So, I decided to put the wrong time for the race on my blog to force people to actually read the race report to find out how I did. I always find it more interesting when I don't look at the finishing time before reading a race report. I will correct the time and place in a few days. First off, I have nothing but good things to say about the town of Champaign-Urbana, and the organization of this race. I thought that they did a really good job of putting this race together, and weather permitting this course is fast! The only thing that really could have been more organized was the finishing chute, as things got chaotic once you crossed the line. Anyhow, on to the race. I got up at 5:00am and got ready, heading out the door for a warm-up starting at 6:00am. I checked the weather after I got up, and at 5:00am the wind was blowing 14 mph from the SSE. The wind was supposed to get progressively worse during the day, with 25 mph winds and gusts up to 40 mph. My guess is that the wind was blowing about 16-18 mph at the start of the race. I was hopeful that the wind would not hurt us too much early on in the race, and based on the direction of the wind I was hoping to get a solid tailwind from about mile 8-20. If this held to be true I was hopeful that I could still be in contention for the OTQ qualifier by mile 20, and then gut out the last 6 miles with the hope that there was some way I could maintain pace into the wind. By about 6:35am I had made my way over to the starting line and I went into the elite athlete room to relax a bit before the race. I ran a few strides, and at about 6:55am I went over to the starting line. The race started right on time, with the bikes going off at 6:59am, and the rest of us at 7:00am (half marathoners started at 7:30am). Following are mile splits for the race. Mile 1 - 5:18 - Just warmed into the pace not wanting to push too hard. the wind was at our backs, so it kept this mile fairly relaxed. Mile 2 - 5:20 (10:38)- A guy from Texas (Jose Munoz) takes the lead and I start drafting off of him as now we were running into the wind. Feeling like the pace is a little fast for this early in the race. Mile 3 - 5:24 (16:02)- I made a conscious decision to back off the pace and I let Jose and another guy go. It was a tough decision to make because I wanted to draft off of them, but I didn't want to push the pace too hard either. Mile 4 - 5:34 (21:36)- The wind was already killer. My effort was strong, but the pace wasn't. I was already looking forward to the eventual tailwind. Effort was about the same this mile as the previous, but the wind was stronger, and I was no longer drafting. Mile 5 - 5:27 (27:03)- The guy who tried to go with Jose was already dropping back, and I passed him this mile. I sped up a bit because I probably got excited and I didn't want him to draft off of me as he had really slowed down a lot and I knew he wasn't going to be helping me with the wind. Mile 6 - 5:30 (32:33)- Settling into the pace a bit more. Jose is not too far out in front (30-40 seconds maybe?) Mile 7 - 5:31 (38:04)- Still trying to relax, but not trying to run so slow that I put myself out of OTQ contention (already a minute behind pace) Mile 8 - 5:27 (43:31)- Looping through a park. Kind of a wetlands restoration sort of thing (but minus the wetlands part, this is Illinois, it was more of a grassland type thing I guess) Mile 9 - 5:27 (48:58)- Wondering why I don't feel like I have gotten any tailwind yet. Hoping that it starts up soon. Mile 10 - 5:14 (54:12)- Finally, I got some tailwind! At the 10 mile mark a guy tells me that I am 50 seconds behind the leader Jose. He is still very visible, and I can hear the sirens on the lead car sounding to announce that he is going through intersections. Mile 11 - 5:17 (59:29)- Effort about the same as during the previous mile, the problem is that I can tell it does not feel sustainable. While the wind is not in my face anymore it does not feel like it is really helping me. Mile 12 - 5:19 (1:04:48)- I turned onto a different street during this mile and immediately felt more headwind (I am supposed to get my tailwind until mile 20 whats up!!). The wind was mostly crossing, but it still slowed me down a little. Mile 13 - 5:20 (1:10:08)- Someone tells me that I am now 1:05 behind Jose. My pace is going in the wrong direction, so I am getting worried, and I am not getting the tailwind I was hoping for. The wind is only getting worse too. Half - 1:10:42 Miles 14 & 15 - 11:06 (1:21:14)- I missed the mark at mile 14, and I was surprised to see that I only averaged 5:33 over the 2 mile stretch at mile 15. With the wind and my beginning to slow, the race now becomes not one of getting an OTQ, but of not bonking and falling out of the money (money went 3 deep). Mile 16 - 5:52 (1:27:06)- I was very surprised by this mile. I can only assume that the wind was picking up more because I did not feel like I was already bonking, but the pace indicated I was. Mile 17 - 5:56 (1:33:02)- Pace is still slow, but at least it is still under 6:00. I am quickly falling behind the leader, but 3rd place is nowhere in sight, so he was probably at least as far behind me as I was behind 1st. Mile 18 - 5:41 (1:38:43)- I don't think I really got a tailwind this mile, I think that the wind just wasn't really hurting me this mile. I was at least happy that I was going a little faster. Mile 19 - 5:58 (1:44:41)- Not happy to see that my pace went right back where it had been once we got some more wind. Mile 20 - 6:09 (1:50:50)- My first mile slower than 6:00. I wasn't too happy with this, but I was still trying to hold on. I was now worried about the guys coming up from behind, although I still could not see them. I was about 2-3 minutes behind the leader Jose. Mile 21 - 6:19 (1:57:09)- I was having trouble keeping the contents of my stomach in. I think that I reacted poorly to my drinks, and when I picked up the last one at mile 21 I couldn't drink any of it. I took one gulp and almost threw up. Instead, I started swishing it in my mouth and spitting it out. That seemed to work. I was holding down water fine, so I started drinking that at every aid station thinking that maybe I got the osmolarity off with the bottles I mixed. Water should help speed up my system helping it to absorb nutrients. I notice after this mile that 3rd place is now visible and he is closing in on me. Mile 22 - 6:27 (2:03:36)- Still ahead of 3rd place, but not by much. He caught me shortly after I hit this marker. Mile 23 - 6:21 (2:09:57)- The 3rd place runner passes me during this mile. I try to stay with him for a brief moment but can not do it. He pulls maybe 5-10 seconds ahead by the end of this mile. When he passes I ask him how far back 4th place is. he thought maybe a minute. Miles 24 & 25 - 13:10 (2:23:07)- I didn't feel like I had slowed down an additional 14 seconds per mile during this stretch (6:35 average), and as with earlier I will attribute some of the slowdown to the wind getting stronger, but it is hard to say how much was from the wind and how much was from fatigue. At mile 25 I could see 4th place, and he was closing in on me. I did not want to fall out of the money, because I needed to pay for my trip, and I couldn't afford the trip otherwise. Mile 26.2 - 7:41 (2:30:48)- I really dug deep to stay in front of 4th place and I increased the effort this mile (6:18 average to the finish). Once I got going faster it felt sustainable, so I was kicking myself a bit, wondering if I was just weak mentally. Could I have stayed with the second place finisher when he passed me and mentally I just gave up? Could I have maintained the pace better from mile 20 to the finish instead of slowing down so much? I partly wonder this because the wind was stronger during this mile than during any other mile of the race (I think that we got one of those 40 mph gusts of wind during this mile). As we turned onto First Street heading to the University of Illinois football stadium I looked back and I knew that the guy in 4th would not catch me. Just to make sure I pushed as hard as during any other time in the race trying to fight the wind. I felt as if I were standing still the wind was blowing so hard. I turned into the stadium off of first street, and ran into the finish with a time of 2:30:48. Once I crossed the line a woman came up to me asking if I was the 3rd place marathon finisher (half marathoners were finishing too, so it was hard to tell) but I didn't have the chance to tell her. As soon as I finished I lost my breakfast and everything else that I drank during the race. I puked 5 or 6 times until there was nothing left in my stomach. I was then escorted over to the media guy to give a little interview of sorts and a little while later I was given my award for finishing third place ($800). My legs felt decent enough after the end of the race that I was able to jog over to the elite athlete room where I left my stuff pre-race, and then to my hotel so that I could shower. I was surprised that I didn't feel like I had hashed my legs completely. Overall I have mixed feelings about this race. I am obviously disappointed with the time, but I am happy that I payed for my expenses (hotel and airfare) by finishing third. I think that the wind cost us 5-6 minutes overall, which would have given me a 2:25 without the wind. If I would have paced myself better I probably would have been in the 2:23 range without the wind (I pushed myself too hard in the first half trying to stay within striking range of the OTQ which cost me later on in the race). This is not bad, but it is a far cry from the 2:19 I was shooting for. I obviously still have some issues that I need to work on, and this race was a good indicator for what those issues are. I am encouraged that I can run a 2:25 equivalent marathon even with a minor blowup (minor, but extended as my first mile over 5:50 was mile 16). Now it is time to get to things. I know I still have the OTQ in me. Things went better this time than they did in November (even with the wind) and if I get back to the drawing board and work on my weaknesses the OTQ will come. So, the official results have me at 2:30:56 (8 seconds slower) and have me 10 seconds slower than my watch at the halfway mark and the 20 mile mark. I think that our chips started early because there were 2 mats and we crossed the first before starting at the second just a bit later. I will go with my watch time, because that is probably more accurate.
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