Taper Madness

[GregC]

Well Here it is. I was a little self-indulgent with this race report, really because I wanted to remember it in a few years. If all you want to do is read about the race, go down to that section.

THE TRIP
The longest I've ever been on a plane was when I went to Germany in 2000. That was about a 9 hour trip and a 7 hour time difference. I did not handle it well and was exhausted for the first week I was there. The trip for to South Korea involved a 4 hour flight to San Francisco and then a 12 hour flight into Seoul. I wasn't looking forward to it. I woke up at 5:30AM on Thursday to get to the airport and was safely on my first flight at 9AM. Everyone told me my best shot at beating jetlag was to just stay awake for the entire flight so that's what I did. I took a few 15 minute cat naps over the 16 hours in the air, but for the most part, I was awake. I watched "Marley and Me" (I miss my dog), "Yes Man" (didn't Jim Carrey already do this movie before), and read "The Perfect Mile" (Guy tries to run a sub 4 for the mile, guy runs a 4:02, repeat 20 times, finally someone does it). By the time we were nearing Seoul, I was exhausted and had to go to the bathroom really bad. I had a window seat and rather amazingly, the guy sitting next to me slept for the entire plane ride. Finally at the 10 and a half hour mark of the flight, I woke him and told him either move out of my way or it's gonna get ugly. I felt bad, but come on.

Finally, we landed around 6PM on Friday, which was approximated 23 actual hours from takeoff (there was a layover in San Francisco). However, when you factor in the 14 hour time difference there was a 37 hour vortex of time travel and my body was confused. And tired. Having no idea about anything to do with Seoul (the Frommer's guide to South Korea was already checked out of my library), I assumed in a few short minutes I'd be happily snoozing in my bed. I met up with our race contact/travel guide/interpreter/cheerleader Soo and was informed that we had to wait in the airport for an hour until another couple of runners arrived from Hong Kong. Finally at about 7:30PM we were all together and ready to head to the hotel. We boarded the bus and that's when I was introduced to Seoul traffic. I guess when you pack 10 million people into a any city there's bound to be some congestion, but I just wasn’t ready for this. It was bumper to bumper traffic from pretty much the airport to the hotel. The trip took about 2 hours and finally by 9:30PM we got to the hotel. I was roomed with another runner from the US and when I got to the room he had left a note saying he was out exploring. I certainly didn't want to be rude, but I turned off the lights and was out before my head hit the pillow. Around 10:30 or so I think he might have come in the room and we exchanged a few pleasantries, but things were foggy. I slept like a rock until about 6AM.

PRE-RACE STUFF
When I woke up I looked over and Chris (my roommate) was also just waking up. We reintroduced ourselves and did what any two runners who were thrown into a foreign country would do…we went for a run. Our hotel was right next to the Olympic Park which was built as part of the 1988 Summer games that were held in Seoul (I can't imagine traffic during those games), which gave us a great little place to run. I can only imagine that if we were staying in the downtown area of Seoul, running would have been difficult if not impossible due to the congestion and traffic. Olympic Park on the other hand was a runners dream. With lots of little trails and rolling hills it was beautiful. So beautiful in fact that we kind of got lost during the ran and went about 6 miles while neither of us were planning on doing more than 4.

Oh yeah running, that thing I came here to do. Here we are 5 paragraphs in and I haven't even mentioned it. Well, since Boston was on a Monday and I lost a day in travel, this was officially day 4 from my recovery from Boston and it was also the first time I ran since Boston. While the legs felt decent enough when I started the run, after about 2 miles in, the quads were really tightening up and I knew the race tomorrow had the potential to get ugly.. It does bode well for a marathon when your sore after your easy run the day before the race. However I continued to reassure myself with thoughts that the goal of the trip was for leisure not to kill yourself trying to run a fast marathon. And I was pretty convinced of it too. Just treat it as a long run. You can do a 26 mile long run tomorrow right? Right?

Well, there wasn't much time to ponder these types of questions anyway, because Soo had us on a tight schedule. The schedule of events for the day was a course drive at 9AM, lunch at noon, palace tour at 1:00PM, interviews at 4:30PM, dinner at 6:00PM. With the aforementioned Seoul traffic, this meant the entire day would be spent either on the bus or participating in an activity. Now, I hope I don't sound like I'm whining, because I'm not. I came Seoul to see as much as I could see in the short time that I was there. I was thrilled that we had a local person there to show us around and help us with all the little things that a foreign person that doesn't speak the native language would normally struggle with. For this Soo was great. She helped us order food and bought all our tickets for everything. However, Soo was not a runner. To her a taper was an animal with a funny nose and carbo loading was something that happened at the docks. For lunch we went to a restaurant that served two things: Chicken soup or Fried chicken. Your choice (I went with the soup). For dinner, we went to Sizzler. Yep, that Sizzler. While it seemed an odd choice, it actually worked out fine. The salad bar had a small hot portion of foods, which contained rice and spaghetti. Everyone in our group had the pasta. I think Sizzler was a little surprised that they couldn't keep the spaghetti stocked at the buffet table.

THE INTERVIEW
On our schedule that we received a few prior to heading off for Seoul, there was a line item that said "Have a interview with Championship Runners." I wasn't sure what that meant or what we'd be expected to do, but I was a bit nervous about it. On the bus ride back to the hotel after the palace tour (which was very cool by the way), we got a quick debriefing on what it would be like. We'd go into a room and there would be an interviewer, a translator, a camera, and of course the peanut gallery of other runners (which was really just the other American, his girlfriend, and 2 Australian runners). They would ask several questions, which mostly had to do with how we started running and any tips we had for first time runners. No problem. I do this interview all the time when people find out that I run marathons. The only difference is that there will be a camera on this time. Oh yeah one more thing. We need you to say a few phrases in Korean as well:

"Hello my name is Greg Castady"
"My first marathon was the Chicago Marathon"
"I love you Adidas & MBC ESPN"
"My favorite Sportschannel is MBC ESPN"

I won't even pretend that I remember how to say any of those things in Korean, but I somehow stumbled through it for the camera (after about 5 takes). It was humbling. Well, it was humbling when I was trying to get through it. It was hilarious when the other runners were in the chair trying to stumble through their lines. Needless to say, I was relieved when that portion of the itinerary was done with. I just pray that video never leaves Korea.

That night after a full day of tours, interviews, and Sizzler, we all headed to bed around 8:30 and I slept surprisingly well for it being the day before a marathon along with the jetlag.

RACE DAY
Ioke up around 5:30AM and walked down to the local Family Mart for my two .5 Liters of Coke Light. While Seoul does have 7-11's, the concept of "The Super Big Gulp" hasn't seemed to reach there yet, so I had to make due with bottles. That's OK. I'm flexible. Finished those up got dressed and headed down to the hotel breakfast buffet. On Saturday and Monday morning, this buffet rocked. They had lots of Korean food to choose from and for a hotel breakfast, it was great. However, on race morning, it was a little scary. I really didn't think kimchi would make a good pre-race meal(but it was there if I wanted it, which I did on Saturday and Monday morning) and a lot of the other stuff, I just wasn't exactly sure what I was eating. I was able to play it safe with toast, some dry cereal and juice. I also pocketed a couple packets of honey. I accidentally only brought two gels with me for the race so I figured if I was in a pinch I could just take some honey late in the race if I felt I needed a boost. We then got back on the bus and headed to the starting line.

On the way to the starting line, Soo told us that they wanted us all to wear the singlets that were provided in our race packets, since it had the sponsor (Adidas) on it. Luckily, I had a feeling she might say that so I had brought it along with me. Now I've never worn a singlet in a race in my life. I guess I never felt the need to buy one, and not many races give you a singlet for participating so I just don't have any. Since it was rather chilly on race morning, I also decided to go with the arm warmers that they provided. If this was a normal marathon that I trained for and was planning on going full speed, I probably would have left the arm warmers off, but I just wasn't sure how fast I was going to be able to run, so I kind of dressed more like I would for a long run.

Finally we were ready for the race to get started. We got to the starting area and were able to drive right through the swarms of people and land in our VIP tent. After a warm-up and finding a guy selling some gels at a booth (goodbye honey!), it was time to head to the starting line. Once we made it to the "elite" starting area, they did a brief introduction for each of us. At this point, me and the other American runner both looked at each other and were just kind of struck by how cool it all it was. Here we were two guys who took running pretty seriously, but were far from what anyone could call elite, being treated like we were big shots in a foreign country. It was one of the cooler moments I've had in my marathoning life. But no time to gloat boy, because while my Korean may leave something to be desired, I'm pretty sure that what they're doing right now is counting down to the starting pistol (OK, I cheated and looked at the jumbo tron where they had numbers counting backwards, sue me).

THE RACE
The gun went off and in a surge of excitement and pride I went out with the leaders. USA USA. Actually the pace was pretty reasonable to start if I wasn't just coming off a marathon a few days ago, but for me today, it was too fast. The first mile clocked in at 6 flat and the second came in at 6:08. I was running with the lead pack and really just wishing that the circumstances could have been different. But they weren't, and my legs reminded me of that right past the two mile mark. My quads started throbbing and I knew right there that anything close to 6 minute pace wasn't going to happen today. I had to back off and back off quick or else it was going to be a long and painful day.

I spent the next few miles just trying to figure out a comfortable pace, but it wasn't easy. First my shoulder cramped up, then my calves started barking. Those seemed to work themselves out OK, but then my stomach started cramping up. Despite all that, I was holding my pace around 6:20 but I was still pretty nervous. It was clear that my body wasn't happy with me. I think it felt a bit betrayed. It was as if it was saying, look buddy. I put up with a lot. I let you run twice a day, not get enough sleep, and eat like crap. I even will tolerate the occasional marathon. But this? This is too much. I allow A MARATHON. Focus on "A" marathon. This back to back nonsense is not funny and it will not be tolerated. At the same time, I had other thoughts in my head where if I slowed down wouldn't I just be prolonging the agony? I kind of convinced myself that it didn't matter much if I was running a 6:20 pace or a 7:20 pace. Things were going to hurt. So I struggled on.

Finally at mile 11, I had to duck into a port-a-john as my stomach had had enough. It was my first ever bathroom break in 23 marathons. I was passed by a few runners while in there and came out in what was my worst placing of the day, somewhere in the mid 20s. However, as the turnaround point loomed, I was slowly growing more confident in my ability to finish this thing.

I'm not sure why. Maybe it was re-passing the people who passed me during my bathroom break. Maybe it was the realization that I was halfway done, or maybe it was the long downhill that came from about 12.5 miles to 15 miles, but I was finally getting in a rhythm. Which brings me to the course. For the most part it was a nice rolling course, but there were some pretty good hills mixed in there as well. Instead of describing it in details, I'll show a picture:



Now, the only bad part of the downhill that went from 12.5 to 15 was the realization that we were going to have go back up it once he hit the turn around point around the 15 mile mark. I was a bit nervous about it, but for some reason on the way back, I hardly even noticed the uphill. As a matter of fact, my splits running uphill from 15-17.5 were actually faster than my splits running when I was running downhill. I think it had something to do with the shape that my quads were in. They were trashed. A gentle downhill felt good, but anything that was more than a gentle downhill actually hurt. There was a point where I was welcoming the uphills as my legs felt the best as when I was running up. That's definitely a first for this flatlander.

But back to the race. I need to switch to kilometer talk at this point, because I really stopped checking my Garmin after about mile 10 and was just focusing on running from 1kilometer marker to the next. From 25K to 35K was definitely the best stretch of running for me in this race. I think my feelings were similar to when a boxer realizes that the guy he's facing can't hurt him with his best punch. Similarly, I started realizing that at the pace I was running, there was no way I was going to be able to go into any sort of glycogen deprivation. My beat up legs were governing how fast I could run, and at the pace I was allowed to go, there was only so much damage I could do to myself. I'm not sure if there is/was any actual scientific basis to back up what I was feeling, but the thoughts were working for me so I went with it.

I was also passing people again. Even at the pace that I was running which was right around 6:20, there weren't many runners around me. I could usually see one or two guys up ahead and that was it. However, in the first half of the race, runners were pulling away from me. Now I was actually starting to reel them in. It felt really good. However, at the 35K mark, I came upon a Korean runner who was actually seeded #3 in the race and had run a previous best marathon of 2:18. He obviously was having a bad day. When I went to pass him, he wasn't too happy and tried to stay with me. It was distracting. I had spent the last 8 or 9 miles in a pretty good rhythm (reel someone in, run past them, look for the next guy), and here I was with about 7k left to run and I was racing for that much coveted 16th place. It wasn't what I was looking for at that point. Finally at a water stop I dropped him and I got back into a little rhythm.

The race ended with a severe downhill into the park area where the start/finish area was and then about another 1K to the finish line. The decent into the park was painful. It was about a 200 yard stretch that dropped 50 meters. My quads were already screaming at me going into the hill and by the time I got about halfway down I was actually screaming on every footfall. It just hurt. But once the hill was done I was able to pass 1 more runner on the way to the finish line and finally, mercifully, I was done in a time of 2:44:23, about 4 minutes slower than Boston, in 15th place. I actually somehow managed to run a negative split by a few seconds as well (first half 1:22:22, second half 1:22:02). I guess the bathroom break helped that a little (although if I may brag I still was able to throw down a 7:14 mile even with the break).

POST RACE
Ugh. I did not feel good when I was done. It felt like, hmm, well it felt like I had run two marathons in the span of five days. My body wasn't happy with me. I tried to drink but my stomach was very upset. The thought of eating made me nauseous. So I sat and grunted in pain for awhile. However, after a few minutes my legs were feeling surprisingly good. My stomach didn't feel so good, but the legs were fine. I was able to change into my sweats without any cramping, which is probably the first time that has ever happened after a marathon. Usually my hips go into spastic fits when I try and lift my legs at all post-marathon.

We then waited around for the awards ceremony and had a small lunch in one of the tents set-up for our little group of invited runners. Maybe it was being in the confines of an enclosed tent or maybe it the smell from the sushi, but something was wreaking havoc on my already queasy stomach. I had to get out of that tent. So I took a walk, regrouped for about 10 minutes and figured I should head back to the group. However, once I sat back down, the queasiness returned, just as Soo was yelling for all of us to get back on the bus. I was nervous about a 30 minute bus trip in stop and go traffic with 8 other sweaty runners. Luckily on my way over to the bus, the stomach had enough and I started puking. It was all water but almost immediately afterwards I felt 100% better. Thank God, because that bus STUNK.

That night we were supposed to go on another tour of a renovated stream that runs through downtown Seoul, but we had a revolt and told Soo we were too beat to be walking around and instead opted for free time until dinner. Thank God. Once I got home I took a quick nap and then decided I felt good enough to go out for a walk. So I walked around the Olympic Park which was extremely cool (Chicago 2016!!), except for the getting lost part, and just barely got back in time for dinner.

Soo set us up with a traditional Korean dinner at the hotel which under normal circumstance would have been great, but under these circumstances, it was rather comical. The problem was that the traditional Korean dinner involved everyone sitting on the floor at the table. It was hilarious to watch everyone trying to get comfortable (and not cramp up) while sitting cross legged or whichever they could best get close enough to the table to get food in their mouth. Luckily, we were the only ones in the restaurant.

Basically, I had a few goals for this trip:

1. Don't embarrass yourself in the race (Check)
2. Eat an identified piece of meat from a street vendor (Check - post race during my walk around Olympic Park)
3. Eat a big bowl of spicy noodles from somewhere

Well three was definitely in jeopardy, but luckily I had a nice long layover in the Tokyo airport (did I really just say that) and was able to get my noodles while I waited for my flight home. Did I mention I've become a wizard with the chopsticks? Well, that's probably a bit of stretch, but at least I don't look like a 2 year old with them anymore. Well that might be a stretch too, but I've become functional with them. It's a start.
_________________
"God Determines how fast you're going to run. I can only help with the mechanics." -- Bill Bowerman

"Shut Up Bob!!"

New and mediocre as ever:
http://running-against-time.blogspot.com

[Rita]

great report... and while it might seem simple compared to some of the more amazing things you wrote, my favorite sentence was...

[Snowman]

Read every word -- great report and great trip. So glad you got a chance to do this!

So, did they give you time to shop for something for the kids?
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“Students generally feel that if you come to Harvard, for what you’re paying, you should probably have the right to a hot breakfast.”

[Bernice]

Wow! What a great story. Thanks for representing American runners so well, both at the marathon and throughout your visit.

[Ric H.]

Glad you had such a great opportunity Greg, you deserve it. And I read every word also, vicarious living, that's what that is. And racing two marathons in 5 days is quite a feat, you may not think so, but you didn't loaf along.
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And who at best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory or defeat. Theodore Roosevelt

Marathon Maniac #721 4 stars

A double is an ultramarathon with nap time in the middle - Clare King MM # 338 AKA trail queen

[1L]

All I can say is Wow! I am honored to know you - great report and Congratulations!

PS if you run another this weekend you can be a Maniac.
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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: 36; States: 22; Provinces: 1; Countries: 2

Maniac #795

[ksimkoid]

Greg...Incredible - congratulations on an amazing accomplishment! The report was really enjoyable and I too lived vicariously through your adventure.

Oh yeah, I hope you buy something really special for your wife on Mother's Day - she earned it!
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Kathleen

Carpe Diem!

[Jimmy Jam]

Wow! Just wow, Greg.

Great race, great report. An experience of a life time. Glad you had the opportunity!

And so soon after Boston. Most impressive. Congratulations!

[7]

Great job Greg. What an experience.
_________________
Don't Fok with my envision.

"nothing is more deceitful than the appearance of humility. It is often only carelessness of opinion, and sometimes an indirect boast"

Blogging Again!!
--k r i s h m d

[GBN]

Thanks for sharing this experience, Greg. I have fond memories of my time in Korea, even the traffic and pollution. I cant' believe you ran 2:44 five days after Boston.

[no twitch muscles]

Congratulations Greg - that was a really good report on a pretty cool trip.

Snowman - surely that video could be tracked down and posted here by someone with your connections?
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Ian

[kent]

What a very cool experience! I too am shocked at how fast you ran so soon after Boston.
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-k e n t

Running slow40 Hazelnut Butter Rutabagas Bulgur - the new tofu brussels sprouts ART Neti Pot 16 cool.
"I was a good kid, but it just seemed that most of the things I did were either stupid or illegal, go figure." - Evil Don

[Bob]

That is quite the lifetime experience you just went through these last couple of weeks.

We know that video of your press conference is out there somewhere. It's just a matter of time.
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"I'm getting excited just talking about it."
G$ discussing Dave-O. 3/5/08

[Joe 6Pack Runner]

Dude, you fucking rock. Congratulations on great back-to-back races that most of us can only dream of.

Nattu.

[Snowman]

[NicoleK]

Congrats Greg!!! That was a great report. I'm truly amazed by your running talents. You have a full time job, a wife, 4 kids.... yet you train and run almost like a pro. Impressive. I'm glad the trip went well and you had a great race.
Did they have a suggestion/comment card for you to fill out? The fact that they schedule a group of elite runners on walking tours the evening after a marathon- and a dinner that requires sitting on the floor is hilarious. Well, not if you had to do it- but clearly the event coordinator is NOT a runner.
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ITMIYSOAYHTSM?

[e]

Great report and race Greg. I love your attitude, it's going to hurt no matter how fast/slow you run so you might as well hammer it.

I'm pretty sure that 2 marathons in 5 days on different continents would qualify you for maniac status. I'd say that beats 2 marathons on back to back weekends.
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Marathon Maniac #712
28 marathons
9 ultras

[littlewally and farnk]

[dcarson]

What an awesome experience Greg! I'm so glad you enjoyed it (except for the throwing up part).

Not too bad of a race considering you had just run a marathon. Weirdo .
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Donna

"Life is short...Running makes it seem longer." I'm not sure where it came from, but I saw it on a t-shirt.

[ck]

Greg, that is so cool. Loved your story, love to hear how superhuman your running is. Congratulations. Komapsimnida. (Thank you, in Korean.)
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Marketing that makes connections: www.dot-2.com

[Leather]

Just incredible! I, like others, marval at how you can get it all done and make it look so damn easy. Congratulations Mr. Elite!
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Lisa

"If life gives you limes, make margaritas." Jimmy Buffet

[Tom L]

Great report and amazing effort to put together two remarkable marathons in so few days.

[T. Musacchio]

This is one of the best things I've read in ages - thank you! Great race!
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-Tracy

[MotherRunner]

Congratulations!!! Nicely done. Great report. I mean, what the hell else can I say? Hope the jetlag is gone....
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Sarah

[tom]

I'm so glad you decided to go, Greg. Thanks for sharing the trip, your report was a great read. Congrats on the whole thing.
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[Doctor F]

Bravo!

[JimK]

Great story Greg, and race, but this ...

[leannNO]

too cool.
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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!

[2Ls]

Greg, congratulations on your double-in-a-week running feat - that is no small accomplishment before throwing in the "half-way-round-the-world" travel in between. Thank you for sharing your experience with us. Your kids have a cool dad!

[Doug Branscombe]

Congrats to you on your great adventure and for sharing it with us here.
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Doug BranSCombe

[Ed]

What an amazing experience for you, Greg -- congratulations.