On November 9th, 2019 I ran the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon (IMM). The short report is that I whined a lot during the build up and incessantly complained that I had gotten fat and slow but on race day, a semblance of my old self showed up and ran 1 hell of a race crushing my stated goal of 2:57 by nearly 4 minutes. The long report follows.
I really had kind of given up on ever running a fast marathon again. After my back issues last year I just never got going full steam again. Instead I had gotten fat and slow because I let my diet slide and put on about 15 pounds and I was trying to run without fully committing to the work of marathon training.
This summer I had decided to just maybe, kind of run the IMM for fun and not really lose my summer to training for it. But then Chad, a friend of mine who runs with a group on Sundays that I sometimes go to, asked my if I wanted to do my long runs for IMM together. I reluctantly agreed.
Chad and I put up a couple of solid long runs on Strava and another friend, Steve, saw them and wanted to join in on the fun and come do his long runs with us. Before long, Thomas started coming and we were now a run crew, I guess. We were all starting from very similar marathon PRs so it worked pretty well. No one was going too slow or too fast to keep up with the group. The only difference in the beginning was these guys were all trying to get faster and looking for PRs while I was just trying to hang on to this thing that I love but not really wanting to put in the big efforts anymore.
It's hard to be around guys every week who are still excited about the marathon and gunning for PRs. After several weeks I broke. On the way to our Sunday run I stopped and text the group that my heel was hurting and I wouldn't be there. My heel did hurt but it has hurt for the last 6 months. The truth is, I was completely demoralized and I was quitting.
This was the catalyst for a real come to Jesus moment for me. I had a decision to make, quit or commit. I don't want to quit so with about 6 weeks to the marathon I was finally all in and everything changed. I hit my biggest week of the year, my biggest 4 week block of the year and I finally felt whole again. I wanted a big but given the reality of the situation, attainable goal. I settled on 2:57:00 which would be faster than I had run since my surgery and I felt like would give me confidence going into the next cycle.
That's the background we are working with. Here is the race report.
Pre-race
We stayed at the Westin for the race as per usual. It is right at the start/finish. It was cold so after getting up at 5:00 AM for breakfast etc, I stayed in the hotel until about 7:45 for an 8:00 AM start. Jumped in the corral and found Chad pretty quick. I was looking for Garrett since we were planning to run together, at least some. I was also looking for the rest of the Kokomo Run Crew but I couldn't find them. Chad's wife spotted Steve and Thomas and he made his way over to them. I stayed back still trying to find Garrett but I was giving up hope. Finally my wife spotted him and we hooked up with about a minute to spare.
The Start
The race started right on time as I have come to expect and we were off. The start at the monumental is always just jam packed with people so you don't have to worry about going out too fast. We wind through the downtown streets and I'm not sure how long I'll be able to stay with Garrett. The lack of confidence I had going in given my training was in my head early. About mile 3 I tell Garrett that I think the pace is too hot for me and he says, "Let's just do a 5 mile gut check and make a decision then." We start to catch the 2:55 pace group and I'm worried but I actually feel pretty good.
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| Mile 3 at Monument Circle |
5 Mile Gut Check
We made sure not to pass the 2:55 group we just tucked in with them and it was a big group. Probably about 30 runners. I was amazed. I would be remiss if I didn't mention that our pacer was wearing Crocs. That's right, the goofy ass rubbery slipper shoes while about 90% of the runners in the group were wearing the $250.00 record breaking Nike Vaporflys. 5 miles came and Garrett asks "What do you think? How do you feel?" "I'm OK for now" I respond. We decide to stick with this group and do another check in at the half.
13.1 Mile
I really can't believe how fast this race is going by and how good I feel. I'm working hard but physically I feel like I'm in a good place; like it's a maintainable effort. Mentally, I don't have the confidence though and I tell Garrett that I'm really worried how badly this is going to end. He says "Hey, if you get to 22 and the wheels fall off, maybe you can still get your 2:57." I go with that and really at that point I shut my mind off. It wasn't intentional but looking back I just settled into the rhythm of the run and quit thinking about the last few miles. I just ran.
13.1 to 23
The second best thing you can hope for when writing a marathon race recap is to say "There is nothing to report from 13.1 to 23." And that's what you get here. The only thing remarkable here is that at 22 miles I thought, I'll get to see my wife at 23, get an update on the Kokomo Run Crew and ditch my hat, gloves and arm sleeves. I was getting warm and I knew that at 23 miles in my wife should have a pretty good idea of how the guys were doing. Before I was all in for myself I had realized how invested I was in Chad and Steve's races. They were both positioned for big PRs and I was excited for them.
23 - 25
I ditched my hat, arm sleeves and outer gloves when I saw my wife. Very unintentionally, I also ditched the 2:55 pace group. The very best thing that you can hope for when writing a marathon recap is to say "At mile 23, I dropped the hammer" and that's what I get to write in this recap. People were dying all around me and I was getting strong. This is where a marathoner is defined. What did you do in the last 3 miles? Did you die or did you come fully alive?
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| Mile 23, I'm getting ready to drop the hammer |
25 - 26.2
Time to put this thing away. I find 1 last gear at the end of an already awesome day. After running fairly even splits all day long around 6:35 I drop it to 6:19 for mile 26 and 5:59 for that final point two. I crossed the finish with an official time of 2:53:12 which is my 4th fastest marathon ever. Not bad for a fat, slow guy.
"I'm backNeedless to say at this point but it was a great day. I had already decided that I am fully back in this thing with the enthusiasm that I had in years past. This race was exactly what I needed to get even more excited about the future. I'm looking forward to recovering from this race and then getting after it for a solid spring marathon. Stay tuned, it ain't over yet.
the fog has lifted
The earth has shifted
and raised the gifted
You knew I'd be back
so pack your bone and hit the road jack
cause daddy's home" -- Kid Rock "Forever"
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