Race Report: Toronto Marathon 2005
You've probably heard about marathoners hitting 'the wall' at around the 20 mile mark. I've heard that too, but didn't really experience it last time. Some discomfort for sure, but nothing like the world o' hurt I've heard described.
Well, this year... I didn't so much hit the wall as the wall hit me. Repeatedly. It's not fatique - if anyone tells you they got tired on a marathon then they tried to take it too quickly. An event of this distance is usually run at a pace that never puts your body into an anaerobic state. The heart rate generally stays in a comfortable zone and you burn energy at a more or less steady pace. What happens though is that, for me at least, the mechanical systems start to break down. At about Km 34 or 35 what had been a dull pain in my knees became much sharper, and I was forced to do more walking than I would have had I properly prepared for this race. Final time (by my watch) was 3:57:something. Under four hours, which saved me from the ignominy of a 4 plus time, but only just. A big shout-out to Sonja from Ottawa; we helped each other over the last 2-3 km. Sometimes all you need is some encouragement and the knowledge that someone else is hurting as badly as you are.
So, was the experiment a success? I would say yes. I now know that I can complete a marathon under far from ideal conditions, physically. Running 42.2km on nothing but 'base' and 2 long runs in the 2 weeks before the race was not something I would recommend, though. However, I expect to be in some kind of similar condition next July after the swim and the bike, so having this in the back of my mind should help.
Other stuff: Weather: crap. Windy, cold, grey, almost as miserable as last year. All that was missing was rain/sleet/snow. The T-shirt: the worst t-shirt ever. EVER. I've gotten some ugly shirts in the past but this was by far the worst. Post-race food: again, as last year, disappointing. Plain bagels, a juice box, some tired-looking bananas and an orange. WTF? How about some nice hot tea, race organizers? Nothing fancy, eating a meal after a marathon is not an option, but today's offerings were just a disgrace.
That's it for this year. I'm off for a few days of complete rest, then we'll see what the plan is after that.
Well, this year... I didn't so much hit the wall as the wall hit me. Repeatedly. It's not fatique - if anyone tells you they got tired on a marathon then they tried to take it too quickly. An event of this distance is usually run at a pace that never puts your body into an anaerobic state. The heart rate generally stays in a comfortable zone and you burn energy at a more or less steady pace. What happens though is that, for me at least, the mechanical systems start to break down. At about Km 34 or 35 what had been a dull pain in my knees became much sharper, and I was forced to do more walking than I would have had I properly prepared for this race. Final time (by my watch) was 3:57:something. Under four hours, which saved me from the ignominy of a 4 plus time, but only just. A big shout-out to Sonja from Ottawa; we helped each other over the last 2-3 km. Sometimes all you need is some encouragement and the knowledge that someone else is hurting as badly as you are.
So, was the experiment a success? I would say yes. I now know that I can complete a marathon under far from ideal conditions, physically. Running 42.2km on nothing but 'base' and 2 long runs in the 2 weeks before the race was not something I would recommend, though. However, I expect to be in some kind of similar condition next July after the swim and the bike, so having this in the back of my mind should help.
Other stuff: Weather: crap. Windy, cold, grey, almost as miserable as last year. All that was missing was rain/sleet/snow. The T-shirt: the worst t-shirt ever. EVER. I've gotten some ugly shirts in the past but this was by far the worst. Post-race food: again, as last year, disappointing. Plain bagels, a juice box, some tired-looking bananas and an orange. WTF? How about some nice hot tea, race organizers? Nothing fancy, eating a meal after a marathon is not an option, but today's offerings were just a disgrace.
That's it for this year. I'm off for a few days of complete rest, then we'll see what the plan is after that.
posted by carbonman at 9:18 PM
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