Walt Disney World Marathon Review

Michael on the way to completing her first marathon!!!

Walt Disney World Marathon
January 8, 2012
Orlando, Florida
18th Marathon Completed
(First one completed with my wife!!!)
Overall Experience ... 5 out of 5


Spoiler Alert ...

• Maybe the best overall marathon experience ever
• Had the honor of running with my wife, Michael, in her first marathon ... she was AWESOME!!!
• Took pictures and video of Michael as she ran and just tried to stay out of her way
• Perfect weather ... 60's, sun, no wind
• Super-flat course
• Very well organized marathon from start to finish 
• Registered for the VIP Tent ... well worth the additional $100
• Stayed in an awesome Condo just a few miles from the Disney properties
• Early 5:30 AM start ... woke up at 1:30 AM to get ready for the race
• Only 4 out of 5 because the course got a little boring when not running in the Disney Parks
• Finishing a marathon with someone  you love is an unforgettable experience

Finisher Medal & Race Shirt...

Orlando, Florida ...

Central Florida is one of the biggest tourist attractions in the world.  It's home to all of the Walt Disney World properties located in Kissimmee, Florida including Magic Kingdom, Epcot Center, Animal Kingdom, ESPN Wide World of Sports, and Sea World - as well as the Universal Studios properties in downtown Orlando. It is also within driving distances of  both the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts and also the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Michael and I went to Universal Studios on Tuesday after the race and it seemed like we were be the only English speaking patrons in the park.  Orlando is definitively a world destination for vacations and holidays.  It was really cool seeing all of the different countries and regions of the world represented, although it made it tough at times to ask for a photo - but sign language usually sufficed.

The weather was perfect in Florida - about 60 degrees in the mornings, climbing to 75-80 in the afternoons.  It was a stark contrast to the 14 degrees that greeted us in Kansas City on Thursday morning back at home.  Overall, the city and weather could not have been more perfect.

Two idiots at ESPN Wide World of Sports

Michael & Mickey

Packet Pickup & Expo ...

Michelle,  Michael & me at packet pickup

We flew to Orlando on Saturday and weren't sure if we would land on time to pick up our race packets.  But two of Michael's friends - Michelle and Meredith - were also on the trip.  All three girls were running their first full marathons.  Michelle traveled with us, but  Meredith had made the trip a few days before with her family and did us a HUGE favor by picking our packets up for us .. a very kind and helpful gesture!  But once we landed, we had just enough time to head over to the Disney properties and check out the Expo for ourselves.  It was amazing!

This was probably the second biggest Race Expo I had ever been to.  It was held at ESPN Wide World of Sports and was awesome.  The ESPN grounds are home to several shops, conventional halls, sports fields, and the Atlanta Braves Spring Training complex.  I'm a huge sports nut - so I was in heaven. Michael couldn't have cared less about the sports, but she was walking on air at her first full marathon Expo!  She checked out pretty much every single item available for purchase before deciding on an "I DID IT!" t-shirt.  We joked later that the "I DID IT" logo looked like "IDIOT" ... which we we figured was applicable for someone who was running a marathon and putting their body through the torture!  Michael was a little hesitant to buy the t-shirt before the race.  She briefly tried it on, but took it off as quickly as possible so she didn't jinx her finish ... not a chance.  This girl was in it to win it!!!

All runners got a very high quality long-sleeve red technical t-shirt and a commemorative pin.  I'm not really a "wear a picture of Mickey Mouse on your t-shirt" guy, but the shirt was really cool - probably one of the best I've received.  Michelle, Michael and I spent time walking around the ESPN grounds and of course took several cheesy pictures.  It's what we do best!

The perfect dress rehearsal for the race ... Michael flying!!!  Me just trying to keep up!!! 

Beautiful girl with her "I Did It!" t-shirt

Two idiots and a giant lizard!!!

Travel, Lodging, and Meals ...

Our amazing Condo for the weekend

Orlando International Airport seemed very easy to navigate.  It was fairly small and an easy in and out upon arrival and departure.  I think we literally only stood in security for about 10 minutes total.  We rented a car and headed to one of the best things about the trip ... our friggin' free Condo!!!

Michael's triathlon friend Michelle hooked us up with a great two bedroom Condo through her work that was only a few miles from the Disney Complex.  It was beautiful!  And it was great of Michelle to invite us to stay ... it made the trip a lot less expensive and really relaxing and enjoyable.  The Condo had an awesome pool and clubhouse area that we took advantage of on one of the 80 degree days while in Orlando.  It was located in a nice gated community that was very safe and easy to access.  This beat the heck out of Hampton Inn where I usually stay!  It was awesome, and just another thing that helped make the entire trip unforgettable.

But here is a public service announcement to those of you who travel with two chicks that aren't as serious about their diet as you are ... BE PREPARED TO EAT CHICK-FIL-A the day before a race!!!   That's not the worst of it!  If Michael had her way, we would have eaten McDonalds.  That's right ... I said McDonalds!!!  The friggin' day before a marathon!!!  Now I've been known to down a pizza or two for a pre-race carb meal, but it serves a purpose.  I probably only eat Mickey D's or Chick about once a month or less ... and never would I think about putting all of that grease on my stomach the day before a race.  But not good ol' Michael & Michelle ... oh no!  They had no problem hitting up the drive through at the local grease pit!  I begrudgingly went along with it and later regretted it during the first half of the marathon.  More on that later.

But our pre-race dinner was fantastic!  Meredith, who was back at the Condo with her family, made a full spaghetti dinner for all of us the night before the race!  Again, another incredibly kind thing to do for all of us!  It was amazing.  It was so nice to go back to your FREE Condo and have a wonderful spaghetti dinner the night before a race.  This was by far the best pre-race setup I've ever experienced.  Simply amazing!  We were very fortunate and we're both thankful for Michelle!

Race Day ...

World Famous Pre-Race Dance Party!!!

As we got ready for bed the night before the race after preparing our gear bags, I could tell Michael was nervous.  It was about 7 PM and we would be waking up in a few short hours to get ready for the early 5:30 AM start. I kissed Michael and told her to try and relax, secretly snickering to myself knowing that she would probably not sleep a wink.  But I was out like a light and woke up at 1:30 AM.

When Michael woke up I asked her if she was ready to run her first marathon.  Sleepily she replied "No!".  But she rolled out of bed just in time for the World Famous Pre-Race Dance Party!!!  After that, we got ready and then the four of us - Michael, Michelle, Meredith, and me - were off to the VIP Tent that we had shelled out an extra $100 for.  Michael and I have been extremely blessed in our careers and are at the point where it's nice to be able to afford stuff like this ... but $100 each is still a big deal for us.  So I was hoping the pre and post-race tent would be worth the money.  And as a matter of fact ... it was worth EVERY PENNY!  It was awesome!  It was another one of the things that made this trip unforgettable and special.

When we walked into the VIP Tent, volunteers greeted us and cheered like we were celebrities.  Pretty cool!  Once inside the enormous tent, we experienced huge video screens, linen table clothes, a padded stretching area, massage therapists for after the race, Disney characters for photo-ops, a Disney merchandise area, and pretty much anything you wanted for breakfast from fruit to eggs and hash browns.  But probably the best features of the VIP Tent were the gear check area and private port-o-potties!  No standing in line at either!!! When we had to pee ... we walked up and peed ... just like that!  And when it was time for the race, we just walked up and dropped our gear ... easy-peasy!  It was soooo relaxing and stress-free.  I would HIGHLY recommend it if the $Benjamin isn't too much to fork out.  It's well worth it!

Just chillin' before the race in the VIP Tent

As race time neared, we dropped our gear and started the 1/2 mile walk to the starting line.  The Boston Marathon had a lengthy walk like this one, but it didn't seem too bad - just really congested.  Michael and the girls had worn throw away sweatshirts that later would be picked up and given to Goodwill.  But I had opted for short sleeves and shorts.  But I started getting a little chilly, so I tried putting on a plastic bag to hold in some of my body heat.  Problem ... the bag I brought with me was closer to a Glad Sandwich bag than a trash bag.  When I put it on, I literally looked like a giant wearing a Saltine Cracker wrapper.  Michael thought it was the funniest thing she had ever seen, but I was still cold.  So I did my best Incredible Hulk impression and made the best of it.

Disney had several starting groups and Michael and I were in one of the later ones, so we didn't have to kill ourselves to get to the starting line.  One of the cool things that Disney does is recreate the start for each group.  So each corral gets to experience their own set of fireworks and a count-down from Mickey Mouse himself! (It was really just a guy in a costume, but it was still pretty cool)  We were in starting group "F", and as each group was released at the start I watched as Michael started acting weirder and weirder!  This girl was pretty nervous ... but really excited!  As we started walking toward the starting line, I told her, "This is what you've worked for and this is YOUR DAY ... enjoy it!  I love you!"  And just like that, the fireworks for group "F" went off and Michael was running her first marathon.

"What is this ... a trash bag for ants?"

Since we started the race at 5:30 AM, the first few miles were dark and a little chilly.  I had discarded my pre-race warm-ups back at the VIP Tent, as well as my gloves.  My hands were freezing!  I'm a border-line germaphobe, but when I saw a pair of previously worn gloves lying on the ground ... my fear of germs gave way to warmth for my fingers.  Pretty gross I know - but my little hands were now nice and toasty!  The other thing I seemed to be dealing with immediately was my upset stomach.  It was the curse of the CHICK-FIL-A!!!  I struggled with "purging it from my system" for about the first 8-9 miles, but after that I was fine.

Me, Some Horse, Michael, Michelle, Meredith, and Woody before the race ...
All of us acting like grown adults EXCEPT for Michael???

I usually run most marathons around a 7:40 to 8:00 pace, with a finish time somewhere under 3:30.  I knew today would be a little different.  Michael runs at a little bit different pace and I knew including all of the photo-ops, we would be on the course for almost 6 hours.  Frankly, I had never ran for that long before, and I wasn't sure I could even do it.  But Michael had developed a wonderful run/walk plan that kept our legs fresh and gave us a breather here and there and it never seemed to be a problem.

Michael and a bunch of fruit in the VIP Tent

After the incredible start, the first park we ran through was Epcot Center.  It was amazing in the dark!!!  It was beautifully lit as we made our way through the various countries of the world featured at Epcot Center.  We ran by a beautifully lit lake that is in the center of the park.  And we could see the miniature Eiffel Tower brilliantly lit in the distance.  And there were Disney characters all along the path to greet us.  It barely seemed like we were running at all as we made our way down the streets of sparkling world center.

Dawn broke somewhere between Epcot and our next stop ... Magic Kingdom!  And as the sun came up we got our first glimpse of the Disney Castle ... and it was incredible!  All along the way so far I had been stopping here and there to take pictures and video of Michael, but in front of the Castle, there were several race volunteers and Disney staff to take a pictures.  This was also the first place where the huge crowds were evident.  There were people everywhere!  There was Disney music everywhere!  And all of the cheers made every runner feel like superstars on their big day.  This was probably the most memorable stretch of the race.

Hey look at us ... running a race in Magic Kingdom!

As we exited Magic Kingdom, I asked Michael how she was feeling.  Like a champ, she said "Awesome!"  I knew she was well  trained and the marathon would be very doable for her.  But I tried to keep encouraging her and letting her know just how proud I was of her!  She was amazing!  At no point did she really struggle ... only the typical fatigue that every runner faces in the last few miles.  Later in the race I tried to crack a few jokes with her, but she answered, "I can't deal with 'Jim' right now babe!".  I took that as my cue to shut up and keep running and snapping pictures.

The ONLY downside to the Walt Disney World Marathon is how much time you spend running when you are not in a park.  The race basically makes its way through four parks ... Epcot Center, Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios.  However, very little time is actually spent in each one.  Most of the race is spent on the connecting roads and parking lots between each theme park.  And some of the time in each of the parks is spent behind buildings next to dumpsters and employees on smoke breaks.  Disney has held this marathon for 20 years and they obviously have a reason to route the race like this, but it would have been nice to spend a little more time running through the different parks with more visual stimulation to take your mind off of the marathon.  But this is literally the only semi-negative thing about the weekend ... the rest of it was magical!

It's no secret that Michael and I are hams for the camera.  And this was on huge display as we ran the Disney Marathon.  There were great photo-ops everywhere.  We really wanted to get more photos with Disney characters, but the lines were sometimes 25 or 30 runners long and it would have eaten up a lot of the clock, so most of the time we kept moving.  Plus, I decided to run with our camera and snap pictures of Michael along the way, so we got some pretty cool photos without stopping.

Beautiful girl at Epcot Center 

Michael, me, Cap'n Hook ... and Doc or someone - who knows?

Beautiful girl at a waterstop

Run for your lives!!!!!!!!!!

Almost there ...

As the bright morning Florida sun began to shine, it started getting a little warmer - but it never seemed unbearable.  I asked Michael repeatedly if she was okay, and she answered, "I got this!!!"  We made sure we stopped at every water stop and took enough fluids and hydration was never a problem.  She was unbelievably strong!

After running through a smelly Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios, we finally made our way back into Epcot Center where the race began and finished.  I could tell she was ready to be done.  But also, there was a growing excitement as we neared the finish line.  I'm not sure who was more excited ... Michael or me!  I couldn't wait to experience the joy of the finish line of her first marathon with her.  And as we ran through the last .2 miles with the grandstands full of cheering people, I shouted to her again ...  "Enjoy this!  This is your day!!!"  ... and we raised our hands together as we crossed the finish line!

At the finish line Michael broke down in tears of joy and I hugged her and fought back tears of my own.  I was so proud of her.  She did it!  And I could tell that a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders.  She was finally a marathoner!

Beautiful girl after crossing the finish line of her first marathon!

A few more pictures from Michael's great day!

Two marathoners with their medals!!!

Two idiots with Buzz Lightyear ... and their marathon medals!!!

We finished in just under 6 hours - but it would have been much faster if we wouldn't have stopped for so many photos. But it was well worth it!  We have a ton of great photos and video from this great day.  I think Michael was a little disappointed with her time. But more than anything, she was thrilled that she had ran such a strong race and made it to the finish line to receive her coveted marathon medal!

After the race, we made our way back to the VIP Tent where Michelle and Meredith were waiting to give Michael a huge hug.  They had both ran great races too and finished their first marathons like champions!  The VIP Tent proved to be even more valuable after the race than it was before.  We quickly found a couple of chairs, a table, and chowed-down on a great post-race meal that was waiting for us.  We also got a great pair of red Disney Marathon socks that only VIP Tent guests were given ... pretty cool!  We all visited for a while trading stories from the race, and then made our way back to the Condo for some well deserved rest and relaxation.

I've ran several marathons. The 2012 Walt Disney World Marathon was my 18th overall.  And I'm hopefully on my way to running one in every state.  But I can tell you that out of all  my marathons, this was probably the most memorable because I got to experience it through the eyes of my lovely wife.  She will be the first to tell you that she's not a natural runner.  But she worked so hard for this day and I couldn't have been more proud of her.  She fought, and battled, and persevered to the finish ... and finish she did!  She is forever a marathoner, and no one can ever take that from her.  She will tell you that she felt like a hero on Sunday at the race ... but she seems like that every day to me.  I love you sweetie ... congratulations!
... be great today!

Little Rock Marathon Review

2009 Little Rock Marathon

Starting line for the Little Rock Marathon adjacent to
The William J. Clinton Presidential Library & Museum

March 15, 2009
Little Rock, Arkansas
1st Marathon Completed
Overall Experience 1 2 3 4 5

Overview...
   - My first Marathon ever
   - Used 16 week training plan
   - Battled flu-like symptoms week before
   - Watching the race got Michael into running,

      racing, and triathlons
   - Made a lot of "Rookie Mistakes" ...
      my first mile was 7:00/pace
   - Really hit the wall at mile 22
   - Great time ... really gave me "Marathon
      Fever"!!!

Finisher Medal

The Little Rock Marathon is know for it's "Largest finisher medal ever" ... about 9" tall and 5" wide ... pretty cool!

Little Rock, Arkansas

Forget all the jokes you've heard about Arkansas.  "No Shoes" ... "Echoing banjo's through the pine trees down by the river" ... "Squealin' hogs everywhere".  I grew up in neighboring Missouri and have always know that they don't call Arkansas "The Natural State" for nothing.  It is beautiful!!!  But while being raised only a few hours to the North, I had never visited Little Rock, the capital city of Arkansas.  It is an amazing city.

Mile 2 at the 2011 Little Rock Marathon

Little Rock is really a big "River Town", nestled on the South banks of the Arkansas River.  As you come in from the North at night, you see the city lit up and reflecting off of the water.  Most of the downtown entertainment district is located directly adjacent to the river as well.  The State Capital building is also nearby as well as the Bill Clinton Library.  The people were also very friendly and it was extremely easy to get around.  There were a ton of shops and restaurants within walking distance of our hotel.  And while I had never been to Little Rock before, I would definitely go back just as a destination on its own.

My first marathon finisher shirt!!!

Marathon Training & The Flu

Up to this point, I had only ran one half-marathon, and a handful of 5K's.  So I researched quite a bit to find out what training plan to use.  I went with RunnersWorld.com and their cumulative plan from many experts.  I trained for about four months using their plan diligently.  The plan was fine, but I never felt like the long runs were long enough.  I think I only had 3 twenty miles runs and a couple 18 miles runs.  Once I hit twenty on race day, I kind of mentally freaked out since I had never been that far before.  But physically I think I was fine, and the training plan was probably appropriate.  Overall, I found training for my first marathon to be fairly easy and enjoyable, but there were some external factors that played a big part during the run.

The week of the marathon I had business in Wichita, KS.  On the Monday before the race, I came down with flu-like symptoms.  It only got worse as the week continued.  On Tuesday I vomited about 7 or 8 times and had a throbbing headache.  I was devastated.  Along with feeling horrible, I knew a good finishing time, and possibly a even finish at all in my first marathon were going to be difficult.  How could I run the longest race of my life if I wasn't in top physical condition. As the week progressed, I still felt pretty bad, but we went ahead and made the trip to Little Rock.  I felt pretty sick until the day of the race when adrenaline kicked in and I felt a lot better.  But I was really dehydrated and felt pretty weak from being sick the days prior.

REALLY REALLY nervous at the starting line

I'm sure getting sick was just one in the long line of "rookie mistakes" I made when preparing for the race.  The immune system is more vulnerable during taper and I didn't change my diet to compensate.  Also, in all races since then, I've started pumping Vitamin C the week of a race so I don't go through that again.  I also pumped a lot of medicine into my system that week before the marathon.  I have no doubt that it helped in dehydrating me quite a bit.  So I've also tried to limit what I take before a marathon.

My First Marathon Race Day
Michael and I stayed in the Hampton in downtown which was located only about 3 blocks from the starting line.  It was awesome.  Everything was so close!  I of course, tossed and turned all night with anticipation about what the next day would bring.  I was obviously anxious about the race, but probably more than anything weighing on my mind was how sick I had been all week.  I felt weak and really light headed.  But I rolled out of bed about 3:30 ready to face whatever the day might bring.

Quietly (so I didn't wake Michael) I threw on some clothes and decided to walk down to the finish line, where hopefully I would be crossing in a few hours.  The weather was perfect - about 50 degrees with no wind at all!  As I neared the vacant finish corals and empty stands, I imagined myself crossing the finish line and how great it was going to feel to call myself a "Marathoner"!  It wasn't completely dark out, but by that point there was kind of a pre-dawn dimly lit sky.  Just enough that I couldn't see very well.  As I started to walk back to the hotel, I slammed straight into a knee-high landscaping rock.  I knocked me to the ground and I saw stars, said a few choice words, and began hopping around on the other leg.  I had blasted my right shin on the rock and when I looked down, I was bleeding and a knot was immediately beginning to form.  It was bad enough that it made me limp around for while, but the blood looked worse than it was.  It was really just a little scrape ... but it hurt like a Banshee!!!  So now, along with being sick all week, I began worrying about the gimpy leg.  I limped back to the room and threw some ice on it and waited until time for the race.

Temporary tattoo my son, Gage, gave me for the race

At the starting line, my stomach was fluttering with the typical nervousness of a big and inauguralpre-race photos at the starting line that I am scared to death and nervous as heck. 

To calm my nerves I started rubbing the black bracelet that my daughter, Madi, had made for me for good luck.  I also rubbed the temporary tattoo my son had inking on my inner arm that read "HERO!"  It really seemed to calm me down until out of nowhere ... BANG!!!  The race began.

A weird thing happened when we started running.  I seemed to lose all nervousness and the sickness from the prior week seemed to fade away.  I was caught up.  Adrenaline was racing.  Unfortunately so was I.  I made another huge rookie mistake in the first few miles.  At the 1 mile marker I looked down and I had ran a 7:03 mile ... MILE ONE!!!  That was waaaaaay too fast.  So I slowed my pace as much as I could, but I felt like I was crawling.  At mile two ... 7:35.  Still way over my planned pace and I knew I had to slow a little more.  Fortunately I was able to slow down a little, but still ran the first half of the race, which was really flat, at about a 7:45 pace.  I felt smooth.  I felt fast. And I felt like I had plenty of energy ... that is until I hit the hills in the second half.

"Oh my back!" Actually I was
reaching for a gel.

After you cross the half-way point, you being a fairly quick climb of about 175 feet through a nice tree lined neighborhood North of town that overlooks the Arkansas River.   I had done quite a bit of hill training, but I wasn't ready for these hills.  They were longer and tougher than anything I had trained on.  And I had spent a lot of energy thinking I was a Kenyan on the first half.  And I could really feel myself beginning to wear down a little.  But I fought through the hills and made it down the steep back side, burning up quads a little, until I came to mile 18 where a six mile out-and-back along Riverfront Drive began.

I had never ran an out-and-back in a race before.  And for some reason, this one freaked me out a little.  I was really starting to hurt a mile 18 but wasn't going to quit.  I know my face was starting to show signs of fatigue, but as I looked at the faces of the runners coming toward me at about mile 22, their faces were relaxed and stress-free.  "Man, I'm in trouble", I thought to myself.  I felt like crap and these people who were miles in front of me were cruising.   I looked at my lap counter on my Casio watch and it counted lap 20 ... lap 21 ... lap 22.  I had never been above 20 and it looked a little surreal to see these numbers on the screen face.  I was really beginning to wish that I had ran further in my training runs.  After all the marathons I've ran, for some reason that out-and-back stretch remains one of the toughest I've ever been on.

I made it out of the out-and-back around mile 23, but really had very little gas left in the tank.  I pushed as far into mile 23 as I could, but finally had to walk a little.  My pace had slowed way down and a ton of fatigue had set in.  I started rubbing my good luck charms again and praying a lot.  I was thinking about my family and how I couldn't let them down.  My time was not going to anywhere near where I had planned, but I was going to finish!  Slowly through the remainder of mile 23 and 24, 25, and 26 I ran the down hills, but walked the up hills.  And as I hit the .2 of the race I knew I was gonna make it.

As I crossed the finish line I was overcome by emotion.  I began looking for Michael and holding back tears of leg pain and completion joy.  When I finally got to her I began sobbing.  She asked me if I was okay ... like physically ... and I told her I was fine.  I have no idea why I cried like a baby, but I was so relieved to have this goal accomplished that I had worked so hard for and I couldn't believe that it was over.  My time in first marathon was 3:43:45 ... nothing to brag about, but it was a great accomplishment for me!  We gathered some recovery snacks and headed back to the room.

Early the next morning, as I hobbled down to the kitchen of my hotel, I met a 65 year old man who had just completed his 100th marathon at Little Rock.  It was pretty humbling.  He was up hopping around the kitchen like an 18 year old and I was stiff-legged and barely moving.  I sat and talked to him about his experiences with running.  Up until that point, I thought that most people only ran one or two marathons a year.  He told me he ran one every three weeks.  He was amazing and truly an inspiration.  After our conversation, even though my legs were killing me, I thought, "If this guy can do it ... I can too!"  And that's kind of what got me into running several marathons each year.  He was a real inspiration.

I wasn't the only one who got more of the marathon bug at Little Rock.  Michael told me on the way back to Kansas City that watching the runners cross the finish line made her want to do a race.  And on that day, I think a competitive fire was stoked in her that has made her pursue races and triathlons ever since.  I was really sore the next few days, but the pain was eased somewhat by knowing that even if I never ran another one ... I was now a marathoner!  And it was  a pretty good feeling!
... be great today!

Rocket City Marathon Review

2011 Rocket City Marathon
December 10, 2011
Huntsville, Alabama
17th Marathon Completed
My Overall Experience ... 3 out of 5

Spoiler Alert...

• Really regret not planning this as an "A" race this year - probably the fastest course I've ever ran
• Good winter marathon, needs some modernizing
• Nice pre and post-race organization - runner "recovery" area was actually in a hotel
• Great heated tents for supporters along the course
• Weather was cool, but not an issue at all
• Not enough water at the end - 3 stops in last 6 miles
• Course mix-up at mile 15, local police had to correct during the race weaving in and out of runners
• Organizers way too worried about "no-headphone" rule - it was their obvious focus throughout the weekend
• Least favorite marathon medal I've received so far
• Probably least favorite shirt I've received so far, but cool "finisher" hat at the end
• After PR'ing 3 weeks prior, ran a fairly slow, but satisfying race
• Finish time of 3:38:06, 8:19/pace, but not really too worried about the clock in this one
• Based on my performance, the race, and the city - a very forgettable marathon

Finisher Medal ...

2011 Rocket City Marathon Medal
Probably my least favorite so far (but I'm not really a "medal guy", so not a big deal)

Huntsville, Alabama

Space Shuttle Pathfinder in "Rocket Park"
At The U.S. Space & Rocket Center

Huntsville, Alabama is a nice "Southern" city located in the Northern portion of the State.  The city got it's nickname "Rocket City" because of it's strong ties to the United States Space industry.  But maybe because of its highly technological background, or simply the Northern geographical location in the State, it hardly seemed like a typical Southern U.S. city.  In fact, I've been to Birmingham, Alabama a few times, and the two cities couldn't be more contrasting.  I love the South - it's my favorite area of the United States, but Huntsville felt exactly like most Northern and Midwestern cities I've visited.


Vietnam War Memorial

Downtown Huntsville was modern, clean, and well kept. If you looked hard enough, you could find evidence of it's Southern heritage, but mostly it seemed very corporate.  As always, I stayed at the Hampton Inn.  This one was located by the Airport, which was near a suburban area with the typical shopping centers and restaurants.  The traffic was bumper-to-bumper most of the time in this area, probably due to Christmas shoppers.

Also located in this area of Huntsville was the U.S. Space And Rocket Center.  The city is one of the original pioneers of U.S. space exploration.  In fact, many of the original rockets and satellites are housed here as a giant Space museum.   I didn't have time to go on the tour, which would have been awesome, but I did get a few cool pictures of the rockets and space shuttle parked outside the facility.  You could literally see the giant rockets from miles away on the highway.   I was amazed at how big the actual vessels were in real life.  And it's unbelievable how much power and fuel it takes to launch these enormous projectiles into space.  All-in-all I found Huntsville, Alabama to be a very nice place to visit for a marathon.  But unfortunately other than the Space Center, there wasn't much there that stood out from every other medium-sized U.S. city I've been to or lived in.  It's not that there was anything bad about Huntsville, I just expected more Southern culture.

Really Rocket City ... THIS is how you say "Hello!"

Packet Pick-Up &
Getting the "No Headphone" Point Across
The pre-race Expo and packet pick-up were very small, but well organized.  They were held in a Conference Room at the Holiday Inn Hotel in Downtown Huntsville.  The hotel was actually the location of both the starting and finish lines.   It was an awesome setup because we got to wait inside the hotel until the race started, and then relax again inside the hotel immediately after the race ended.

The very first thing I saw as I entered the room where the Expo was held was a sign on the door stating "NO HEADPHONES".  I'm not kidding - it was literally the FRIGGIN' VERY FIRST THING posted on the door into the marathon!!!  Not "Welcome to Alabama", or "Hey Y'all", or "Check Out Our Rockets", or maybe even "THANK YOU FOR TRAVELLING TO OUR CITY AND SPENDING A  LOT OF MONEY HERE" ... but a warning about the potentially lethal dangers of iPods, MP3's, or music players of any kind.  Considering how I feel about this whole outdated & elitist rule, I felt it was a "very appropriate" warm welcome.

Small Expo & Packet Pick-Up

The volunteers handing out bib numbers were very friendly, but it was more of the same.  After asking for identification for my race packet (because ya know - there are literally thousands of people who show up for races and try to steal bib numbers and timing chips), they again reminded me "Remember, headphones aren't allowed!"  Not a "Hi, where are you from?", or "Are you ready for the big race tomorrow?", or "THANK YOU FOR TRAVELLING TO OUR CITY AND SPENDING A LOT OF MONEY HERE" ... but instead another admonition about headphone hazards.  Yeah, I get it!

But at the starting line, the Rocket City Marathon race directors finally made it clear what this rule was really all about.  As the 65 year old P.A. announcer read a written statement about how running a marathon could potentially kill you (literally, this is what he said), he also tacked on a, "Remember folks ... headphones are not allowed ... we want you to enjoy the beauty of our city and the fellowship of running with other runners ...  there is no need for outside interference from loud music from iPods or MP3 players."  Ah thank you ... that's all you had to say!  Instead of this B.S. about "our insurance policy won't allow it" or "it's a safety issue" ... just say "We here at Rocket City feel that even though 80% of runners today use headphones, we don't like them ... we don't feel you're a real runner if you use them ... and we are a little above them!"  I would have had a whole lot more respect for them if they would've just shown their true colors and been honest from the beginning ... even though it was blatantly obvious a along.  Just say you don't like 'em homie!  Don't hide behind some transparent rule.

The race packet was small and simple, which I liked.  I wasn't crazy about the technical t-shirt, but this was just a personal preference.  I'm sure some people loved it.  The bibs were assigned from "fastest runner to slowest runner".  You had to report your most recent time and your PR when you signed up for the race, and then your bib number was ranked according to your time.  My bib number was 106 out of about 1,100 - which was pretty cool because I had a "lowerish number" and got to start toward the front.  But I could understand where a lot of people would have a problem with this "ranking" system.  I'm always very aware of my times and am always trying to improve - but it's just to track my personal progression - it in no way is to place myself in some sort of category from fastest to slowest.  I'm not sure being able to compare other runners by what number you are wearing was necessary - like, "Oh look, that guy's a 900 number, he must be really slow!"  or, "Wow, she's a double digit - she must fly!" ... but hey, I think headphones should be allowed, so what do I know!  


Meals

I did a pretty good job maintaining a healthy diet the few days leading up to the race.  I've been eating a lot more salads lately with a little less protein.  I've also really been trying to reduce my gluten intake.  Not because I have trouble with it or anything ... but just experimenting to find out how my body reacts.  And accordingly, I've stopped eating near as much bread.  However I did have a Subway Turkey on Wheat a couple of times on Thursday and Friday before the race.  But other than that, I didn't carb up near as much as usual and felt totally fine throughout the race.

After the race however, I went to Five Guys Burgers!  I have no idea why.  I've only eaten there one other time in my life.  Plus, I really only eat red meat about once a week.  But for some it seemed to call my name as I drove by after the race.  Of course I had to have some fries too.  If you've ever been to Five Guys Burgers, you know you get like a whole grocery sack full of fries.  No wonder everyone in this country is 50 lbs over weight.  But it tasted so good - so sue me!!! Plus, I'm fairly sure double cheeseburgers are good recovery meals after a long run.

Race & Course

I had PR'd at Tulsa about 3 weeks before this race.   It was really a "tactical error" on my part because Tulsa was a much tougher course than this one.  (After running this one I knew I would have been a lot faster on my PR.)  So from about a week after I ran in Oklahoma, I wasn't really feelin' this one.  In fact I told Michael a few days before the race that I really didn't want to run it.  But I had already paid so I decided to go anyway.  Plus, Rachelle of "Running For Trevor" commented on my blog after I had complained about the weather, "I suggest you put on your big girl panties and go out there and make the best of it."  To date, it was my most favorite comment anyone has ever left!  I wondered how she knew I wore women's underwear, but more importantly I didn't want let this great runner down!  So off I went.


Wasn't really feelin' 26.2 on Saturday

The forecast for Saturday was a little chilly leading up to the race.  It was supposed to be in the mid 30's with 12-15mph winds.   But when I woke up that morning, it was about 38 degrees, with only about 8mph wind.  I probably really overdressed for the race, but the temperature and wind were never an issue at all.   

I drove into town for the race and waited around in the lobby of the Holiday Inn.  It was nice and warm.  It was kinda funny to hear all of the local folks talking about how "frigid" it was outside.  I didn't think it was too bad.

I had driven the course the day before and when the race started was immediately reminded of how flat it was.  There was only 410ft of elevation gain on the whole course.  And the very few "hills" were very very gently rolling.  The course was a breeze!  I know looking back in a few years, I'll wish I would used this race as an "A" race for the latter part of 2011.  You find many courses as flat and as fast as this one!

I'm a HUGE headphone user when I run, so I was a little concerned with no headphones for this fairly boring and uneventful marathon.  I had ran a couple of marathons before without headphones, so I obviously knew I could do it.  I just didn't want to.  But it was never really that big of an issue.

I decided to just run an average race without being that concerned with the clock and felt really good for most of the race.  I had been working on changing my running form and foot strike a little over the previous few weeks.  So I decided just to see how far I could go using a forefoot strike (the Pose method).  It worked great and I really only stared totally midfoot striking at about mile 20.  My calves were a littler sorer than normal the next day, but that was it - everything else felt fine with almost no soreness!

The best street in Huntsville ... maybe EVER!!!

The race started in the downtown area and took runners through some of the historic areas, which were really cool.  After about two miles of that though, it was strictly residential for the rest of the race.  House after house ... average neighborhood after neighborhood.  But it was a nice, clean, average sized town.  Overall, the course was a little boring, but not bad.

At about mile 10 we crossed Weatherly Road!  (My name is Jim Weatherly)  It was really cool ... a whole street named after me!  I had seen streets with my kid's first names on them several times in the past, but never Weatherly.  Several people running close to  me commented on what a great street it was.  They had never seen such a wonderful road and were honored to cross it during the race.  That really meant a lot to me.  (Or ... it was just another random street to them.)

At mile 15 we had a little mix up.  As we turned back North toward downtown, all of the runners crossed into the South-bound lane based on the way the cones were set up.  I noticed that a couple of cars came really close to us a really high speed.  All of the sudden a police officer started weaving in and out of the runners in his cruiser announcing, "All runners need to be in the North-bound lane!  All runners move over immediately!"  As we did, a couple of more cars breezed by.  Kind of unsafe.  It wasn't a huge deal other than it broke your focus and pace a little.  After this mile long stretch, everything was back to normal.

I felt great until about mile 20.  I was a little faster than my PR time, but didn't feel overly stressed at all.  But at mile 20 is where I usually have to bear down and concentrate on pace and keeping my legs moving quickly.  As I said before, I had just went through this exercise three weeks prior ... and really didn't have a strong enough will to do again on Saturday.  So I slowed down.  I mean WAAAAAAAYYYYY down.  At that point I was averaging about 7:20-7:30/mile, but I started charting miles at 9:30-9:45.  But I really didn't care.  It's not like I hit the wall or anything ... I just really lost interest.  Don't get me wrong - I was tired.  But more than anything, nearly 3,000 miles of running, 9 marathons, and 17 races in 2011 had finally caught up with me.  I was mentally spent and just couldn't focus.  I didn't quit - but my pace was very slow and all I wanted to do was cross the finish line and get back to Kansas City.

Fast flat 2011 Rocket City Marathon Elevation - only 410' of elevation gain

One thing that wasn't great about the race was the water situation.  It was okay until mile 20, but from there on, there were only three (maybe 4) water stops.  Typically in a marathon, the water stops are placed at every mile for the last 6.  But not here.  It was a little frustrating because I really needed the fluid.  I'm sure they had it posted on their website prior to the race right next the "no headphone" rule, but if they did, I missed it.

Idiot in an orange Finisher's Cap

At about mile 24 I started talking to a guy named Bill who had just ran 3 weeks before in Nashville, and was apparently experiencing the same thing as me.  We chatted a little and then decided to run the last two miles together.  He was a really cool guy and we really helped each other finish.  He was probably getting a little annoyed with me because I think he was really hurting, but I was fine ... I just wanted to be done.  To pass the last few miles I started talking to almost everyone we passed.  I asked a lady who had a Marine Corps Marathon shirt on, "Hey, when did you run the Marine Corps Marathon?"  She was dying, and snapped "I dunno!"  So as we passed, I said "Okay, you're lookin' good - finish strong!"  Then we passed a guy with a Country Music Marathon hat on and I asked him, "Is that a hilly marathon?"  He gasped, "Yeah."  I wasn't trying to be a wise guy or anything - I just didn't feel that bad and felt like talking.  I asked a crowd of people at mile 25, "Have any girls passed me yet?" (my usual marathon joke)  They just laughed and said, "Yeah a couple!" 

Bill and I had really slowed down but made it across the finish line.  We shook hands as we crossed the line and he thanked me for "getting him to the finish".  It really made the day worthwhile!  I felt like I had really helped him.  At the finish line, the volunteers were great!  They gave us our medal and an orange finisher hat.  I had never received a finisher hat for a marathon, so it was pretty cool!

The post race activities were back inside the Holiday Inn where they had a lot of great food and fluids.  Everyone was great and was a nice finishing touch on the marathon!  My finishing time was 3:38:06.  Not a fast time for me, but it was totally fine!  I had a good time and had helped a fellow runner cross the finish line a little faster than he thought he might have if we hadn't met. 

Summary
All-in-all, the Rocket City Marathon is a good race that I would run again if I lived closer.  It needs some updating ... in my opinion.  The no headphone rule is outdated and pointless when 80% of the field typically runs with them.  Also, it took until late in the afternoon to post results on their site.  Kind of unacceptable since it is 2011.  Also, it would have been nice if the course was marked correctly and there was more water at miles 20-26.  (But really this is me just bitchin' about the headphone thing.)  At the end of the day, it's a good flat fast winter race that I will highly recommend to anyone who asks!

... be great today!