Monday, February 03, 2003 12:16 PM The Little Gust,... The body overall feels good today. My official time was 3:01:53 (6:57/mi), for 33rd overall, 32 male (yes Jeff a girl beat me),... I was 7th in my age group and the first finisher from Oregon. Based on the times it looks like the winds slowed the pace by at least 10-15 minutes. The course is fast but the winds this year killed the times,... there were several women (~5) around me that were shooting for 2:48 (Olympic trials cutoff) only one woman broke 3 hours. My running must be right on track,... my Heart Rate profile is pretty cool/surprising,... it is flat as a pancake,... avg 171 bpm +/- 3 beats all the way,... Happy with my first marathon,... now I'm chomping at the bit to find one that doesn't have wind or a little bike ride in front of it!! >;-) ************************* The Big Gale,... Pre-Race Lesley and I are back from a successful trip to OZ ( Las Vegas - aka Dust Bowl - Tornado Alley). The trip went well, we were in Vegas by 1200 on Friday, in the cab to the hotel the driver pulled out the days paper and noted that the forecast for Sunday was "STRONG WINDS". We checked in and were walking the strip to go and get our race packet by ~1300. Our room, we got an upgraded room at no extra cost,... we had a big spa tub, separate shower room, granite vanity, couch, and view of the strip across the Caesars Palace grounds full of fountains and Cyprus trees. On the strip we toured the world,... as we headed south to the Tropicana to pickup our race packets. We hit Paris, a few other spots, then to Hollywood (MGM Grand) and saw their lions (I didn't realize how big lions are). We got our race packets and toured the booths of vendors. We were both excited with all the goodies, I got some,... Then off to the monorail and further south to the Mandalay Bay to check it out, then started North to head home,... by now my hips were beginning to cramp up so I took frequent breaks to whine and whimper. We entered the Luxor and were blown away by the detailing. The Luxor is a giant pyramid. It was cool. We needed food so we found their buffet. Noticing it would switch over to dinner prices in just a few minutes we literally ran. We made it with one minute to spare and felt a little pride that we had,... all those slow guys strolling down spent $16 more for the same thing,... >;-) Over-full, I was in carbo Loading mode, we limped off and hit the Excalibur (kind of scary for us). Then to New York, New York. By now my hips were killing me, I was in pain and wanted to lay down. We sat for a while then continued on. Through Bellagio to see the Chihuly chandelier in the lobby and their huge atrium then home to Caesars. I figure we got in a good 8-10 miles of walking! Saturday I got up at 615 and went for a run @630, I ran the strip and felt good. I was also in search of bottled water. I wasn't going to pay the $4.00/liter the hotel wanted, and we didn't like the taste of the tap water. I wanted to be well hydrated when toeing the line. I mis-calculated my timing however. I wanted to run early so I would avoid traffic, heat, and have a day of getting up and going like race day. -- mis-calculation, the convenience stores were closed on the strip. Not being too adventurous and not wanting to turn the run into a major event I stayed on the strip. I finally found an open store and got 5 liters of water. But I was now "3 blocks ... Vegas Blocks" north of the hotel. So I started walking with all this water. That was going to take for ever I thought, so I started gig-jogging with a bag in each hand, it is hard to run with that much weight in your hands I discovered. I soon made it home and only got a few stares. I snuck back into the room and snacked on the stores of food we brought, and sipped water, then fell asleep for a little while. Then it was off to Brunch (carbo loading!!,... woooo hooooo I love food), as we approached the buffet, we saw the space shuttle on the big screens in the sports betting area, no sound, the headline read "Contact lost with Shuttle" we stood there for a few minutes in shock, then ate and kept looking over at the screens. We wondered and contemplated what the reactions would be, then we walked again. This time the Venetian was the target,... WOW! what decadence/details. We strolled the streets of Venice, then ended up at their spa (Canyon Ranch) pretty cool facility with a two+ story climbing wall etc,... feeling my blood glucose levels dropping, we had a smoothie at the spa eatery. Then off towards home. We hit the Mirage and saw their white tigers, etc. Then home, finally, to Caesars. I went to the room, Lesley went to the Forum (shops!!!). Then it was dinner time. Pre-race - I need carbos and pasta in general!! So we headed out, but it was Saturday. Brunches served. Outside the winds were building, the hotels were turning off their fountains b/c the winds were blowing the water into the street and onto the sidewalks. The buffet at Bellagio was $23!! I wasn't going to spend $23x2 for pasta (what I would eat), so we headed across the street, same, then across the street, same,.... I was getting tried and hungry.... the "death march had begun"! Finally, we decided on this place back at Caesars!!! But it wasn't there any more (new places are being built). I was now on the edge,... "That is it!!! .... Room Service!!!" I proclaimed so we headed towards the elevators, almost there, then some guy stepped on Lesley's heal from behind hurting her Achilles tendon. She played it down but I knew it hurt,... she is so tough. I knew this wasn't good, so back in the room at this point I didn't care about the $$$ we ordered a bunch of stuff (paid the same as we would have if we had done the original buffets), and a bucket of Ice. We had a nice dinner in the room and iced Lesley's foot. We listened to CNN's coverage of the Shuttle breakup. Then Slept,... Race Day 430 the alarms (watch, clock, wake-up call) went off. I jumped out of bed and started the tub water. I wanted to warm Lesley's Achilles up as much as possible. She stood in the tub and stretched it. The wind was up already. We had all our stuff ready we zoomed down to the lobby (450) then a quick cab ride to the MGM to board the buses. We said our good-byes and wished each other good luck then headed to our bus areas. Soon it was race time,... I had already hooked up with a few guys that were shooting for 2:54 and were all set for this, as I had secretly determined by slowly grilling them to determine if they were dreamers or really ready. I knew how I felt and that would be a comfortable pace. We started out and the winds were strong and about 20-30 degrees left of our nose,... the sun was coming up over the desert and it was pretty, I love the way the light plays off the geology,... We fought the winds,...the pace seemed pretty comfortable, my heart rate came up and was 168-172, a bit high but I felt strong and felt that I could hold that effort,... we clipped off the miles right on 2:47 pace,... by 3 miles we were cycling through drafting/wind breaking formation,... each would lead for 3-5 minutes with the others strung out in a diagonal across the road,... we would come past runners and encourage them to lock on and join the group. The winds were AMAZING!!! I doubt there have been many, if any, marathons ever run in winds that strong!!,... (the news said that at the airport (more sheltered than the desert) the steady wind was 29 mph and it gusted to 60+). Wind is my least favorite condition,... I can handle cold, I can work with hot, rain - no problem,... but wind, you can't hide from it,... it just beats you up,... everyone wanted to be behind me,... I don't know why,...>;-) and I don't know if I felt much draft from the guys I was with,... but we did our best to work together,... it was tough,... we passed a wheelchair athlete on a down hill, I watched him,... every time he stopped pushing he would come to a stop, on a down hill!!! At about 13 miles I dropped off a bit then, dug down and "sprinted" back up to the two guys I was working with,... knowing that by myself in that wind, I would be done!!! Our group added and lost members but the core three fought the winds to about 18.5 miles,... The winds by then were then out of control!!!,... my left foot kept clipping my right causing me to stumble,... I fought,... I thought "Hold form, stay efficient,.... suck it up" There was a cloud of sand just pummeling us, sandblasting my skin,... there was grit on my tongue, my left ear was deaf from the constant howl of the wind,... I was on the front of a group of about five and the wind really got strong (if it could have gotten worse),... we were climbing just slightly,... and I was working to hold (12 min miles???? maybe)... then I was alone,... the guys had dropped off,... I kept on, thinking this is when people fall apart, the last ~10K is the "race" if you could call it a race,... it was more of a battle for survival,... I think most were not thinking about time any longer,... it was a matter of get me the hell out of this wind,... soon I was "chasing" a guy (in the hopes of getting behind someone,... then the wind blew him off the road,... I pushed ahead,... then a herd of guys came up on my left we were at about 20 miles,... I knew if must have be the "3hr" group,... they were running in tight formation, leading for 4 cones then rotating,... I jumped in and almost immediately the group exploded,... four guys continued on the rest of the group strung out and was no longer a group,... We finally turned for one block with the wind,... I flew,... I went from maybe 8-10 min miles to <6:30, I felt fine,... then back into the wind for 1 mile,... this was tough I fought knowing that I would have a ~3+ miles with the wind at my back,... I chased down a guy,... he latched on,... then I rotated behind him, then I took the lead,... then he was gone,... finally like cresting a giant climb on the bike, I reached the airport and turned East and picked up the wind more at my back,... I became a sail, I held my arms out slightly,... I was being blown almost faster than I could turn over at times,... I zipped along,... tired (I was now in new distance territory, and had a tough road to get there) but strong, and propelled by the gale,... I sliced through the long tail of the 1/2 marathon participants each wind blown and searching for the finish,... I was hoping both to see and not to see Lesley. I wanted to see her again to talk about the battle but I wanted her to have good race and finish before I did, partly b/c I didn't want her to trip me if I went past,... I floated along counting down the distance,... I thought I might still be able to get 3hrs and was cruising along at low 6-min miles,... I hadn't given up,... then at 25 I knew I was outside 3hrs b/c I only had ~five and change to go 1.2miles,... I continued on now wanting to be finished,... my breathing was fine, my legs were turning over,... I felt comfortable but tired,... form was holding. Into the park I floated across the finish line, stopping my watch at 3:01:56,... suddenly my left shoulder and left hip flexor hurt bad,... I moved through the food area and out ASAP,... Soon I saw Lesley and got the scoop on her race,... wow,... big time PR!!! ~1 hr faster than the last event she did (June 2002),... and in that wind!!!,... her lips were blue from waiting in the cold for me,... Before the event, she was worried that I would pass her,... she ended up finishing before all the marathoners!!!!,... the winds were howling through the park,... I got my checked bag and sweats,...we walked past the massage tables to see if we could meet up the Shari Ross (Evensen's daughter),... we didn't see her in our quick scan so we headed directly for the buses,... as soon as we got on they went,... we chatted about our events,... then we were at the MGM,... we hobbled to the Taxis,... we were now shivering from the strong winds,... in a cab then home to the Palace,... from the time I crossed the line to the time were back in our hotel room 1/2 way + up the strip less than 40 minutes,... that must have been a record,... in the room we warmed up and I fell asleep for a few minutes. My hip and shoulder were sore, it must have been the continual wind from slightly left,... (still sore the day after). The body overall feels good. My official time was 3:01:53 (6:57/mi), for 33rd overall, 32 male (yes Jeff a girl beat me),... I was 7th in my age group and the first finisher from Oregon. Based on the times it looks like the winds slowed the pace by at least 10-15 minutes. The course is fast but the winds this year killed the times,... there were several women (~5) around me that were shooting for 2:48 (Olympic trials cutoff) only one woman broke 3 hours. My running must be right on track,... my Heart Rate profile is pretty cool/surprising,... it is flat as a pancake,... avg 171 bpm +/- 3 beats all the way,... Happy with my first marathon,... now I'm chomping at the bit to find one that doesn't have wind or a little bike ride in front of it!! >;-) Lavs |