Taper Madness

[stihl going]

This year was to be the year of my 10th straight grandma's Marathon. Grandma's was my first and will always hold a special place as it is a location that Rhonda loves to visit. we come back evey year for several reasons one of which is she has as much fun here as I do.

Leading up to Grandma's was high miles for Boston with speedwork to follow. Well, toss in a few inadvertent incidents and all goals seem to fly out the window. This race was going to be a fast one for me as I had put the base miles in and was now prepared to get fast. On the map were pace gigs of 1:45, 1:40 and 2:00 for 3 halfs leading up to the race. Last year I paced a couple full marathons prior to Grandma's and paid the price.

All went out the window the 12th of May with the "chainsaw incicent". Scary to say the least but i bounced back 9 days later to pace the 1:40 half at Fargo. A week later my personal physician took the sticthes out and informed me my knee was still infected and I was a fool for running. A bit more time off and i could start again. Fast forward 2 weeks later and back spasms so bad i couldn't even stand up straight. 1 week before the race and i can hardly walk. Just another bump in the road.

On Wednesday of that week I saw my massage therapist and had a massage the next day. These seemed to help but the ride up would prive to be a step back. Oh well, I would do on race day what I could. Several weeks earlier I committed to a friend to try and run 3:15. That seemed quite the joke now. The race day weather called for rain and temps in the mid-40's but the wind would be a tailwind. Not sure what I would do and would decide at the start.

The morning actually wasn't bad as it stopped raining 1 hour before the start of our race. As ther is no shelter at the start this was good. Had a friend starting with the 3:20 pace group and another with the 3:30 group. Didn't see either and the 3:15 guy picks me out of the crowd so it was game on.

The early miles felt really easy. Certainly a good sign. I let him know early that my goal was to try. Discarded my longsleeve by mile 3 amd ran in a tank the rest of the way. We were very cognizant of the tangents and by mile 5 it was easy to run these. Knowing the course as well as i do he was constantly consulting me as to which direction the road curved. I was only concerned with hitting milestones on the course. The first was 10 and then the 1/2. Got thru 10 at 1:14 and the 1/2 at 1:36:59. Feeling really good at this point.

Next up was 17 as then the mind games begin. Break the course down into 3 5-k segments and it seems more manageable. After 17 there is a dip in the course as you start to come into town. Welcome sight. At 19 the crowds will start to build. I refill my bottle at 19 and move on. I take the lead in our group as i hate the next couple of miles and know if I fall behind I am done. All along the guys keep saying the race ends at 22.5. Thata the top of Lemondrop Hill and is mostly downhill from there. I lead the group up the hill and then prepare to hang on.

The group of 5 is down to 3 now as the other 2 started to drop back. we cruise forward with most of the encouragement coming my way. We stay together thru downtown and towards the DECC and round to the finish. The backside of the DECC we hit the wind full force. This is the first time I look at my watch and know sub-3:15 is in the bag. Big mistake. I can no longer stay with the other 2 for the last half mile but try to refocus.

Miss my large group of friends who are screaming at me at tnning of the oar boat William Irvin. The winding toward the finish at Grandma's can be tough but once you get to the final starightaway it is nice. Less than .2 to go and they call names. I hear mine again this year but don't go into any theatrics. I am too spent and want to finish under 3:15 gun time.

Gun time says 3:14:57 and chip was 3:14:22. I am elated and as usual see my lovely wife cheering at the finish. I do my usual ritual of getting down on one knee to thank God and kiss the ground. As soo as I stand up I see Carrie Tollefson approaching. Give her a big hug and then the interview. I couldn't stop smiling as I was so happy to do what I didn't think possible the day before. The guy I was running with is a running coach and when I mentioned my lack of speedwork prior he said it was overrated. All he said is that it is the engine that matters. On this day he was right.

The rest of the weekend was birthdaycelebration along with the customery tequila in large qualtities. One of our group even brought a bottle up so we could do shots in their hotel room. I was encouragfed by the result as it was my fastest time in over 2 years. we shall see what the future brings.
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"Don't we know one of them maverick's" Trent
"When headphones are outlawed, only outlaws will have headphones. You sir are a badass." Nels
"Dr. Peru used to aspire to DNF, but a DQ would be way, way cooler" Dr.Peru
"My guess Kleenex is that you're a "minute" man" Julie K

[leannNO]

speedwork via chainsaw seemed to work for you, but I don't think it's going to sell to the general running public. congrats on a great race and a grand birthday celebration.
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"But it is better to live here in sackcloth and ashes than to own the whole state of Ohio." -Lafcadio Hearn on New Orleans, 1877

see my map!

[Scuba]

Wow, Paul, you certainly didn't let all of those set-backs get you down. Congratulations on an awesome race!
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Do all you can with what you have in the time you have in the place you are...Nkosi Johnson

[Babs]

Congratulations on an awesome race!
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Barbara
Logan's, T.S.'s, Lucy's , Conner's, Grace's, Wesley's, Zack's, Abby's and Claire's Grandma
Maniac #1016

[dcarson]

Nice job Paul! See, maybe cool rainy weather isn't so bad .
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Donna

[1L]

Wow, Paul - great race!
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-Miles of smiles, M i c h e l e

They are the sandbaggers, we are the sandbags - No Twitch Muscles 11/17/07

Marathon Total: 42; States: 24; Provinces: 1; Countries: 2

Maniac #795

[pezjaz]

nice job Paul!!!

you deserved more than one bottle imo!!
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"Every healthy child would improvise if we let them"

[Rita]

chiain saws and back spasms... whatever makes you faster... great job, I'm sure the party was fun as well as hotel shots!
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"We run, not because we think it is doing us good, but because we enjoy it and cannot help ourselves..." Sir Roger Bannister

My son is hiking the Appalchian Trail: http://www.gofundme.com/longwalk

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