My marathon pics are in!

[AllegroRondo]

In case you've wondered what I look like, this is me after 26 miles. :)

St Charles Missouri, just outside St Louis, last Sunday.
Great course, great weather, lots of fun. 5,000 people started the race, but most only ran the half marathon. About 400 finished the full.

[soleft]

1. Congrats! That's awesome.

[AllegroRondo]

3. Thanks! you should try one!

its an amazing experience.

[soleft]

7. well, let's see how my knee is after athroscopy

Right now I can't even run to first base.

[AllegroRondo]

9. ouch.

my condolences. Hope you heal up quickly. :)

[soleft]

10. Thanks!

[DeposeTheBoyKing]

2. Wow - that's impressive

Way to go!!!

[ceile]

4. Very cool!

Congrats on finishing! How long did you train?

[AllegroRondo]

6. About 5 months

I run about 3 times a week anyway. I started training specifically for this around May.

[MissMillie]

5. very awesome!

good work!

[AllegroRondo]

8. When are you going to do one?

I remember you said you had done some 5 and 10Ks, maybe a half. With a little more training a full is do-able. And one of those "lifetime" experiences.

[MissMillie]

15. my longest race was a 10K

I am not kidding when I say that I am carrying far too much weight to even consider doing a marathon. My body will not, in its present state, take that kind of punishment.

That is not to say that I'll never lose the weight, and certainly training for a marathon would help with the weight loss.

What makes it especially difficult for me is that because I'm heavy, I'm slow. When I run a 5K or a 10K, I'm a 15 minute mile. At that pace it would take me more than 6 hours to run 26.2 miles. I don't know where I'd find the time to train to be able to run (or be in any kind of steady motion) for 6 hours at a stretch.

It's certainly something to shoot for in the future, but I'm not ready to sign up for one any time soon.

I'm happy for you that you did it though. That really is an accomplishment.

[Dr. Strange]

11. Say, isn't there a song called "Marathon"?

Who performs that song?
:)

[AllegroRondo]

16. my favorite band, Rush

more than high performance
more than just a flash
more than a dotted llne
more than just a dash

in the long run

[Pacifist Patriot]

12. Damn, you look better than me after 26 feet!

Way to go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[La Lioness Priyanka]

13. WOW! you can make jewellery and are in great shape!!! your wife is a lucky woman.

by the way, my brother keeps trying to 'borrow' (umm steal) the jewellery you made.

[AllegroRondo]

17. If you want, I can make him one.

Actually, I just opened a shop on Etsy for selling jewelry, its lots of fun. But I'd give him a huge discount.

http://allegroarts.etsy.com


And I just realized, you use the British spelling "jewellery". how cute :)

[yellowcanine]

14. Congrats. That's some kickass time for the first one, imo. I have only done two and I have yet to

break 5 hours. Of course I was over 50 when I did my first one. IMO just finishing is a major accomplishment. Heckuva job, Allegro!

[AllegroRondo]

18. actually, its my 4th.

but only the second time Ive come in under 5 hours.

[yellowcanine]

19. Inspiring - makes me want to try one more time to break 5 hours.

How was St. Charles in terms of the course, the organization of the race, etc.? This seems like a good time of the year to do a race - other than training in July and August, of course.

[AllegroRondo]

20. Great race if your trying for a record

VERY flat, the only real hill was on on-ramp to go on the highway bridge over the Missouri river. The second half of the course was an out-and-back loop on the Katy Trail, a railroad track converted to a run/bike trail, so it was shady and flat.

Oraganization - good. Plenty of parking, shuttle buses, no problems at the start. lots of water stations with nice people working them. well marked course, good police support. Crowds werent bad. decent aid stations and food at the end. more porta potties than Ive ever seen at a run.

Weather - very good. 60 degrees to start, and overcast all morning. never got above 70.

the only bad parts - not a lot of spectators, except for the finish. 90% of the runners do the half marathon, so they all start speeding up at mile 12 and you have to really work to hold your pace back.

[yellowcanine]

21. The importance of portapotty availability cannot be over-emphasized.

Pissing in the shrubbery on a secluded part of the course is one thing - but needing to crap and having to stand in line is something else again - every marathoner's nightmare - I don't know about you, but when I had to crap while running - I needed to do it right then, not wait 10 minutes for a pot to open up!

[IndianaJones]

22. I got nothing but respect for someone that puts themselves through that. nt.

[underpants]

23. Wow CONGRATS and thanks

I think I have 50 days left-big 16 mile run tomorrow.

You look great. I know what it takes to prepare--lots of loooong dark early morning hours. Good for you.

Second-reading anything written about running leads one to believe that if you aren't running 8 minute miles or less you aren't even part of the sport. My wife checked out the results of last years Richmond marathon and 5 hours is the median time. I think that writing should be more inclusive and as good as Bingham (the Penguin) is that is only one writer.

GREAT for you man. I can only imagine what you wake up to every day saying YES I DID IT!!!

AWESOME!!!

[MissMillie]

24. I love John Bingham

as is evidenced by my avatar

(btw... I have that tattooed on me! :bounce:)

[AllegroRondo]

25. those long training runs pay off

you'll be glad you did them around mile 20.

if you havent done one before, NOTHING compares to the feeling of crossing that finish line the first time. Its just undescribeable. And addictive.

And you'll find that most runners at marathons (unlike the magazines) dont care what your time is. Sure, we talk about times and compare them, but 99% of them have nothing but support for everyone else. The last place finisher gets the exact same medal as first place.

Good luck on yours!

[underpants]

26. Thanks

Did you run any other races leading up to this? My wife checked some out today- mostly so that I know what to expect on raceday (I have run a 5 and 10K each)???

Truth be told I got close to burning out about two weeks ago. I cut out the long midweek runs. I really like running everyday (say 2-5 miles) but I am following Hal Higdon's training to a T and there are specific mileages and heavy emphasis on the rest days.

I am back at it now though I slept through the 8 miler on Wednesday and only got up at 4:30 and did 4 miles.

[AllegroRondo]

27. No, I avoid other runs

especially when marathon day gets closer. If I were to do a 5K, I could do a 7 minute mile or less. But it would really hurt all the pace training I've been working on, and I'd be more likely to head out fast and not finish.

dont let the little setbacks like missing a training run get to you. I had to stop completely for a week when my left foot started hurting, but I just eased back into it later. As long as you make your long runs, you'll be fine.

Runners magazine actually had a really good article on race day preparation last month. All the little things to prepare for and do on the day before / day of, that you might not think of.
- set up your running outfit and shoes the night before
- try to get the to race an hour before
- pin a $20 bill inside your shirt or shorts, just in case
- tie your car key to your shoelace, so you dont lose it (or give to your wife)
- wear sunscreen and sunglasses, even if its dark and cloudy when you start
- if its chilly, wear an old long sleeve t-shirt or sweatshirt at the start. after a couple miles when you heat up, take it off and throw it on the side of the road. Most races donate throwaway clothing to charity.
- if you can, skip the first water stop, its usually too congested.

and if this run uses pace groups, I highly recommend signing up for one.

[underpants]

30. "Finishing crosseyed"

is the expression that I think most aptly describes going out too early. I did a new run just Thursday that was way more hills than I expected.

I saw the Runner's World piece on raceday-I carry a key, cash, toiletpaper, and a busticket on any ride over 5miles anyway (in a little plastic bag)

Hell I just started using my iPod last week.

[SKKY]

33. Those Hal Higdon training plans are dead on, huh?

I used his to get ready for my first half. I've never run a marathon personally, but I will this November and I'm looking forward to it. I've taken a very unconventional route. 8 half marathons, then an ultra-marathon (101 Kilometers) last May. Running is very addictive.

[underpants]

34. Yeah they are

which Marathon?

I'm running Richmond

[SKKY]

36. It 's near Malaga on the 17th of November...

I live in Spain. Not sure if I mentioned that. We'll run a few half-marathons this fall/winter and then next Spring it's the Madrid Marathon in April, the Sevilla Marathon just before that, and then in May the Ultra once again. One thing that's different about here is that the goodie bags are sooooooooo much better. I ran the Sevilla half marathon last year and at the end got a finishers medal, a finishers plaque, a small finishers trophy, a very nice beach towel, and a long-sleeved Mizuno coolmax race shirt. All for 9 euros. Plus, the food an drink (Beer) is always free afterwards.

[cobalt1999]

29. I ran the Marathon du Medoc in France a few years ago

They emphasized the support you talked about and the winner and the last placed person each won the same prize...their body weight in wine! I thought that was a pretty cool idea.

That is a fun marathon as 90% of the runners are in costumes and it includes 21 wine stations (water/gatorade too if you are so inclined).

Congrats.

[Jimbo S]

28. Good job, Gary!

Only 16 days until my race. Time to start getting excited!

[AllegroRondo]

32. give 'em hell!

and post pics when you're done!

[graywarrior]

31. Fantastic! ! ! !

I'm playing that number.

[nini]

35. excellent - Congrats

I remember you talking about this a while ago when I mentioned my niece ran one in San Diego.

You look pretty good there at the end!

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