This was my 36th marathon, but first as a newly minted masters competitor. I was hoping to break three hours but looking at the flags starched out like ironing boards on the ride down from Boston, I had my doubts. Cape Cod served as the USATF marathon championship for the ninth straight year, thereby assuring a strong field among the age groups. With prize money for the top five, one would expect a strong open field. Baystate's and Hartford's flat course (drawing Olympic Trials aspirants) and Rhode Island's deep prize purse had depleted the pool of fast men and women however.
The lure of the 100th Boston Marathon was clearly evident as we arrived well over an hour before the race to find the parking lot completely full. This year's race was by far the biggest in Cape history, with over 900 runners, many trying to earn the elusive qualifying times to next April's centennial Boston. Having run this race five times previously in all kinds of weather, I knew there would be many dissapointed folks later in the day. The course is just plain hilly, a fact that gets hammerred home with each tour I take of the scenic loop course.
Even pacing is always the best strategy in any marathon, but at the Cape you had better get into a good pace quickly, as the first eight miles are relatively flat. Then the hills begin, and don't stop until 24. With that in mind, I lined up near the front of the big crowd at the Falmouth green. Everyone seemed in good spirits, waiting the 11 am starting gun. I slipped into a nice comfortable pace right away. The groin and hamstring pains that had been nagging the weeks before the race were dormant, a good sign.
Mile 1: 6:27. Great, that felt easy. Another good sign - the wind was at our backs from miles 2 to 4 along surf drive. That means it would also be at our backs from 21 to 25. Mile 5 came in 32:39, 6:30 pace. I was working hard, but not straining at all. I was set to meet my "crew" Mary Collins at mile 7. There was no need for her to give me anything, as the race has plenty of water stops. Or so I thought at that point in the race. I was already drinking a lot at each stop though, a mild cause for concern.
The hills and the head wind arrived simultaneously at mile 8. I was running with the third place woman Diane Tedford. I offered to work with her into the wind, but she fell of the pace as I got a surge of strength at mile 10. As I passed that marker in 1:05:58, I was brimming with confidence. The legs felt strong and loose. I was catching runners with relative ease. Even on a very tough set of hills from there until the half marathon, I was cruising.
Half marathon: 1:27:04. Right on target for a sub three. Now it was simply a matter of hanging on to the pace. Mary had agreed to run with me for a few miles starting at 15. I knew she would be a bit surprised to see me arrive there so quickly. She jumped in along side, then Diane Tedford appeared again. I quickly told her Mary was not in the race. She was surely wondering how another female runner had appeared out of thin air. I never realized how sharply I cut the tangents in this race until Mary was next to me. I was all over the road, directing her to move from one side to another, as I trimmed the tangets with geometrical precision. She didn't know whether to stay on the left or the right of me. Hey, there is no need to run an extra step on this brutal course. The hills were coming with a vengeance now, and the pesky head wind was getting extremely tiresome. Mile 19 was 7:10, my first over 7, Uh oh.
Mile 20: 2:14:27. That just about what I ran at Hartford last year, my last sub three hour effort (2:59:00). Mary dropped off the pace and it was now a matter of grinding it out. The wind and sun were really drying me out though. The three miles between aid stations was just too much. I was also feeling a little hungry and weak, so I was sucking down as much Gatorade and water as possible without having to stop running. The legs just wouldn't turn over on the steep Wood's Hole incline however. I felt like I was running in quicksand.
I managed a 7:25 for mile 21, but more hills at 22 yielded only a 7:45. The chance of a sub three was fading fast now. I passed Diane for the last time and offered some words of encouragement. I was still running hard on the downhills, trying to make up what I was losing on the ups. The tail wind was there as expected, but didn't seem to be much help at this late stage. I tried to concentrate on the beautiful scenery along Surf Drive. Crystal clear water and sparkling clean beaches. What a nice place this would be for a run! If only I wasn't being ruled by the little piece of timekeeping machinery on my left wrist.
Even though the sub three looked bleak, I forged on, dismissing any thoughts of giving up and cruising in. I could still better 7 minute per mile pace (3:03:20). I was catching up to a runner about every half mile and that helped too. The hills ended at 24 and so did my hopes of a sub three. 2:44:41. I'd need to get back to 6:30 pace again. No way. I was still running, but by now my legs felt heavy and uncoordinated. Mile 25 was 7:55, mile 26 7:48. At least it was under 8's. As I turned back towards the green after 26, the digital hour marker on the clock turned from two to three. I sprinted anyway, as I could feel someone approaching from behind. No way I'm being caught now! The race ended for me at 3:01:11. Jim Garcia was waiting at the finish. He said he had a "bad" race, finishing only 4th, after winning last year. We all have different goals, that's for sure.
Rhode Island's Greg Cornell took the $1300 first place prize money with a 2:29. Vladimir Krivoy's 2:34 was good for first master and third overall. Naoko Ishibe made the women's Olympic Trials cutoff of 2:50 by only 36 seconds to win the womens race. Only 47 runners broke three hours, compared with 111 at Baystate.
I had told Mary before the race I'd be happy with top 50 and top 20 masters. The final result was 50th place, 18th masters. A pretty good guess, and one I have to be happy with, although I just missed adding to my 27 sub three hour marathons and Henry's club mark (by 44 seconds). The remainder of the day was a lot of fun. The Lawrence school provides a relaxed post race setting, with a meal in the cafeteria and the awards in the gym. I even got in early enough for a massage, though I don't think it helped much. My groin was becoming more sore by the minute.
By the time we left at 5:30 pm, the sky was completely dark (courtesy of daylight savings), the temperature had dropped and the winds were howling. On the short walk to the car, we were all happy to have done our 26.2 miles. So much for my first masters marathon. As they say in Red Sox nation, " Wait 'till next year!"