Don’t miss the thrilling recap of the first part of the Mountains2Beach Marathon here. And now the race continues….
Miles 18-21 (8:34, 9:02, 9:23, 9:39)
I saw Mike and the girls again at mile 18 and I felt strong at that point. If I kept the pace under 8:46 for miles 19-26.2 I was on target to come in under 3:45, but it was not meant to be. I slipped from 8:34 for mile 18 to 9:02 for mile 19. It was right around mile 18 that the 3:45 pacer passed me and I hung in behind him for dear life for another mile or so but could not keep up. In spite of (because of?) taking a gel with caffeine around mile 18, I hit the wall and my splits got slower from there on out.
Near mile 18 the trail goes through some more industrial sections and is completely exposed to the sun. Last year’s race (I hear) was more overcast but this year we were getting beaten by the sun. The temperature wasn’t more than 65 degrees down in Ventura and there was a breeze, but I wouldn’t have minded some clouds! At mile 21 the course stops declining and hits the beach streets and boardwalk in Ventura. That is a really rough section of the course emotionally and physically. After the downhill miles from 0-21, the flat might as well have been uphill. You pass the finish line at mile 21 and still have 5.2 miles to go! I knew it was coming, I’d read several other race reports and studied the course, but you have no idea how rough it is until you run it.
Miles 22-24 (10:39, 10:46, 11:27)
By mile 22 I was really struggling and my splits dropped into the 10s and then 11s. It seemed like mile 24 would never end. My body screamed, “Stop! Stop running!” and my mind yelled, “Go! Move your legs! Why are you so slow?!” It was awful watching the other runners heading back toward the finish line. I would never cut the course (it would only be cheating myself) but I cannot tell you how tempting it was and how easy it would have been.
Miles 25-26.24 (11:14, 10:08, 9:13)
Apparently when I passed the turnaround at mile 24 and realized I wasn’t going to collapse right there on the course, I was able to pick the pace up slightly and give it a kick at the end. I got the pace back down to 10:08 for mile 26 and then hit 9:13 for the sprint to the finish. I had a sub-4 in my sights and I wasn’t going to let go! I came in at 3:57:29, which is a personal record by five minutes and 10 seconds.
Finish Line Expo
The oranges at the finish line expo tasted heavenly! I gobbled up a few slices and grabbed some Clif Bars and cups of water and met up with my family. We walked toward the shore with the thought that I would take an ice bath in the ocean, but I could not make it over the rocks at the beach. With some help bending my sore legs, I sat down on one of the rocks and focused on catching my breath. I felt drained and I wasn’t recovering like I usually do after a race. In fact, I started shaking uncontrollably and couldn’t stop. When that continued for about 30 minutes, I realized I should get to a medical tent to get checked out. Unfortunately by that time Mike had taken one of the girls to the restroom, so it was up to my oldest to guide me and my youngest. It didn’t help that at that point, I burst into tears. I felt overwhelmed and disappointed, not that I didn’t get a 3:45, but that I’d bonked so bad and didn’t meet my goal of enjoying the race.
Another runner saw me sobbing and he escorted me to the medical tent. Gilbert, thank you so much for your kindness! There are lots of people I should thank — everyone at the medical tent including the nurse from UCLA, and the EMTs who took my vital signs, and the man who got me some dry t-shirts and a blanket to warm me and some Gatorade and chips.
My vital signs all checked out — my blood pressure was 150 over 90 (not dangerously high), and my pulse was 67. The EMTs gave me some oxygen and just had me rest. It was another 30 minutes though before I finally stopped shaking and felt well enough to walk back to my car with Mike (after I paid for the t-shirts I’d been given) a full hour after I’d finished the race.
As I said, I need some more time to process the experience and see how I feel about it all. I can’t be too traumatized by it because I’ve already set my sights on another marathon (Long Beach on October 13). My main concern is figuring out why I bonked so bad in the race when my five 20-mile runs went so well during training. I happen to be getting blood tests done tomorrow to check on my thyroid, which I suspect is the culprit in the uncontrollable shaking. The only other time I’ve ever had the shakes like that is when I went to the dentist when I was hyperthyroid (but didn’t know it) and I had a reaction to the epinephrine in the dental anesthesia. Perhaps my thyroid levels are high and I need to reduce the dose of thyroid supplements I’m taking. Or perhaps the adrenaline from the race simply pushed me over the edge. All I know is that I never want it to happen again! [Edited to add: My thyroid levels turned out to be normal. I now suspect that the shaking was due to dehydration and/or under-fueling — in spite of my best efforts at planning I did not consume enough liquids and calories during the race.]
All in all, I am proud of myself for being dedicated to the training, for reaching for an ambitious goal, for toughing out a difficult race, for pulling out a sub-4 time and 5 minute PR, and for bouncing back to be ready and willing to race again. I feel great physically — better than I did after my first marathon — and I find myself wanting to build on my training to go on and have an even better race next time.
Fit Fun Mom 