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Very happy to be finished!

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En route to Paris with Pacou and Marie and Phil and Joe following the marathon

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I Finished!

Wow! What an adventure. Got started right on time. It was a little chilly. Incredibly enough I actually ran into three of the other 4 Americans besides me. One is the Chaplain to the New York City Marathon and has run something like 45 marathons. He is from Massachusetts. I met his friend from Pennsylvania. They were visiting a Dutch friend who was also running. Names (not sure who was who) were Ron, Jon and Don.

First half of the marathon was fairly uneventful. A nice bicycle policeman peddled next to me for awhile - told me he ran the 10 miler last year but didn't do too well because he had partied the night before and was hung over.

At one point I was the last "official" runner on the course. But eventually the guy wearing orange in the sweep van asked me if I could run faster and I told him "no." That was sometime after the halfway point where my time was 2:30:58. And from there the adventure began!

Once I was behind the official projected 5 hour time limit I became pretty much on my own. No more people telling you where to run, to turn, etc. No more water and drinks unless I was lucky and they were slow cleaning up. No more kilometer markers.

There were still a few people behind me but eventually I think most of them quit. I made a very urgent and necessary pit stop behind a tree in a park - definitely need to stop affected my ability to run for the 15 to 20 minutes as the need was quite urgent. During that time I ended up walking with a Flemish woman who had cramps. It was her third marathon - she had run Rotterdam and NYC previously. Lost her when I made my pit stop. Then the worst of it - I got completely lost twice. There were no road markings or any other decent way to determine the direction of the course. Asking directions was a bit problematic - if I was lucky enough to find someone who spoke a little English chances were that they had no clue which direction I needed to run. Even cops at the end weren't sure or would say "the marathon" is finished. The best I could do was a "Hansel and Gretel" manoever of following the trail of empty water bottles. But like Hansel and Gretel there were times when the water bottle trail disappeared because the clean-up trucks had already collected them! Cops telling me the marathon was over certainly didn't help me because (1) I was determined to finish no matter what, and (2) even if I wanted to quit I still needed to get to the finish to meet Joe, Phil, Pacou and Marie. Evidently there was a truck that picked up those who did not finish but I never saw it.

Ran nearly 5K beyond the 26.2 miles or 42K!!! No wonder my legs are feeling a little the worse for the wear. Saw Joe right at the finish at 5:59:42. They had closed official timing at about 5:15:00. Joe said there were still people finishing as they dismantled the finish in prep for the 10 mile start/finish.

Managed to get my chip turned in and collect a medal. Figure I might have finished just at or before the dismantling of the finish had it not been for my numerous mishaps - pit stop, getting lost, numerous stops to ask directions. Painted road markings would have been a great help. I intermixed some walking after, I'm guessing, 18 miles or so and was walking a good bit towards the end. Partly it was because my left knee was giving me a little trouble (I was mad at myself for forgetting to take Advil this morning before the race) but even more so I think it was because of frustration at continually getting lost.

So, all in all, I think my next marathon will be one without a time limit of 5 hours. If I had run faster than that there would have been continued support and I would not have gotten lost. People were all very nice although not always able to provide the help I needed - mostly accurate directions.

So, don't ask me today if I'll do another one. It's like childbirth that way. One needs time for the memory of the pain and discomfort of the experience to wear off so the joy and sense of accomplisment can be truly appreciated!


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Marathon Morning

It's finally here! We're on the way from Brugges to Antwerp - Philippe driving. I slept great except not long enough last night. Ate a roll and had a few cups of coffee (hey - they were small!) at the B&B before leaving.

I feel ready to run although I wish I had gotten more sleep. The temperature is still cool at only 9 degrees Centigrade - perfect as long as it stays there. It is quite foggy. Have all my gels ready to go and my Cytomax mixed up - may or may not wear the FuelBalt. Will drink some PerFormance here shortly. About 1:45 to start time.

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Arrived in Europe

Had a uneventful flight over the pond and arrived in Amsterdam Friday morning around 7:30 AM. Would have liked more sleep but even with an Ambien wasn't able to get a decent stretch of sleep.



Caught the train from Amsterdam to Antwerp, visited the Ruben's House, had a bite to eat, a few sips of Joe's beers at the Kulminator (great atmosphere with trestle tables, comfy chairs, classical music and wonderful selection of Belgian beers). Then caught the subway across the river to pick up my race packet. Most confusing subway I've ever been on in my life - very poor signage so requires lots of questioning of fellow passengers to ensure the correct direction of travel. Packet pickup was easy as was T-shirt pickup. Nice bright red T-shirt for the marathon runners and it's a technical shirt so it will get worn. Everyone very friendly.



So, the challenge remaining is to get enough sleep between now and Sunday and get my digestive system on track. Drink lots of water and keep the legs rested. Pass on the Belgian beer after a few more sips tonight at dinner and likewise on the Belgian chocolates!


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Week 17: 3 miles/3 miles/Walk 3 miles

Last week before Antwerp! Continue to get excited -- sometimes a little anxious. But all in all I'm confident that I'll finish and hopefully I'll finish strong. Weather reports out of Antwerp are calling for temperatures in the low 50s (perfect for me) but also forecasting some rain. As long as it's a drizzle and not a downpour I'll be fine -- would prefer not to run in soggy shoes!

MONDAY: 3.45 miles at 9:31 pace. 332 kcals. 156 Avg HR. A good run. Temps in the low 50s with a slight breeze. Even a little chilly starting out but felt good. Continue to make mental checklists of everything I need to pack but I think I'm in pretty good shape. One more short run tomorrow and then it's all downhill to Sunday.

TUESDAY: Woke up early ... decided to get my run out of the way so I could finish up office paperwork later this afternoon. It was chilly -- only in the low- to mid- 40s -- but that's the temperatures I prefer so not bad. Ran 3.5 miles at a 10:08 pace -- easy run -- didn't feel like I was pushing myself at all. 294 kcals and 140 Avg HR. Didn't notice it at all while running but afterward noticed some tenderness to the touch just below my knee on the outer left leg -- but I think it's where I bumped into a chair yesterday at the dentist's office. Go figure -- the running doesn't affect me but clumsiness does. Anyway, I'll ice it later.

So ... I'm done running until Sunday in Antwerp. Feeling strong and healthy and looking forward to the marathon. I'm thinking all the sights of running in a European city, unfamiliar languages, smells, etc. will keep my thoughts occupied and a lot of the time will go by quickly. And the course is flat which is different than what I'm used to running. For the most part I think it will make the run a little easier than my usual hills. Forecasts for the weather continue to change almost on a daily basis. Latest this morning was that the high for Antwerp on Sunday is projected to be 65 degrees F. On the hot side for me so I'm hoping that forecast is incorrect.

I'm just about done with the packing. Carrying all my running stuff onboard with me just in case luggage finds a way to get lost -- it shouldn't since there are no connections between here and there. Carrying three different options for running tops so I'll be ready no matter what the weather actually turns out to be. I have all my gels in carryon -- in my quart size Ziploc bag to clear security. Also have my powders for Cytomax and Pre-Formance to mix up on Sunday. The only thing I'm not carrying on with me is my Fuel Belt -- hoping I won't need it but if the temps end up on the high end then I'm hoping it makes it to Amsterdam on the same plane I'm on! Oh, and also my gymbag for my stuff to shower with after the marathon and change of clothes, etc. -- I can always buy a new gymbag easily enough. I typically take an extended release Ambien on the Europe bound flights and have decided I will do that again -- it should be out of my system by Sunday and will help me adjust more quickly to the new time zone. I'm actually more organized than I've ever been this much before an extended trip. Much more relaxing being fully prepared!

Thursday is scheduled to be a 3-mile walk. Not sure if I'll do that here before leaving for airport or figure I'll get that much walking in at the airport, etc. Will see how I'm feeling on Thursday and how much last-minute stuff I need to do or decide to do!