2011 Columbus Marathon Race Report

On October 16, 2011, I ran the 32nd Annual Columbus Marathon in Columbus Ohio. This was a first for me; it was the first time I ran a race in a city where I had to travel more than 1hr. It was also the first time I ran a race with my wife Thea; she ran the half. My last marathon had been in Frederick in 2010, and was my first. It did not end well, and I ended up hitting the wall hard, and had to walk a lot of the last 6 miles. Therefore, my plan for this race was to do better, and try and stay away from that wall.

Earlier this year I had run the Sun Trust National Half, the Cherry Blossom 10-miler, the Frederick Half, and the Parks Half so I had a good base going into my marathon training. The 16-week training plan had me running three 20-milers and three 18-milers, so I had a tons of long miles. In fact, one of my 20-mile runs was done with the Parks Half as 13 of the 20miles. I did not have any significant injuries, and tried hard to focus on hydration and nutrition. I did hit the wall on a couple of long runs, but I think the heat and humidity this summer really drove those cases.

By the end of training, I was ready for this darn race to start, but I still had to drive to Columbus and wait for the gun to go off. Thea, the kids and I loaded in the car and made the 6 hour drive to Columbus the Friday afternoon before the race. The drive was uneventful, and we pulled into her parent’s driveway around 7pm. After a reasonable night sleep, and an easy 2-mile run, we headed in the morning to the Expo. The day was sunny but real cool. I was starting to worry that I had not brought warm enough clothes. In the Expo, we picked up our Bibs, our cool t-shirts, and goodie bags. We walked around the Expo for about an hour and Thea bought some car magnets and a long sleeve tech shirt she could wear during the race…. She only brought a short sleeve shirt. After the Expo, we relaxed the rest of the day and ended the day at Buca DiBeppo for a good pasta dinner.

Thea and I got up about 5am on race day and had our bagel and banana breakfast, and headed to the start line at about 6am. Thea’s dad drove us and dropped us off downtown. I had decided to wear a short sleeve tech shirt and shorts, but had a throw away sweatshirt and cheap gloves I picked up at the expo. Thank God I brought the sheatshirt because the wind was cold. We both dropped off our bags (dry shirt and sweatshirt) and headed toward our corrals. I was in corral C and she was in F. The corrals were crowded, and the energy was high. A band was playing rock music as I started to think about warming up. I looked for the 3:45 pace group, but found out they were in corral D, so I decided I would try to stay ahead of them throughout the race. Right around 7:30am, the band stopped playing and the national anthem started. I stood there with my hand over my heart and thought of the next 3-4 hours. I envisioned myself crossing the finished line with a smile on my face. My plan was to try and beat 3:45 and not hit the wall. If I felt real good at the half, I would try for 3:30. I closed my eyes and said a quick prayer just as the announcer said the wheelchair race had begun. Not more than a few minutes later, it was 7:30am, and our race began with a fireworks show. The runners in Corral C started running, and less than 5 seconds later quickly came to a stop. Collisions occurred. About 30sec later, we began again, only to stop quickly within a few seconds. By about 2 minutes after the start, we were running smoothly. I crossed the start line about 2:30 after the fireworks, and hit start on my Garmin.

Miles 1-3 took us down Broad street toward Bexley. The crowds were amazing… so many people cheering. It made me feel great. The first mile was a bit slow due to the all the people, but by the third mile, I was at an 8:08/mile pace.

Mile 3-7 took us around Bexley. Nice older town, Capital University, Drexel Theatre and then back to Broad street. There was a timing mat at 10K and a really cool Drum Corp. In fact there were 101 pieces of entertainment on the course, and this one was by far the best.. I crossed the 10K mark at 51 minutes and was averaging about 8:20/mile.

Mile 7-9 took us back down Broad street toward downtown. I was feeling pretty good, and was taking water about every other water stop. I took my first GU about mile 7. So far so good.

Mile 9-11 took us south toward German Village, and around Shiller park. Around Mile 9 I started to notice my stomach felt kinda funny. I chalked it up to taking too much water, so I skipped the next water stop, and started to feel better before mile 11. Shiller park is pretty cool, and they have outdoor theater in the park. The park and the sidewalks were filled with people cheering the runners… Again, I was amazed at the crowd support. Around Mile 10, there was a temporary bridge over the road and many photographers taking pictures. I raised my arms and smiled as I passed by them. I kept up a 8m/m mile pace through this stretch.

Mile 11-13.1 took us north on High back to the start line. This stretch was slightly uphill, but not too bad. I noticed a lot of half marathoners around me and tried not to think about the end of their race since my was only half over. I passed Nationwide Blvd, and the half marathoners turned left and headed toward the finish. I did not want to look… wanted to focus on what I had ahead of me. I passed the half way mark at 1:46 for an average pace of 8.09/m. I was feeling pretty good, but could tell some fatigue was setting in.

Mile 13-16 took us further north on High and toward the OSU campus. I really did not like this stretch. The crowd had thinned considerably. Out the 17,000 participants, only about 5000 ran the marathon. The Short North is nice, but not too much to look at. Also, not as many spectators as during the first 13 miles. I had hoped it got better when we got to campus. I kept up an 8:05/m pace through these miles.

Mile 16-20 took us through campus. I really like the OSU campus. It reminds me of my college days. We ran by Wexner Center for the Arts, the Engineering Campus, and the Horseshoe. The crowd support was better and I was helped by all the cheering. I especially liked the guy with the piano strapped to his bike playing the theme to Rocky. That song always picks me up! After passing the Horseshoe, I saw the 3:35 pace group!! I had caught up to them, but I knew I could not hold this pace for the next 8 miles. By the time we got to Mile 18, we left campus and headed to Upper Arlington. According to the Race Director this is the hardest part of the course. Not a lot of crowds, not a lot of sights and uphill. The uphill part was not bad, it was only about 100 feet of elevation. But my mind started playing with me… this is where I hit the wall last time, and I was starting to doubt myself. I kept telling myself to just make it to mile 20 and the rest is downhill. Around mile 18 my quads started aching, but I kept the pace. At mile 20, they had a mock finish line and an announcer said my name as I passed. That was both uplifting and cruel. Seemed like I should stop after passing the finish… but I still had 6 miles to go. In these miles I slowed a bit keeping about a 8:20-8:25 pace. After passing Mile 20 I was on a 8:12/mile average pace.

Mile 20-22 were downhill. One would think that was good, but my quads were already tired and hurting, and the downhill pounding only made them worse. I actually remember thinking I wished there was some uphill. I kept an 8:30 pace through this section.

Mile 22-24 sent us continuing through upper Arlington. Again, the crowd support was a lot thinner, but those out there really cheered us on. By this point, I was stopping at each water station, and walking a bit as I sipped the water. Mile 24 was down 5th ave, and right past Battelle, where I used to work in the 90s. That was kinda neat. I kept an 8:30/m pace through Mile 24.

Mile 24-26.2 took us down Neil Ave back toward Nationwide Blvd. By this time my quads were really hurting and I was starting to feel it in my knees. It did not feel like hitting the wall, it just hurt. During Mile 25, I took a bit longer at the water stop and hoped the pain subsided. I also tried to change my gait a bit to be lighter to help with the pounding on my legs. Mile 25 was at 8:50/m pace. Mile 26 came back to Front Street toward the Arena. I tried really hard, but I had to walk a bit during this mile. Only about 30 secs or so, but I needed the break. After the quick break, I started off again, and my legs were very achy. By mile 26 (9:11/m pace), I could see Nationwide Blvd quickly approaching. I could hear the crowds, the band. I started to get excited. I was going to do it, I was going to finish strong, and not hit the wall. I felt a bit teary as I turned on Nationwide. The sight was amazing. Hundreds of people, balloons, bands, screaming. I saw the large Finish sign and set my sights. About half way there, I heard my name and looked over and saw my family. Thea yelled, “How you feeling?” and I gave a big thumbs up as I finished the race with my hands held high. My finish time was 3:38:37, a PR by almost 20 minutes. I stopped, picked up my metal, a bottle of water, a thermal wrap, got my picture taken several times, and took a deep breath.

I had done it…. During my first marathon, I hit the wall and had to walk so much that even though I finished, I felt a bit slighted. I had finished my second how I wanted to finish, and I felt a great sense of accomplishment. I went to the Celebration Village and picked up my food pack (which was kinda weak… an orange, Fritos, a cookie, and some GU like energy thing…. Could have really gone for a banana and a bagel), and a chocolate milk and wondered around until I found my bag. I found Thea and the kids a while later and compared notes with Thea. We both had a great race, and a great experience. The Columbus Marathon is a well-run, well-organized, and really fun race. I was amazed at the number of hard-working volunteers and how flawlessly they handled what they needed to do. I would definitely do this race again… but since my legs and knees still kinda hurt, I’ll wait awhile before committing to another marathon!!

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