoses, and even water guns!
  8. Al Franken giving me a HUGE hug and a kiss on the route! I love Al Franken!
  9. The wind coming off the water providing us with much needed heat relief!
  10. Running with my sister. That was the best. We're going to have to do that more often! (Plus she "gets me" and doesn't think I'm insane at all with all this marathon stuff.)

  
  
  
  

  
  
  

  Course:	The course is along the north shore of Lake Superior, which is a BIG LAKE! No wonder it's called "superior!" It's HUGE! It's also very brown. Mike explained that it's because of the high iron content in the rocks and dirt in the area. It's not a muddy color, it's a "clear" brown and it's not brown everywhere. When the sun hits it in certain ways it is blue or green, so it's a beautiful, changeable lake. It's a point to point route that is really beautiful, even when you're in neighborhoods. There isn't a point at which you can't see the lake, although you are closer to it at some points than at others. The course had supporters almost all the way along the race. People were out cheering for EVERYONE! It was such a neat supportive race! It had a real community feel. In the areas in front of homes, at least one or two homes every mile had people out cheering and many had either their own water stops or were out with hoses to spray down the hot runners. (And I don't mean hot in a good way. It was hot.) The water stops were always well stocked and the volunteers were totally awesome, cha! Talk about Minnesota Nice! I never had to reach for my own water or Ultima, and one of the coolest thing was that almost every stop had ICE! Yah! For this PNW-er, the ice was enough to keep me nice and cool throughout the entire warm race. In fact while I think the heat might have slowed us some, I don't feel that it impacted me in any major way and that was definitely due to the ice, the frequent water stops, and the wonderful people with sprinklers.
  Keeping cool	Good	Drinking	Just right

  Post race
  Overall:	Good
  Mental exertion [1-5]	3
  Physical exertion [1-5]	4
  Good race?	Yes

  Evaluation
  Course challenge	Just right
  Organized?	Yes
  Events on-time?	Yes
  Lots of volunteers?	Yes
  Plenty of drinks?	Yes
  Post race activities:	Good
  Race evaluation [1-5]	4

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