Goin' to Alaska

I've received my pictures from the marathon event. See for yourself here! I was trying to look happy, but I need to work on this more -- I've never had a good poker face.

Here are the official Results, Timing, & Records from the Mayor's Midnight Sun Marathon. You can see my results by looking up my Division Results (Marathon, Men 40-44), by name or Bib # (339).

See my prior post for a narrative of the big day.

Actually, the Mayor's Midnight Sun Marathon was run the day before summer, but the weather in Anchorage was unseasonably warm:

                   TEMPERATURE
            ACTUAL           NORMAL
          HI   LO  AVG     HI   LO  AVG   DEPT
6/19      74   51   63     63   48   55     +8

That's right, 74 degrees, which felt like 94 degrees when running. I guess I can't complain too much, as the Boston Marathon this year was in the 80s.

The Race

Prelude

Things went smoothly leading up to the race. I woke a 5:00am, went through my morning ritual (coffee, Clif Bar, read the newspaper), got all dressed and was out the door at 6:20. I walked by the Marriott Hotel where the rest of my Team was staying, and saw that their bus hadn't left yet, so I hopped a ride with my teammates rather than take the city bus. We arrived at the High School for the start and I followed my TNT training by immediately getting in line for the bathroom. After dropping off my long-sleeve shirt, which I wouldn't need in the warm weather, it was back in line for the bathrooms! I didn't really feel the need to go again, but it was good advice, because I didn't have to take any more bathroom breaks in the whole four hour race.

The starting area was wonderfully low key. 3-4,000 people were running, and there were a huge number of TNT people from every corner of America. It was cool to see all the different people and their personalized TNT singlets. We had a fine rendition of the Star Spangled Banner before all taking position behind the Starting Line. It was easy to position myself about 1/3 way from the start line, which I figured was about right for my plan. I had studied books and articles and decided that an 8:20 pace would be my target. Of course, my studies didn't say anything about adjusting for the weather or hills, which would have been advisable!

The Start

Right on time, the gun fired and we were off. We curled around alongside the freeway and ran East into the Sun. I soon ran up alongside my teammate Greg, who is usually one of the fastest people in Wave 6. He must have been running more conservatively, since he had never run a marathon before. Greg and I would run near each other for about 17 miles. At the beginning, we were joking around. I was making fun of one guy's shirt that said "Pain is the feeling of weakness leaving the body". I said we'd have to ask him how it felt at Mile 23. Greg prophetically said "I hope I'm feeling good enough to be a smartass at Mile 23"!

The early miles really were clicking off, especially the first six or so. Around Mile 9, we came by the first spectator viewing area. I felt fine, but I must have been zoned out, because I didn't even see or hear my family who had driven all the way out to cheer me on! I feel bad about that. Susan caught me on tape, however.

Double Digits

As we ran the "teens" miles, we were on trails in parks above the city. It was beautiful and I love trail running. We crossed several bridges and things narrowed from fire trail to single-track. It was good that the hills were in the first half of the race, so I didn't mind them much. The race photographers was at Mile 16, and I tried to have a good expression on my face instead of my usual strained one.

I don't know if it was the heat, or "hitting the wall", or just my physiology, but I started to feel tired somewhere around Mile 18. As we ran back through the city, my condition declined. I was tired, thirsty, and my feet hurt!

The Final 10K

The course goes back into a city park, which thankfully provides shade and nature. After Mile 20, I couldn't think clearly to make pace calculations. I was also trying to "trick" myself into running well the last few miles, trying to think "only X more minutes to go" or "only Y more miles", but the problem was, I couldn't motivate myself for any (X,Y) > (0,0)! I was just trying not to give up around Mile 23 when I ran across a couple of support volunteers from my team. The yelled some encouragement to me, and the next thing I know, Coach Doug was running next to me! We chatted and I answered the best I could about my pace and how it was going. He was very encouraging. He ran at a pace faster than I would have at that point, but I pushed myself to stay with him. He was my guardian angel to get me through those tough miles.

The Finish

This course actually has a few blocks of uphill running before you get to the High School that is the Finish Line. What an insult! Actually, it is called "Insult Hill". I managed to keep running though most people were walking at this point. As we ran into the High School, I was still exhausted and unable to speed up until I stepped onto the track for the last 100 yards. Finally, I was inspired to pick up the pace and pass a few more people. They called out my name, "Joe Busco, from San Jose"! Well, at least it was my Dad's name! I crossed the line in a crazed state, though I hope I had a decent expression for my picture. (Susan says I looked scary at the finish.)

By the Numbers

My time was 3:46:14, which averages out to an 8:38 pace. I finished 24th in my division, 100th among men, and 127th overall. There were 1,829 total marathon runners. This is one of my best relative finishes in a race, and was a personal record for the marathon. As a matter of fact, I improved my time by over 30 minutes, which is huge! I guess I must have been sandbagging the first time ;-) Actually, I started the season much stronger and trained harder throughout.

Casualties

Anything can happen on race day, especially when you're pushing your limits over a distance you've never gone before.

• Some poor fellow lost his lunch at Mile 10. In all the miles and races I've run, I've never felt like throwing up. Thank goodness and knock on wood!
• Around Mile 16, the young lady running next to me asked "Can eating Gu give you cramps?" That is not a question you want to be contemplating at Mile 17! Both the guy running in front of us and I suggested the same advice -- drink water to try to dilute it.
• My friends Greg and Will were both hit by knee trouble around Mile 18-20, and it was painful for them to run or walk the rest of the way.

The Cause

I promised myself not to use my secret motivation, my TNT Honoree Bracelet, until mile 20. It was good to glance down at that point and remember the people who have fought much tougher physical battles.

In Memory Of

• J.P.
• Lilly W.
• Louie
• Luke

In Honor Of

• Dorothy Busco
• Rol
• Kristi
• Mark
• Leah

Inspiration

Even more touching than my bracelet, at around Mile 25, when I was really hurting, a woman was standing by the side of the course with a sign saying "Leukemia Survivor. Thank You." What a wonderful thing for her to do, to come out and inspire the people who are working to raise money for a cure!

Acknowledgements

• All the TNT volunteers who came to Anchorage, especially Coach Doug, who ran with me from Mile 23-24, who blocked the wind for me and kept telling me how good I looked and what a great pace I had. He inspired me to keep a good pace, and I couldn't dare quit with him running right in front of me!
• My TNT coaches, captains, and mentor. My teammates who made the season fun and very memorable.
• My year-round running buddies, especially Steve, Tim, and Jamie
• My generous sponsors, who gave of their own treasure to help other people. They donated over $7,500!

As some of my running buddies already figured out, I made it into the newspaper! Here's the local paper's story -- Anchorage Daily News | Fast times for first-timers Marathon moments. (registration required to access the story, unfortunately.) You can see that I just squeaked into the Top 100 Men. I'm pretty delighted with that. More details coming soon!

Update

I've posted a scanned copy of the newspaper article.

You know, taking that Yoga class on Wednesday evening was a bad idea. I think I'll have to submit it to Team in Training for their stories of "what not to do the week before the marathon". Although I didn't rip a hamstring in the class as I was fearing, my legs were kind of sore yesterday, and still feel that way this morning. Last night I was reading my Runner's Handbook (should have read that earlier), and trying to do too much or new things is about the worst thing you can do before a long race like this. Oh well, my misdeed is behind me and I'll just have to work with it. Hopefully I am being a hypochondriac and it isn't that bad.

Will they (my legs) be better by tomorrow? I will try to take extra special care today, with lots of time off my feet and try to soak in the Jacuzzi. I do have to go to the Race Expo today to pick up my number (339), and the timing chip to lace into my shoe. And tonight is the TNT Pasta Party! I'll try to get everything laid out for tomorrow before we go to dinner.

Have you noticed at the top of this page that Google places "context appropriate advertisements"? It's interesting to see as they've been for trail running, charity fundraising, and my favorite today, Running for Morons. Now that is spooky, given my recent behavior!

Uh-oh, it looks like it will be pretty warm in Anchorage this Saturday. The high is forecast for 73, which would feel something like 93 while we're running! I hope that it's cooler than that, but as our coaches tell us,

Remember that you have control of virtually every variable related to the race, with the exception of the weather -- but you also have control of how you deal with the weather. Think about every possible scenario and then decide how you will handle it. Remember: you are in control. Own what you can control, plan what you can’t control.

And, drink profusely. Cheers! (no, not that kind of drinking)

Greetings from the Big City of Alaska, Anchorage. I couldn't find Internet access in the Interior of the state (Fairbanks or Denali), but the Captain Cook hotel here has a Business Center.

I took a Yoga class at the hotel last night. I was looking for some gentle stretching before the big run. Instead, I ended up in this class of flexible freaks who have been doing this for years, and they took pity on me. The instructor always looked at me when she was explaining the "cheats" you could do if you couldn't do the real movement. Even with the cheats, my inflexible old leg muscles were shaking! I was really worried that I'd rip a hamstring or something three days before the run. Now wouldn't THAT be embarassing!

I'm feeling ready for this run. I had a very good running season. I'm probably walking around a little too much before the race, but we've never been to AK before and want to see the sights. Yesterday I dragged the family to the excellent museum, and today we plan to drive down to Seward to see glaciers and hopefully some wildlife. We've kind of been skunked on the wildlife so far -- just a caribou in the distance and lots of up-close mosquitos.

If not, this will be my last post before the marathon. I'll see if there is an Internet cafe or business center when I'm up there, though.

It's odd to be in the "taper period" before the big race. I'm running less, and it feels weird.

Thanks to my sponsors' generosity, my fundraising was a great success. Together we've raised over $7,500, exceeding the goal I set when beginning the season. We are supporting a great charity and helping to fight cancer. As a team, the local Summer Run team raised $565,759!

The weather forecast is looking good in Anchorage. Temperatures are 51-65 degrees, which is pretty good for running. You feel 20 degrees warmer while you run, so I'll be feeling like I'm in Hawaii! There is a 50% chance of precipitation. I wouldn't mind light rain, but a downpour would be a drag.

This morning I took my last long run (7.5 mile) before the marathon. I met Jamie at 6am at Rancho, and we ran the Rogue Valley - Upper Wildcat Canyon loop.

There were only a half dozen cars in the lot, the least crowded I've ever seen Rancho. Accordingly, the wildlife was out in abundance. We saw several deer in the meadows as we ran, and we there were rabbits along the trail for the length of our run. We also saw a good number of quail.

Coming down through Wildcat Canyon is one of my all-time favorite trails, and this morning it was exquisite. The air was crisp, and all was quiet except for the gurgling stream, birds singing, and the sound of our feet hitting the trail. This was heaven! What a great way to start the day.