First of all, I had a blast! Yes, marathons are painful with intense misery thrown in, but being able to run with friends is my new prerequisite for future marathons. I ran with a good friend (Dan Cadriel), and his buddy Craig Morton. Dan has done PF Changs consecutively for years, all around the 3 hour range...some under, some just over. Craig is newer to endurance sports, and was looking to improve 45 minutes from his first marathon...the goal time was 3 hours for those guys, and I decided to jump in with them about a month ago. I based my goal time on two things...first, I had someone to run with, and second, 3:00 is 20 minutes faster than IM AZ marathon (which is the goal "standard" between the two "types" or marathons). I have been using First Endurance products religiously leading to the race, and Pre Race helped me out at points through this race (I carried a fuel belt flask for the entire race with Pre Race and EFS mixed)---their products are always amazing, and may be why I was able to get to this day feeling fast and fresh and have the day that I had for this race.
My training was pathetic---only 2 runs of 2 hours, and both were failures---GI problems on one, and was just too tired from a long day at work on the other (Brick workout: 9 hours of work straight into 2 hours running...the hardest brick!!). Neither one was faster than a mid 7 minute pace---and I'm going to try to run 6:52/mile? This was going to hurt or break me, or both! So, the 3:00 goal was a pipe dream in my mind going in...last weekend I considered switching to the half, and I had delusions of just quitting half way through because I feel so "out of shape" for trying to run this hard. I didn't feel like I was doing the right thing by trying to run 3:00 with the big year ahead, but I am not one to back down from the challenge---one of the many things I learned from this race!
So here's the Report:
I met up with a bunch of buddies, including John Dean, who was running the half with his daughter Amanda (how cool that must have been---Sophia and Jenny, we're doing that in 15 years!), Dan, Bryan Dunn and his wife, Craig, and Derek. We warmed up in the "Warm Zone" provided by Red Rock Co, which made the morning very pleasant in a 70 degree tent versus the 44 degree start line. My GI system was in full working order, as I made a "pit" stop with Craig as we guarded for each other, if you catch my drift ;) Off to the line, we met up with more buddies...so it was Dan, Craig and myself going for 3:00, James Bruce going for 3:20, and Chris Bergeron going for 3:15, as well as Michael Sullivan with a friend of his whom he was "pacing."
The gun fired, and we were off! Good news through the first mile: 7:00 on the dot. It is soo hard to hold back at the beginning of races with all of the energy a race gives you. In the first 10 miles I was a little ahead of Dan and Craig as I latched on to a group of 4 (all from high elevation country in Colorado). The miles flew by, I was feeling decent! Pace was right on target for every mile, averaging 6:52/mile through 10. (10K: 42:38/6:52 per mile) The "GI" system acted up again as I rounded the corner at 24th St & Camelback in the Biltmore...so it was off to the porto potty at the next aid station. Let's skip that minute, and then I was back out there, and thankfully Dan and Craig were about 30 yards up the road---perfect! So this is where the fun began! I caught up to them with a bit of an "interval," and was feeling light ;))) We were now heading into the part of the course I hate (and Dan too)...but first, we hung a right onto 44th St---actually a nice downhill, down wind section where the half way point is: (half marathon stats: 1:30:25/6:54per mile)--considering the bathroom stop, I was good, but we were behind! Worse yet, the left hand turn onto Oak St and then working our way up Indian School is just tough---from mile 14 to 18 you just have to put your head down and dig in. Thankfully, we saw some local triathletes along the way (Karen Lewis, Brian Henry, Tracy Britton), and when running with Dan, it seems like someone every 1/4 mile was saying "way to go Dan"....he is truly a celebrity! Two years ago, this is where I started to fall apart after going out in a 1:28 for the first half, so the demons were there (finished 3:28 that year---2:00 second half, ouch! A big blister was the culprit on the ball of my right foot).
So Dan, Craig, and I made it through this section with some grit---the end of this section being the right hand turn off of Indian School and down "the chute" of downtown South Scottsdale. We were starting to pass a bunch of people at this point, which continued all the way in to the finish--great pace! At the same time, this is where we started to lose site of Craig, and we just couldn't risk waiting for him to catch back on, so we elected to just go. By this time, the sock in my right shoe was starting to feel like sandpaper---I knew a blister was brewing in the same spot as it did in 2009, but this was not going to slow me down this time. The miles were taking their toll, and at mile 20, we calculated that we needed a 42 minute last 6.2 miles to go under 3:00...very tough, but in reach. We saw other friends, the Fullers (conspicuously hanging out at Zorbas Adult Shop...hmmm), which gave us a boost (for about 10 feet), and then it was back to the insanity that this part of the marathon brings. There is just something about this distance and the miles after 20 that just get to your head---I think the marathon does not begin until mile 20---the pain and muscle fatigue just goes through the roof. Add the now quarter sized blister on the ball of my right foot (again! exactly like in 2009), and I was at war. Dan is strong, period. Without him, I think this is where I would have cracked, and I actually did at mile 23.4. BUT, this was a very important part of the race---and the part of the race that I will forever take with me when the going gets tough. We were coming up to an aid station and I mumbled to Dan that things were just getting "mental." I tend to slow to a jog to get liquids down, and decided that I really needed this aid station---I took in a Gu as we approached, then slowed to take down 2 cups of water along with 2 over the head...I was in deep---well past previous limits I had not crossed in this lifetime. Dan now was 25 yards ahead of me, looking solid as ever, and I had a decision to make---and I chose to push through even further into my psyche. I rounded the corner leaving McClintock behind and onto University...the home stretch was upon us. Steve "Fresh n Loose" Rink was there yelling at Dan, and I knew it was time to go---Steve got sight of me and started yelling at me. I knew he was going to be out there, and at least 3 times through the day I told Dan that we were going to need him, and that was an understatement. I was in 5th gear, and now I was in overdrive--and with 1.2 miles to go. I skipped that final aid station and just focused on catching Dan---I just wanted to cross the line with him after all we battled through---a finish line pick of us together drove me to his side as we made the final turn into the finishing 0.2 miles...the clueless spectators who cut in front of Dan didn't help his mojo :((
We made it! We went to battle with that course, and I came out of it with a lot of things, but most importantly, an unspoken bond with Dan Cadriel....he's just a SOLID guy, in every way. I'm sure I will use the memories in Kona when it starts getting ridiculous, and I hope I will have Dan there to battle with me (no pressure Dan, but you WILL qualify at IMCDA--your run is already there, and your bike is not far behind---work that swim!).
I went into this race totally unprepared; from a lack of training, to no specific nutrition plan, to GI issues because of it, to running in shoes I hadn't run more than 200 yards in (see below)...but I came away with so much "data" personally that I feel like I broke through some boundaries I thought were unbreakable---and I don't recommend following this game plan! I've heard it a thousand times: pros are able to deal with the pain better than the amateurs. With that being
said, one of my goals for endurance racing and in life, is to handle
what life throws at you--and come out a better person...hopefully!
Chris told me going into this one: "Don't expect much" ...I didn't, but
I came out of this one a better athlete and a stronger person for sure.
It's now 2 days post race and I'm feeling back to normal, the blister has
given in and I'm looking for to the build for Tri season!
My training was pathetic---only 2 runs of 2 hours, and both were failures---GI problems on one, and was just too tired from a long day at work on the other (Brick workout: 9 hours of work straight into 2 hours running...the hardest brick!!). Neither one was faster than a mid 7 minute pace---and I'm going to try to run 6:52/mile? This was going to hurt or break me, or both! So, the 3:00 goal was a pipe dream in my mind going in...last weekend I considered switching to the half, and I had delusions of just quitting half way through because I feel so "out of shape" for trying to run this hard. I didn't feel like I was doing the right thing by trying to run 3:00 with the big year ahead, but I am not one to back down from the challenge---one of the many things I learned from this race!
So here's the Report:
I met up with a bunch of buddies, including John Dean, who was running the half with his daughter Amanda (how cool that must have been---Sophia and Jenny, we're doing that in 15 years!), Dan, Bryan Dunn and his wife, Craig, and Derek. We warmed up in the "Warm Zone" provided by Red Rock Co, which made the morning very pleasant in a 70 degree tent versus the 44 degree start line. My GI system was in full working order, as I made a "pit" stop with Craig as we guarded for each other, if you catch my drift ;) Off to the line, we met up with more buddies...so it was Dan, Craig and myself going for 3:00, James Bruce going for 3:20, and Chris Bergeron going for 3:15, as well as Michael Sullivan with a friend of his whom he was "pacing."
The gun fired, and we were off! Good news through the first mile: 7:00 on the dot. It is soo hard to hold back at the beginning of races with all of the energy a race gives you. In the first 10 miles I was a little ahead of Dan and Craig as I latched on to a group of 4 (all from high elevation country in Colorado). The miles flew by, I was feeling decent! Pace was right on target for every mile, averaging 6:52/mile through 10. (10K: 42:38/6:52 per mile) The "GI" system acted up again as I rounded the corner at 24th St & Camelback in the Biltmore...so it was off to the porto potty at the next aid station. Let's skip that minute, and then I was back out there, and thankfully Dan and Craig were about 30 yards up the road---perfect! So this is where the fun began! I caught up to them with a bit of an "interval," and was feeling light ;))) We were now heading into the part of the course I hate (and Dan too)...but first, we hung a right onto 44th St---actually a nice downhill, down wind section where the half way point is: (half marathon stats: 1:30:25/6:54per mile)--considering the bathroom stop, I was good, but we were behind! Worse yet, the left hand turn onto Oak St and then working our way up Indian School is just tough---from mile 14 to 18 you just have to put your head down and dig in. Thankfully, we saw some local triathletes along the way (Karen Lewis, Brian Henry, Tracy Britton), and when running with Dan, it seems like someone every 1/4 mile was saying "way to go Dan"....he is truly a celebrity! Two years ago, this is where I started to fall apart after going out in a 1:28 for the first half, so the demons were there (finished 3:28 that year---2:00 second half, ouch! A big blister was the culprit on the ball of my right foot).
 |
| New Shoes! Nike LunarEclipse---AWESOME for longer runs I hope! |
 |
| good news about running in brand new shoes---tread data! I was landing right on that blister line! |
We made it! We went to battle with that course, and I came out of it with a lot of things, but most importantly, an unspoken bond with Dan Cadriel....he's just a SOLID guy, in every way. I'm sure I will use the memories in Kona when it starts getting ridiculous, and I hope I will have Dan there to battle with me (no pressure Dan, but you WILL qualify at IMCDA--your run is already there, and your bike is not far behind---work that swim!).
I went into this race totally unprepared; from a lack of training, to no specific nutrition plan, to GI issues because of it, to running in shoes I hadn't run more than 200 yards in (see below)...but I came away with so much "data" personally that I feel like I broke through some boundaries I thought were unbreakable---and I don't recommend following this game plan! I've heard it a thousand times: pros are able to deal with the pain better than the amateurs. With that being
said, one of my goals for endurance racing and in life, is to handle
what life throws at you--and come out a better person...hopefully!
 |
| Post Race in my 2XU compression tights...another part of the ritual. |
I came out of this one a better athlete and a stronger person for sure.
It's now 2 days post race and I'm feeling back to normal, the blister has
given in and I'm looking for to the build for Tri season!
| Distance | MAR |
| Clock Time | 3:01:52 |
| Chip Time | 3:01:39 |
| Overall Place | 127 / 5062 |
| Gender Place | 107 / 2874 |
| Division Place | 21 / 439 |
| Age Grade | 69.4% |
| Pace | 6:56 |
| Agegrade | 69.4 |
| Placeagegrade | 261 |
| Ttlrace | 5062 |
| Ttldiv | 439 |
| Ttlsex | 2874 |
| 10K | 42:38 |
| Half | 1:30:25 |
| 20 Mile | 2:18:34 |
Great report my man! We definitely have a bond now! Its the best thing that came out of this race for sure! I am proud to call you my friend! Dan
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