Running Through Life

Race Report: My Running of the Inaugural ING Georgia Marathon

March 25, 2007

Most people say that a marathon is not the time to try something new. However, on Saturday afternoon, about 16 hours before the Sunday morning start of the ING Georgia Marathon, I had to make a decision. You see, at that time, the Spring pollen finally got to me. After weeks of daily Claritin and no real problems, hay fever decided to strike me right before my 2nd marathon… the one I trained so hard for. I had to decide: should I try running with hay fever (something I have never done before, even in training), or should I play it safe and stay home?

You probably guessed: I ran. I’m glad I did–now I know I can do it in case I ever have to do it again (though I don’t ever want to). And, though I played it safe and didn’t push my pace too hard, I still beat my Chicago time from October 2006. I finished with a chip time of 4:49:09, beating my Chicago 5:05:16. So I am pleased, considering the circumstances. If I had been completely healthy, I would have pushed harder to reach my 4:35 goal (10:30 minute/mile), but I’m not at all ashamed of this finish.

Anyway, here is a summary of the race.

The good:

• Lots of porta-potties. They had an innumerable set of them at the start/finish, and at least 2 at every mile.
• The crowd support: I was impressed with how many people came out to cheer us on for this inaugural marathon, especially considering that there was no established tradition like in other cities.
• The weather at the start: a comfortable 67 degrees F at the starting line in downtown Atlanta (according to the Coca Cola sign near the starting line), and it felt like it was in the lower 60s as the course took us away from the city.

The bad:

• The weather later in the morning: once the sun got above the trees, it got warm fast. According to the weather report, we set a record high of 88 degrees on Sunday. Yikes!
• Aid station fiascos: some promised water/Powerade stations were not there at all (signs were up, but no tables or volunteers), and the station before mile 4 was backed up because they couldn’t keep up with the demand. Between miles 4 and 8, there was no water at all. Also, though Powerade was promised at every station, it was only available at a couple of them.
• The hills: this was a very hilly course, to where by mile 18, I was walking up most of the hills.

Course highlights:

• The start/finish line was in the heart of Downtown Atlanta, near Underground Atlanta.
• From the starting line, we proceeded north on Peachtree St., turning right on Ralph McGill Blvd. to head east, away from the city.
• Just before mile 2, we were heading south on Jackson St. From the bridge over Freedom Pkwy., there is a beautiful view of the downtown Atlanta skyline on the right.
• At mile 2 was the Martin Luther King, Jr. complex on historic Auburn Ave.
• Miles 3-4 took us along Edgewood Ave. to Inman Park, an historic district full of large, turn-of-the-century homes, then up to Euclid Ave. through Little Five Points, a shopping and entertainment district known for tattoo parlors and a biker bar called the “Euclid Avenue Yacht Club.” Along some of the stretch, the sun was just starting to rise over the trees, straight ahead–a beautiful sight.
• From Euclid, we crossed Moreland Ave., where the half marathon split from the marathon. It was strange to be part of the smaller group continuing along McLendon Ave. for the full marathon.
• Miles 4-7 took us north on Oakdale Rd., a residential street, up to South Ponce de Leon Ave. (the locals pronounce it “PONTZ duh LEE-ahn”–unfortunately, I’ve picked that up too, having lived here more than 15 years.) South Ponce is a beautiful, tree-lined side-street, with a large stretch of park separating it from the major thoroughfare to its north, Ponce de Leon Ave. (Hence, this is South Ponce.) South Ponce eventually joined the main Ponce, and we continued on until East Lake Drive.
• Miles 7-9 took us from East Lake Drive to Dekalb Ave. westbound, until we could cross under the railroad tracks and head eastbound once again on College Ave. toward Decatur. As we entered the Decatur city limits, we saw “Burma-Shave” style signs: little poems with each verse on a separate sign. There must have been 10 sets of these, and it helped to break the monotony. An example:
  • First sign: Entering Decatur
  • Second sign: The best city on Earth!
  • Third sign: If you lived here…
  • Fourth sigh: You’d always be first!
• Close to Mile 9, we passed Agnes Scott College, and shortly after that, we headed north, under the railroad tracks, into Downtown Decatur. There was a huge cheering section there, and it was great to see them all.
• Miles 10-12 took us north on Clairemont Ave., and then west on North Decatur road, to Emory University.
• Miles 12-16 took us through a series of north/south switchbacks through the Druid Hills neighborhood. The residents were out in droves, and they were greatly appreciated. Little kids were handing out dixie cups of water–very cute. But this was where the bad hills started (they call it “Druid Hills” for a reason). The Driving Miss Daisy house was somewhere along here, but at this point I was too fatigued to notice.
• Miles 16-20 took us south on Briarcliff Road, then west on Freedom Parkway past the Carter Center (which includes the Jimmy Carter presidential library). We took Freedom Parkway all the way to Boulevard, where you see another gorgeous view of the downtown Atlanta skyline. But then, cruel course that this is, we made a U-turn and headed west again, back to the other end of Freedom Parkway to Ponce de Leon Ave.
• Miles 20-22 took us about a block or so east along Ponce, and then into the Virginia-Highland neighborhood, a mix of residences, restaurants, and shops. Again, the residents were out in droves. Some had bowls of ice that they were handing out to cool us off, and others were spraying their hoses. Unbelievable that we would even need this in March, but we did!
• Miles 22-23 took us through Piedmont Park, Atlanta’s signature city park, with a beautiful view of the Midtown Atlanta skyline over Lake Clara Meer. We exited the park on 10th St. near Charles Allen Dr., where we proceeded west up one of the nastiest hills on the course.
• Miles 23-24: the 10th St. hill was bad enough, but then we turned north up Piedmont Ave. to another nasty hill, which continued as we turned west on 14th St.
• Miles 24-26.2: south on Peachtree St. to the finish line downtown! Peachtree St. contains Atlanta landmarks such as the Margaret Mitchell House and the Fabulous Fox Theatre. This part of the course was mostly a blur for me. Somehow I managed to push myself to the finish line in 4:49:09, a PR for me.

Though there were certainly glitches in the logistics, especially with the water stations, this was a great race, and it’s something I look forward to running again. Hopefully with this first one down, they’ll learn from their mistakes, and next year’s ING Georgia Marathon will be even better.

It’s finally marathon weekend! The inaugural ING Georgia Marathon is tomorrow morning. This will be my second marathon (my first was last October, the 2006 Lasalle Bank Chicago Marathon), and I am hoping to do much better this time. In Chicago, I finished in 5:05:16, 20 minutes slower than my hoped-for 4:45. I hit the dreaded “wall” at mile 22 and wound up walking until some point past mile 25.

The thing is, somewhere into mile 25 , I found the will to pick up my feet and start running again, belabored though it was. What stopped me from doing that sooner? And what really led me to stop running at mile 22 in the first place? If I can answer those questions, I will be much better prepared.

I think the answer to both of those questions is the same: I was tired and discouraged, and as a result, I gave up hope on my 4:45 time. I think it was mostly a mental issue, and not so much a physical one. I was not in an inordinate amount of pain: I was a little achy in the muscles, but that was all. And once I picked up my feet and started running again, I actually felt a little better than I did walking. So this “wall” thing is very much a head game, and the key to breaking through the wall is to stay pumped up: I cannot let discouragement get the better of me this time.

So how will I stay pumped up tomorrow when I pass mile 20 and the wall starts to threaten? I’m going to try the following:

• Bring music. I’ve never carried an MP3 player with me in a race before, but I tried it during my training this time, and it really seems to help for those last few tough miles on a long run. I’ve created a Marathon playlist full of songs that motivate me. I don’t plan to listen to music throughout the whole marathon (I enjoy taking in the sights and sounds around me), but I’ll have it ready when I need motivation.
• Recite some mantras:
  • Don’t walk; running feels better.
  • Remember Chicago; you can make it.
  • Stay pumped; you’ve got the power.
• Mal James offered a good mental distraction technique in the “Shouts of Encouragement” episode of the Phedippidations podcast (the episode meant to be listened to during the 2006 World Wide Half Marathon Challenge): count backwards from 20 to 1, with your running cadence. I tried this during the Atlanta Half Marathon in November, and it worked well–the miles passed by pretty quickly. I’d start at 20, and every time my left foot hit the pavement, I’d count backwards. When I got to 1, I’d start over again at 20.

I’ll let you all know what happens.

What techniques do you use to break down “the wall?”