8-17-13 Thunder Rumble 5K - Tumwater

My 300th race, but after the hoopla of six days ago, lets just keep it low key.  First time event.  I had not planned to race today, but found myself with free time this morning.  The race benefits military and their families.  It was not largely advertised so I expect a small turn out.  It looks to be pretty well organized with Rich Brown doing the timing.  The porta-potties do not arrive until after the race is over, but luckily it is not a problem for me.  Day of race entry is $30 and I get what I believe to be my 131st race T-shirt.

How are the legs?  I ran 50.2 miles six days ago.  I took three days off and did and easy 2.1 miles on Thursday.  That run included walk breaks.  No real stiffness or soreness just tired.  I am just here to get in a couple of miles and have fun.  Small race with good raffles.  I was going to run a few miles anyway, might as well join the fun here.  I expect a 25-26 minute finish time.

My arches are fully recovered from the plantar faciitis of last winter.  It was a year ago that they started acting up.  One cause was too many miles in a different shoe.  I love the feel of the Brooks Launch, but it does not have the arch support that I need.  I have not worn them since the disastrous Portland Marathon of last October.  But I wear them today for this short race.  I promise that I will never wear them for long runs though.

When I arrive at the site, the flat roads near the airport, I see that the Army has sent a large force.  Good thing they are not in my age group, I think.  I am worried that it will be a jam up and a much larger event, but only a handful of soldiers will be registered runners.  Most will start in the back and stay in formation, all coming in right at the 30 minute mark.

I see Tammy.  Third race in a row where I have seen here.  She wants to do a warm up mile or so.  We have a half hour to the start and we set off at an easy pace.  Wow, my legs feel much better than expected.  I warm up easily and I love these shoes.  I am able to get in some surges and sprints before the start.  Everything feels great.  I don't have a single part of me that is nagging or worrisome in any way.  This is very rare.  I might as well run as fast as I can and dial it back if anything comes up.

Start - We all line up and start right on time.  Thanks to the city of Tumwater we should not get lost.  Just follow the cones.

I am behind Mike Henderson.  I am running way faster than I should.  Small race with plenty of room to do my own thing.  At about 0.75 miles I pass Mike.  He stays right behind me though.

Mile 1 - 7:16  Mike has coached High School track and cross country for many years and now I am one of his students.  He is encouraging me and advising me to relax my arms. "Don't slow down, just keep tapping away...tap tap tap".  

Mile 1.5 - Aid station.  I think about some water and decide that I probably do not need it. But then I see that my friend Tina is handing out cups.  I take one, sloshing most on my face and shirt, but a little goes in my mouth.  Gentle headwind and starting to slow.  Gasping for air.

Mile 2 - Legs are fine, I just do not have breath.  Mike still coaching me.  Ugh, I did tell him about the 50 miles I just ran. Why won't he pass me and leave me alone!  Then I could just ease back. 

Mile 2.5 - I wish that I could just slow down, this is so hard. Nothing hurts and I am not quite at the pace where I think I will vomit, so I push on.  In a way I am glad that Mike is with me as I know that I will slow if/when he does get past me.  In fact he soon turns it on for a sprint to the finish and I try to go faster but simply can not. Another guy comes zooming past me and then it is the final turn.

Mile 3.1 - Finished. 3.08 on the GPS.  22:54 on the clock.  Quite a bit faster than my last 5K in June, I am ecstatic about that finish time.  It is so much fun to run fast, I really felt like I was flying for the first part anyway.  Very unexpected.  It makes me want to work harder to get faster and with my next marathon more than six weeks away, I do have time to work on faster paces.

Great raffle prizes but alas I do not win any.  I do get a first place in my age group medal.  So does Tammy.  Strange age group groupings.  There is a 31-33 age group.  Mine is 45-50.  Great to see Richard Olafson take command of the 80+ age group.

Next up, I hope to run the Over the Narrows 10 miler in two weeks. 


22:54
13th place of 105
race#300
*****

8/11/13 Transcendence 12 hour Olympia

My 100th marathon or ultra!  About 5 years ago I made the ambitious goal of running 50 marathons by age 50.  Now I am at 100 and three years early.  A year ago I mapped it all out and was planning for number 100 at Tacoma in May.  But my plantar had other ideas and I missed a couple of months of racing.  The feet are fine now.  In fact everything feels good and since it has been a month since my last marathon, I have even been able to incorporate some speed workouts with the regular runs.  Nothing speedy about today though.  Today it is all about the endurance to keep moving and about celebrating number 100.

My 4th time here.  I am a "legacy" runner, having completed all of the previous events.

It is a small event, capped at 70, but many of the runners are my Marathon Maniac friends.  I do not train with the local clubs, so races are my running social outlet.  A few miles a the end of a marathon is all it takes to bond with a fellow sufferer.  Years ago it was all about finish time and what I could accomplish.  Now I look forward to sharing the adventure with others and seeing how it will unfold.

When I heard that Ginger had to be in Portland the day before the race and was asking about where she might sleep in her car for a few hours, or find a cheap hotel, I said "nonsense" and invited her to stay with us.  She is one of my favorite Maniacs and it was fun to start my celebration by hosting her.  I gave her the "medal room" and put out various running relating comfort items like a banana and bottle of gatorade so she would feel at home.  She will go on to run 68 miles, win the women's race and break the course record that she set last year.  Since the race starts 15 minutes from home and I have done this before, it is logistically very easy and it is no trouble to host her.

I suspected that I would be given bib #100, but I had no idea that it would be decorated so nicely.

Dixie, an old friend who now lives in Canada was passing through town and I was hoping to see her at some point during the race.  But her plans changed and she came through in the middle of the night.  But she put this poster up for me and I got to see it at every lap.  Marie made a giant card for people to sign and that was really nice.

My other Canadian friend, Maniac Tracy, is here.  I see her just before the start.  I hope that we get to run together some.  With this race I tend to see the same people over and over, or if they are running right at my pace and just ahead or behind, I might hardly see them at all.  Linda is here and will run all day and I won't see her until we are all done.

We start just as the sun is rising and around and around we go.  I do start off with Tracy and it is a great way to start things off.  We talk and get caught up, running an easy ten minute mile.  Before I know it four loops have passed, and we have run 6 miles before 7AM.  I try to be quick through the end of each loop, but it seems like there is always something to do. Grab some fluid and or food, maybe take an S!Cap, apply sunscreen, or dig out the sunglasses.  I lose Tracy after 4 laps but pick up Maniac Paige.  Our first time running together and it is another nice loop.  Lose Paige and pick up MM#1 the president Steve Yee.  I tell him that it is all his fault. Without this club I would never have considered running so many marathons.  He says that he thinks I could be one to eventually make it into the hall of fame.  Talk about long range goals, I will have to complete another 233 marathons to achieve than rank.  At a reasonable 10-15 a year it just could happen eventually.  I see no need to quit this lifestyle.  Lose Steve and keep going around in loops.

Mile 21 - Jody comes for a visit.  She can not run with me due to a calf strain, but I walk a bit with her and enjoy seeing her a couple of times throughout the day.  I glance at my watch and see that the battery has died.  It does not matter and really it frees me up to just keep moving and not worry about time.  As long as I do not stop, the miles will add up.  Now Tammy joins me for a while and of course she turns it into a party.

Tammy wants to be there when I complete enough miles to count it as a marathon.  Most would think that it is 26.2 miles, but in a longer timed event, the Maniac Club requires that I complete at least 50K.  I am tiring and running slowly but reach 26.2 in good spirits.  I am presented with a cowboy hat to go with my pony.

Bill has joined me and he will pace me for 15 miles.

Kern and Lori sighting:

 Maniac Katie sighting just before completing the 50K:

And then I run into the history books; enough miles that if I quit now I can call it my 100th marathon:

But it is only noon.  I have six more hours to run if I want to.  Bill is patient as I am shuffling and taking lots of walk breaks.  At times it gets quite hot out.  Fortunately there are some clouds off on on to cool things off.  My right heel/achilles has been acting up and I change stride and it seems to get better.  Miles 20 -34 are not easy.  We talk about it and I decide to take a bit of a break and change shoes.  I soak my feet in an ice bath, have a slice of pizza and drink a lot of Carbo Pro.  Fresh socks and shoes feel good and now we walk a bit while my feet thaw and I digest.  Bill does two more laps with me and I am feeling much better.

Mile 36 - Now on my own, but often a little while with others.  I do not have a GPS but I get a mileage update to confirm where I think I am at each loop.  Ginger keeps passing me, then Steve who will complete 74 miles!

Mile 41 - The clock at the check in tells me that I have three hours left and 9 miles to go to reach 50 miles.  Should be no problem.  The actual distance will be 50.3.  Anything over 50 miles would be fine.  Last year I did one more loop, covering 51.8 miles.  Some people will run the 50.3 and stop, so if I do one more lap it will make my finishing place higher.

Tom and Katie walking around the lake.  Tom's first ultra.

Mile 46.5 - Deb and I fall in together.  We walk.  She is not highly motivated at this point.  We are excited for Marie though who is working very hard to reach 50 miles, but she is two laps behind me.  I know that I could walk it in and reach 50, but I am unsure that Marie can do it.  The bottoms of my feet are really starting to feel the pavement and gravel.  I think that I might be getting giant blisters on the bottoms of my feet.  Should I push on and try to get in that one more lap, or should I just enjoy the end of this day and walk with Deb.  She suggests that I not injure myself and it is easy to stay and enjoy her company.  Marie catches up and I plan to pace her to the end. We run about a third of a loop, but then I just can not keep up!  I have to walk.  Then I see that Deb is walking and Marie has gone on.  I catch Deb and we finish together.

Mile 50.3 - Done!  But the race drama is not over.  I sit and drink for a bit then go just ahead of the finish to watch Steve and Ginger's winning last laps.  Lisa gets 50.3 miles on her 50th marathon.  Niki completes 51.8 miles!  Joe has been encouraging her and offering me water,watermellon and other goodies all day.  Marie makes it to 50.3 with 6 minutes to spare.  Monte gets his 50 miles in with about 2 minutes to go.


Thanks to Rachel, Craig, and all the Guerilla Running volunteers.  This was the perfect race to celebrate number 100 and it was a fantastic day.


50.3 miles
11 hours 17 minutes 18 seconds
Race#299
Marathon or ultra#100
*****

7/20/13 Lakefair Half Marathon

Second year in a row with this dilemma of having two great races within six days of each other.  I gave it my all at the Tunnel Marathon on Sunday, so there is no way that I can be fast today.  Last year I did run this race hard on tired legs and it was not great fun.  I will take it easy today and just enjoy the event.  I will go sub 2 hours, but not sub 1:50.  1:58 sounds good to me.  Jared bailed at the last minute but Tammy is here and she has the same time goal.  It will be fun to run with her.  We have a long history.  In fact I coached her a little for her first race which was so long ago that she wore a cassette walkman while running it.

It is 7AM and cool and grey with no wind.  The clouds will burn off later, but not until after the race.  Ideal running conditions.  I have not run a half marathon since this race last year.

Start - I find Tammy just before the start and we cross the start line together.  Gradual uphill with turns to get things going.  Crowded but we are at a good pace.

Mile 2 - On the Eastside paved trail.  First water stop is overwhelmed, but I get a cup without much wait.  The trail is just a little narrow for this race.  It can hold 4 across and there are a lot of runners at this pace.  We work our way around some, and others pass us.  It is nicer when we have some room in front of us.

Mile 3 - Steady 8:50 per mile pace.  It is a little faster than I had planned.  Tammy is feeling good and I convince her to relax and hold back for now.  I assume that she will be able to beat 2 hours but that it could be a struggle.

Mile 5 - Now on the Chehalis Western Trail where I run often.  Very familiar territory and a gradual downhill.  Dawn Schuler sighting.

Mile 7 - Feeling hungry right when Tammy offers me a small cookie.  My legs feel tired and tight off and on. We are still holding an even pace.  We are on a long straight section of country road, maybe 36th street. I hear a small "ping" sound on the ground behind us.  It only registers in my brain because a runner 20 feet back yells up to us that Tammy had dropped a key.  She had her car key in her pocket and it had fallen out.  We never would have known or been able to find it, had the runner not seen it and picked it up fer her.  Tammy secures the key in the zipper pocket of her hand held water bottle and we continue on pace.

Mile 9.5 - Volunteer Bill is there and Kari snaps this photo of Tammy and I

Mile 10 - Llama sighting.  Steepest uphill of the course.  Tammy is struggling and I am worried that she is hitting the wall.  I am prepared to stay with her until my two hour finish is threatened, but she toughs it out and tops the hill.  Now she is running well again.

Mile 11 - Through Priest Point Park and then a gentle downhill on Eastbay drive.  Picking up the pace, we are at 8:49 and running well.

Mile 12 - Tammy says that I could go on ahead.  I had thought about running the last mile as fast as possible, but there are only a few people ahead of us that I think I could catch and I really do not want to injure myself just to take a minute or two off my time.  I will stay with Tammy to the end.  Club Oly is staffing the mile 12 aid station and Tammy drops her water bottle there, for a friend to return later in the week.  Neither of us remember that her car key is in the pouch with the bottle until after the race finish.

Mile 12.5 - Pass Judy Fisher

Mile 13.1 - 13.05 on the GPS.  Being the gentleman, I let Tammy cross ahead of me.  We ran very even splits the whole way.  The sprint to the finish gave us a slightly negative split.  I drive Tammy back to mile 12 to pick up her key.

Nice wooden medal again this year.  Rogue Race Timing has laptops set up so I can check my chip timed results right away.

I am thinking that I might skip the Tunnel Marathon next year and try to be fast at this half.  But I love the Tunnel.  I have time to decide. Next race is August 11, my 100th marathon.


1:54:49
129th of 375
Race# 298, Lakefair Half #2
*****

7/14/13 The Light at the End of the Tunnel Marathon

A marathon on my birthday!  Bib #47 to honor the event.  My 4th time at this race.  Up at 4AM.  Park the car in North Bend at 5:45AM.  On the bus and at the start line by 6:30AM.  Ninety minutes to chat with friends and try to stay warm.  Finally the sun peeks out from over the mountain and it starts to warm up.  It is going to be another bright sunny and warm day.  Seems like I am on a streak of warm sunny weather for my races lately.  Maniac Monte's 300th marathon.  My 99th.

Start - Packed in thick but the short out and back sorts us out well.  Into the tunnel.  Going in I see and inscription with the dates 1912-1914.  Is this tunnel really 100 years old?

Mile 1 - Lost GPS signal and it is dark.  Mile marker of chalk with glow sticks.  Seems wetter than previous years.  The ground is mostly dry, but I get splattered on a couple of times by something dripping from above.  Now I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.  Mostly looking at the ground but once when I look up, it appears that a runner is coming toward me.  Just as I am about to get out of the way, I realize that he is going in the same direction as me, the light at the end of the tunnel made it look like a head lamp and something about his stride made me think he was about to run into me.

Mile 2.2 - Almost out of the tunnel.  I take a look back as the RD had suggested and it is a very cool sight to see all the lights.  Now out of the tunnel and a kind volunteer helps me with my drop bag as the long sleeves come off and I store the knuckle lights.

Mile 3.0 - GPS has snapped into place and I am on 8:55 pace.  Gentle downhill now for many miles.  I get a little faster and am feeling good.

Mile 8 - Average pace is now 8:45 and I won't let it get any faster than that.I am going to try to run sub 4 hours today and that puts me well into that range and perhaps too fast.  It has been one year since I last went sub 4 and it was at this race.  The great news is that I have no injuries, everything has felt fine for a while now.  I may not have the training in, but I will go for it and see what happens.

Mile 15 - Getting warmer out.  Warm breeze swirling around at times.  Funny in this race with so many people I know, I end up running mostly alone or with strangers.  Nice folks though.  Focus on the running, try to not get caught up in the amazing scenery.  I appreciate the gift of being able to run up here.

Mile 20 - 8:50 overall pace and hoping it can continue, but I am just starting to stiffen up and tire some.  Warm.

Mile 21 - The one turn on the course and all of a sudden I am out of energy.  Oh so hard to keep going.  Run becomes a shuffle with walk breaks.

Mile 22 - 4 hour finish slips away.  Lots of people passing me.  Hot and tired.  Pass a woman who is staggering but says that she is OK.

Mile 23 - Maniac S passes me and will go on to beat me by 8 minutes.  What a strong finish for her.

Mile 24 - I am going to have to step it up if I want to beat my 4:09 from my last marathon.  I get in behind a guy and follow on his heels as he is running at a nice pace.  I expect this to last about a quarter mile, but I get into a groove and actually pass him.  Now I am able to keep running much longer than I thought possible. 

Mile 25 - Too bad I had that horrible bad patch from 21-24.  I now feel much more energetic. Stiff but I can keep running.  I have rallied like this before a few times and it is frustrating to not understand what is happening with my energy levels.  Well this one is almost over and mentally I know that I can push on.  Stay even with a woman for pacing support and then pass her.

Mile 26.2 - 26.44 on the GPS.  Stop running and now I feel very hot. The woman who finished right in front of me is being escorted to the medical tent.  I look for some shade.  It takes a few minutes and some ice on the head before I feel better.  I should feel happier with this finish time.  It sure was a fun way to start my birthday.  Now home to celebrate more and eat whatever I want.

My next marathon will be number 100!!  Transcendence 12 hour in Olympia.  It will be another celebration.

Before then though, I am signed up for the Lakefair Half Marathon in six days.  I plan to take it easy on these tired legs and just get in under 2 hours.  Hopefully I will be somewhat recovered by then.


4:06:44
193rd of 390
Race#297
Marathon or ultra #99!
*****

6/22/13 Seattle Rock and Roll Marathon

Fifth year of this event and my fourth time here.  Logistics are easier this year with a start and finish at the Seattle Center a "short" walk from the condo. Jared is running the half and by luck we are assigned to the same corral.  Corral #10 of 42.  I am pleasantly surprised with my bib number.

Start - No trouble getting there.  We line up in time and wait as the corral fills up.  7AM start but with the slow wave starts it is 7:15 before we get moving.  Many corral jumpers.  Runners and walkers with much higher corral assignments are ahead of us and I will have to dodge around them.

Mile 0.5 - Jared is going off way too fast.  I had wanted to keep up with him, but it just does not seem wise at this point.  We could have run together until the courses split at mile 6, but I let him go now.  Not much I can do about it really and it is fine.  Now I realize that although all 4 lanes of 5th avenue are closed, we are all squeezed into two lanes.  I move under the monorail track and over to the empty lanes.  Free to run as I wish for the next mile.  I settle into a nice 9 minute mile.


Mile 6 - The bands are good, but it is such a short time that I can hear them.  Fun turn to a downhill and a run under the giant dude.  Now we split off from the half and it gets distinctly quieter.  Over 12,000 in the half and under 3,000 in the full.  Nice run along Lake Washington.  Amazing view of Mount Rainier.

Mile 10 - Holding a steady pace and feeling good.  Catch up to Maniac Mike S and we run together for the next five miles.  Pleasant conversation.  Warm but not too hot.

Mile 15 - Up the steep hill to the Interstate 90 bridge over Lake Washington.  I leave Mike behind and continue on at my steady pace.  This is a very long out and back, much farther than at the November Seattle Marathon.  I look forward to seeing friends and it is a treat to see Pedro, Ginger, Deb and Tracy who is also running her 98th marathon.

Mile 21 - In to the long tunnel and still holding that 8:59 pace.  It is not as easy, but to make it this far at this speed, I am pleased.  Just maybe I can beat 4 hours.  I would be happy with anything under 4:15, after my bad run at the Green River Marathon.  The tunnel is humid.  My feet are starting to tire from all the concrete.

Mile 22.5 - Walk through an aid station at the end of the tunnel and I have a very hard time getting my legs moving again.  Warmer, concrete, and heading up hill.  There is a runner on the ground with two medics tending to him.  He looks OK and is talking on a cell phone, but it is a strong message to me to not push it.  The desire to beat 4 hours is just not enough to chance a DNF and trip to the hospital.  Really I mostly feel good.  Just my legs that are having trouble moving.  No pains, no fuzzy headedness or nausea.  But I am walking too much.

Mile 23 - At Safeco field.  I know that it is a 20 minute walk to the condo and another 20 minutes to the Science Center, so it will be 40 minutes unless I get some running in.  Shuffle downhill.  Happy surprise to hear Debbie G shout for me.  Run a little with a Maniac.  Then walk a little more.

Mile 24 - Run slowly with Maniac Ryan, who ran 20 miles to get to the start line today.  Then I can sense the finish and get some energy back.  Follow a woman who is breaking a path for me and I encourage her to keep up the pace.  We leap frog a little, but having her and Ryan and some guy with an amazing mohawk to try to keep up with gets me through to the finish.  Strong crowd support the last bit.

Mile 26.2 - 26.34 on the GPS.  There is a high entry fee for this race, but they do take care of you at the finish.  Bottle of water, an ice cold wet towel, bottle of gatorade, fruit smoothie from Jamba Juice, recovery bar, fruit, bagels.  Medal of course.  Maniac #1 is there and gets a photo of me and Ryan.  Also we get one with Patti, as we both have cool bib numbers.  I find Jared and we hobble back to the condo. 

Going in to today I had said that this would be my last Seattle Rock and Roll.  But I really did enjoy it.  There are so many June race options though.  I will probably take a year or two off and run something else, but I would not mind coming back here again.


4:09:47
753rd of 2346
Marathon or Ultra #98
Race #296
*****

6/15/13 Run for Rett 5K

I ran this in its first year, 2010, and am happy to make it back for another run.  New start and finish area and other great improvements to an already very good event.  First race I have done that uses the Tumwater Historical Park.  Easy parking, covered area, restrooms, playgrounds.  Why has this spot not been used before?  The course is certified and as I look at the map, it is all places I have run before.  Timing by Craig (guerrilla) so I know that it will be accurate with fast results.  Out and back along Capitol Lake (still closed till further notice), then a lollipop up the hill and left downhill back to the park. Beautiful sunny morning and nice to see some running friends here.

Warm up two miles and then some strides.  Its been three months since my last 5K and I have done little speed work.  

Start - Some Rett girls ( http://nwrettsyndrome.org/home ) are lined up along the start for added inspiration. It is so good to be able to race and support a local, specific group that is doing real and good work.  Smooth and fast start but I have positioned myself well and can run at my own pace with little passing or being passed.

Mile 1 - 7:26 - Ever so slightly downhill.  Feeling good but wonder if I can hold it.

Mile 1.5 - Somewhere around here is the turn around.  Fun to encourage Gary, Amy and Martinho as they are ahead of me.  Return along Deschutes Way on the road with the outbound runners on the sidewalk.

Mile 2 - Passing a couple of people and no one is passing me, but I am not running all that strong.  Now up the gentle hill and under Interstate 5. I am ready to make the turn down to the park but then I am directed to keep going up the hill.  I had misread the map and I have farther to run.  Keep working hard as I am afraid that Joe might catch me. Finally the turn and this trail/road back down to the park is less steep than the way I thought we were going to go.  I get some nice speed back.  Then it is on to a gravel path for the last half mile or so.

Mile 2.9 - Two small children are running side by side ahead of me.  They have numbers on but could not have completed the 5K that quickly.  They must have done the 3K or they are part of the kids race (they do have numbers on) and are just running on the course.  The boy gets ahead of the girl and I pass her too.  Now the boy and I are sprinting to the finish and I just do not have the heart to pass him.  It probably cost me two seconds but I enjoyed pushing him on and letting him get in before me.  The volunteers take both our finish tags but Craig tells them not to keep the kids tag on the loop.  Craig is able to sort through numerous extra and unlabeled tags and still provide quick results.


Finish  - 3.1 on the GPS.  Pleasant and not lengthy wait for the awards.  Two entertaining kids races and I even get to dog sit for a few minutes.  I take second in my age group which earns me a gift card to Twisty's Frozen Yogurt. A most enjoyable morning.



23:19
15th of143
2nd of 7 in age group
Race #295
5K# 76
*****

6/1/13 Green River Marathon

May is the month that I always run Tacoma and Capital City marathons.  For April and June I seem to be finding different races each year.  Today finds me running from Kent to Alki Beach in Seattle, mostly along the Green River.  17th annual event and my first time here.  I know that it will be urban, with lots of turns and some major street crossings.  I have heard that some runners have taken wrong turns in previous years, and I do not want to be one of them.  I have printed out the directions and have them in my pocket just in case.  Here is a portion, from mile 15.5 to mile 19.0:

Runners continue on path until it runs out. Continue North on "the access road" to 14th Avenue Bridge. Runners continue to the right (East) to the first stop light, Henderson Street. Turn left. Runners will go up a short steep hill and then go down hill. You will see a pedestrian bridge (DO NOT TAKE THE BRIDGE). Stay to the left and GO UNDER THE PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE on the bike path. The path will end shortly. Stay to the left. Continue on road (8th Avenue). Run straight through the next light. Follow all 'Arterial Turns' road signs. These are the main roads. Signs will say Arterial Turns, left (on Kenyon), right (on 5th), left (on Holdon), and then turn right at stoplight.

The good news is that the course is very well marked with orange painted arrows.  Other great things about this race are 1) It is free.  I make a small donation to help with costs  2) It is a low key mostly Marathon Maniac event.  There are a couple of first timers here though.  Small race with plenty of parking and easy logistics for a point to point course.

I park at the finish and hitch a ride with Maniac Jason.  A relaxed hour wait for the start.  A little cool but it will warm up as soon as we start running.  Some aid stations are a little spaced out, so I will carry a water bottle.

Start to Mile 8 -  Running too fast and I know it.  I planned to go a little quicker than recently, just to test what kind of shape I am in.  9/mile would be good, but I am cruising along at 8:45/mile.  Long sleeve shirt came off at mile 2 and it is warm now.  Shade is nice.  Mostly a paved trail along the Green River.  The riparian zone is in awful shape.  The river is levied with a wall of blackberries on either side.  Sometimes there is poison hemlock or reed canary grass to compete with the blackberries.  The other side of the trail is bordered by industrial centers.  Not scenic, but an urban greenbelt I suppose.

Mile 9 - Mel Preedy sighting.

Mile 15 - Been running off and on with 4 others.  Nice company and I am still on that fast pace.  Starting to feel confident that I may have a good race.

Mile 16 - And just like that I start to tire.  It gets tougher to maintain.  Plus the course has gotten uglier.  We are on the side of some road with cars coming at us from behind and a narrow shoulder.  It is a long straight way and I am glad to get off it.

Mile 17 - That short but steep hill and now things really fall apart.  Oh, so tired.  I have to walk a lot.

Mile 18-22 - Misery.   Lots of walk breaks and super slow "running".  Ugliest course ever. Shipping containers, train crossings, giant pile of 55 gallon drums, cracked sidewalk, broken glass, big trucks.  Seems like everyone is struggling too.  Not many passing me, and I do have the early starters to catch up to.  Serious low point.

Mile 22-26.2 - Things get better when Maniac Ted passes me and then Maniac Mike catches me too.  Somehow I get my energy back.  I am able to run much farther without a walk break.  I catch back up to Mike and we run off and on together to the end.  It is a nice day at Alki Beach with lots of people out, that I must dodge.  This slow running with some breaks is more of what I am used to doing late in marathons.  Compared to the previous miles, I feel great.  Happy to see the finish though and be done.

With so many June options, I probably won't be back for this one again soon.  But I did have a mostly enjoyable day.



4:24:57
Results have me at 75th of 167 but some listed ahead of me took the early start so I may move up when that is sorted out.
Marathon or ultra#97
Race#294
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