Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon and Half Marathon

April 29, 2007

6:30 AM

Goal – Run an easy Half Marathon as a Recovery Run.

April 28 – We arrived in OKC at 5:15 PM, just in time to check the EXPO. Parking was crowded, so I stayed in the car while my wife ran inside the Expo to pick up Casey’s (Kevin’s son) commemorate shirt. Kevin picked up our bib’s the day before and forgot his son’s shirt so we hoped we could get to the Expo in time to get one for him. It was least we could do since he had saved me a trip to OKC.

We met Jackie and Sherry back at the Hotel and made plans to go to Spaghetti Warehouse in Bricktown for the pre-race pasta meal.

Tomorrow would be Jackie’s first marathon so tonight and tomorrow is Jackie’s day; I am just here for the ride. And it should be a big day for Kevin since he is still trying to get under 3:30 and maybe 3:35. After a DNF at Little Rock he is more determined than ever. Also, I expected that I might see Paul (pfriese).

Kevin’s training had gone great lately including recent 5K and 10K PR’s.

As for Jackie, his goal would be to start/finish.

I had considered running the Marathon but my recovery had been slow since Boston. It reminds me of last year’s recovery period following the Chevron Houston Marathon. It took about 6-8 weeks before my legs were ready for serious training. With that in mind I felt that I needed to stay focused (and not risk overdoing things) on my next goal of a Marathon PR at Whiterock or Houston.

Later that night Jackie and I discussed our plans. I would run with him until the Half Marathoners left the marathon course. After I finished I would meet him somewhere after the 21 mile mark, depending on how my legs feel. He would look for me at a Mile Marker banner.

Sunday morning came early; we were parked by 5:35 AM and just slightly ahead of the crowd.

I went straight to the Porta-potties. It was 6:10 AM and very crowded with an estimated 15,000 runners. I had a hard time getting back to where Jackie was getting prepared. I saw Paul (pfriese) (he looked ready to race) as I left the corral to find Jackie. When I found Jackie we only had 15 minutes before the gun would sound.

A quick jog allowed us time to get into the crowded corral. I was trying to get my Garmin connected to the satellites when I asked Jackie if he had every thing: oop’s he had forgot his championchip. He ran back to where his wife was waiting (I figured that we might not connect up again). Jackie returned with just a couple of minutes to spare; I was surprised that he was able to get back into the same area of the corral. It was jam-crammed with runners.

The gun went off and we were running. It was very difficult to find an open lane during the first ½ mile. We were speeding up and slowing down and trying not to trip; it was very difficult to home in on our 9:20-9:30 pace.

Finally we had a clear lane as we approached mile 1. The first few miles were at a 9:15 pace, a little bit too fast. It was already hot so I reminded Jackie to stay hydrated and focused on his pace. Ignore the other runners; don’t let them PULL you.

The Half Marathon runners exit the course at mile 8: while I moved to the left lane I wished Jackie luck.

Later we (the half marathoners) re-connected with the Marathon course at mile 21.

As I ran along Clasen Blvd., I made mental notes as to where the best place would be to catch Kevin and Jackie and Paul (pfriese). Mile 23 looked promising since the Mileage Banner was easy to see and the volunteers at this location had a clock and an ETA banner.

For me Clasen Blvd. is the most difficult part of the OKC Memorial Marathon race course: the slight uphill grade and the 4 miles of straight road present both a physical and mental challenge. It just seems to go on forever. But, when you turn left at mile 24 and enter the historical district the scenery changes and a few hills are introduced, all of which are a welcomed change.

My legs felt better than I expected so I began picking up the pace: however I never really checked my pace. I just decided to run at what ever felt comfortable. It was neat to run without the pressure of “performance”. My main goal was to feel good at the finish with something leftover for Jackie.

As I turned south toward the finish line I began to pick up the pace and ran as fast as possible considering the crowded conditions.

While crossing the finish line a spectator to my right hollered my name. Later that week I discovered that he was a long time college friend from work. His wife ran the half marathon.

After receiving my metal I ate a bagel and drank some Gatorade: I didn’t want to eat much since I would be running again soon. A full stomach was the last thing I needed.

While cooling off I met up with Jacque a girl I know from church. She ran the half and finished in the top 10 of the women's division. I think this was her first competitive race in 7-10 years. In my opinion she could be one of the top women Masters Runners in the state.

Soon I met up with my wife and she drove me to mile 23 where I would begin the long wait for Kevin and Jackie. It was about 9:00 AM.

As I recall the ETA banner was predicting a 3:00-3:20 finish time for the marathon runners. So, I had a long wait ahead of me. I wish I brought some Gatorade

Many looked fresh but some were really struggling. I remember on man was doing the shuffle. I have surely “been-there-done-that” so I could sure feel for him. Remember these are some pretty fast runners coming by.

It is always interesting to me to see the wide variety of shapes and sizes of runners and their running style. Sometimes I think (after looking at some of them) why I am not running a lot faster than them….well, if it were only that easy.

There was a woman and a couple of young girls manning the 23 mile station: we talked for a while. I thanked them for constantly cheering the runners. I tell you what, running a marathon or half marathon is not easy but endlessly cheering has its own challenges; I would much rather be running.

I commented to them, that even while runners don’t always acknowledge there cheers, they can’t imagine how much there-just-being-there is such a mental boost for us, especially at this stage of the race.

After standing around for while I walked to mile 22 and sat on a bench. I still had my bib pinned to my running shirt. I recalled what I would think when I saw (what appeared to be runners that had already finished the race) runners standing on the sidelines: I would think, gosh they are already done and they look so fresh.

Well, there I was the fresh one on the sidelines. Little did they know that I wondered how many “extra” miles I could run that day?

I walked back to mile 23 just after they turned over the ETA banner. The predicted finish time was now 3:15 to 3:30.

Kevin has been trying so hard to get under 3:35 and he is very capable of beating that based on his latest races. The weekend before he ran a record 10K. He could PR today as long as the heat doesn’t get to him.

A few minutes passed by and suddenly, out of the clear blue, I saw him charging along. He looked strong. I called out his name and began to run a few steps with him. He said he felt great and was currently on a 7:45 pace and requested that I run with him for a while. We ran together but I was concerned as to whether I could hold a 7:45 pace for an extended period of time and still run mile 23 to the finish with Jackie.

And, the last think I wanted to do was mess up Kevin’s record pace. We talked and I reminded him to stay focused, get to mile 24, then he was home free with what appeared to be a sub 3:30 finish. I was ecstatic for him. We ran together for about ¾ of a mile when I told him that I had to bale out and I would call his wife and let him know his ETA. I would have loved to run the rest of the race with him but I had a few more friends to find.

I walked back to mile 23 and arrived about the time they had flipped the ETA banner over to the 3:30-3:45 finish time.

I walked back to the 22 mile mark, sat down again, then returned to mile 23. Now the ETA was 4:00-415.

I started a conversation with a man that was looking for his daughter. He had caught her at numerous points along the course and each time he ran a couple of miles with her. It must have been a blast for him. However, as he began to see runners that he recognized (those that had he had seen while he ran with her), he became apparently worried. He told me that the year before she was the pacer for the 4 hour group so this was not a difficult pace for her. He was obviously concerned.

Suddenly I looked up and there was Paul (pfriese) running with the 4:15 pace group. I called his name and wished him luck. He looked great.

I was surprised that I actually had seen two friends so far. Using the ETA banner as a guide was definitely a benefit.

Once the 4:15 group came by I knew I needed to really concentrate on my search for Jackie. One advantage is I told him that I would be next to a mileage banner after mile 21. It helps when the runner and spectator can look for each other.

The ETA banner was now displaying 4:15-4:30. He should be in this group unless he is really struggling. My cell phone rang and it was my wife wondering if I had seen Jackie. I told her that I would call them as soon as we hooked up.

I was actually little concerned but then I saw him approaching. So, I pulled out my phone and off we went.

Jackie was definitely struggling and he told me there were numerous times that he had wondered what he was doing here. I tried to help keep him focused.

He said, “I think I may have bit off more that I can chew” I said, “Look, lets just get to the next water stop, OKAY?, then you can get something to drink and take walk break”.

The water stops were frequent and soon we made the 24 mile mark. We were finally leaving Clasen Blvd.

I knew this spot well: this is where Kevin passed me in 2005 (just a few months after I missed my BQ by 5 seconds, I was running this race to try and get my 1^st BQ). At this stage it was a run/walk for me to the end of the race; as I recall I lost almost 10-12 minutes form mile 24 to the end. It was only my running experience that kept me going otherwise I am sure I would have had a DNF.

So, I knew how Jackie felt and how difficult it was just to put on foot in front of the other. I tired to keep him focused without over simplifying his struggle. “Hey, you have done 2.2 miles before, forget about the last 24 mile and concentrate on getting to the next mile marker, take it one mile and rest stop at a time”

And, that is what we did, drink, rest, run. I knew where mile 25 was and as we approached that point I told him, “1.2 to go, you can do this in your sleep, lets go” We proceeded, except this time Jackie ran through the mile marker, we skipped the water stop. Mentally he could see that the end was in sight.

I told him that as soon as we made the next right turn, we would see the finish line balloons (what I didn’t say was that it was about .6 miles to go).

“Just focus on those balloons and go” I could see that he was picking up the pace.

The finish line was there for the taking.

As me crossed the line I slapped him on the back (almost too hard due to my enthusiasm). He made it with a 4:30 finish time.

I was almost as excited as he was.

We gathered up some food and found his family. Afterwards, he lined up for a massage. I noticed that he forgot to get his finishers shirt so I rounded it up for him.

Now, I wanted to find out Kevin’s finish time and check Paul’s (pfriese) results.

Later, after checking out of the Hotel (which did not give us a late check out, so there was no chance for a shower) we drove to Norman for a nice steak dinner (we needed that protein, hehe).

While on the ride home we called Kevin; he finished with a 3:38 and couple of other Ardmore guys finished slightly more than a minute later.

I told Kevin that he had raised the bar on me, now I have to get under 3:30, yikes.

It was a good day. Part of me wished I could have run the marathon but it would have been a real struggle. And, there is nothing like cheering your friends and running those memorable miles with them.

If you ever have a chance to do the same, don’t pass it up.