What Now?

Ever since I began running about 5 years ago, I've had the idea of a sub 3 hour marathon in my head. Why? Because the engineer, Peter, who was with me in China 5 years ago, who introduced me to distance running, had recently gone sub 3 in a marathon in his native country, Belgium. You see, there was no other way to get exercise during our 3 months in China other than to run. We would run together for 12 miles or so while the Chinese, who had never seen a Westerner in person let alone running down their streets, stared at us as we passed. At the time, 12 miles was a very long run for me, and I struggled to keep up with Peter's "easy" pace. I would be humbled when he would take off and leave me for the last 2 miles or so, as if he wasn't even trying for the past 10 miles. It was then that I made up my mind. Not only was I was going to run a marathon, but I was going to go sub 3 someday. I knew I could. If Peter could do it, I could do it.

Until December of 2011, I had run 4 marathons without going sub 3 mainly because I hadn't put together the training to do it. I hadn't averaged more than 20-25 miles per week in training ever. But this time it was different. Not only had I averaged slightly over 30 miles per week, but I had more base milage and more experience under my belt. Memphis wasn't a big time marathon like NYC or Boston like I had run before. I could go for it with nothing to lose.

So that brings me to Dec 3rd, 2011, the day of the Memphis marathon. Other than a little wind, the weather was good, and there was going to be no excuses. While I wish I had some marathon drama to report, there simply was none. I ran 26.2 miles at a very even 6:40 pace with a 1 second negative split, and the last two miles were my fastest. Other than I almost got hit by a car who ran past a cop's barricade, and I chased down and passed a couple of guys at mile 25 who were well ahead of me most of the race, there was little drama. No last minute injuries, no cramps, no equipment failure, and no wall (at least not one that slowed me down). The net result was a 2:56:04 that placed 2nd in my age, and 14th overall. Memphis was my first marathon, so it was a nice homecoming of sorts. I had my sub 3 hour marathon now. It rounded out the day when I ran across the finish and was greeted by Sarah and my Dad. They had just finished the half.....Another PR for Sarah at 1:54, and a 1st time half for my Dad in 2:11.

So sub 3 is great and all, but here's the deal.....I've run 5 marathons now, I've qualified for and run Boston, and I've now gone sub 3.....So my delimma is, "What now?" I've always had a goal....complete a marathon, qualify for Boston, run Boston, go sub 3, ??????. Notice the question marks? I'm signed up for New Orleans in early March, and I'll also be running Boston again in mid April. But what am I doing there? Am I going for a PR? Sub 2:50? Am I just enjoying a 26.2 mile run with thousands of other runners? Should I give back to the sport and be a pacer? A buddy I run with once a week in the morning has completed a couple of trail 50 milers in the past few months. Now that's an accomplishment that puts my 2:56 marathon to shame. I must admit, the thought of a 50 miler has entered my head. Is the next thing for me an ultra? He even suggested that I run the Ledville 100 with him. I laughed at the thought. But I'm still searching for "What Now?" Time will tell, and I'll eventually figure it out. Until then, I'll keep a strong base of miles and see what happens in New Orleans and Boston.

A few shout outs for helping me go sub 3:

-Sarah for being a supportive, understanding runner-wife and for setting a good example of how to stick to a training plan.
-Dad for being proud of me and inspiring me by completing his 1st half in 2:11 at age 63.
-My cousin, Brian for arranging some gatorade bottles at some of the water stations for me.
-Mom for feeding me a good meal the night before and for babysitting Layne and Harper while Sarah and I were out setting PR's
-Jennie Vee for inspiring me with here dedcation and love of the sport and for creating the training plan I followed and continues to give me running advice (like the suggestion to take s-caps during the race)
-Jim for letting me borrow his Garmin since mine crapped out a few days before the race.
-Marcus for the Thursday morning trail runs that got me the extra 6-7 miles per week that I was missing in previous marathon training.
-Beverly, and ex co-worker of Sarah's, for the on course support and for the water bottle
-Terry at work, who is a former marathoner with a 2:48 marathon under his belt, who has truly helped me to shift my mindset of what "fast" really is.
-Louisville Fast Guys for allowing me to join their group long run and forcing me to run a 19 mile training run at a 6:20 pace. Wasn't planning on that on that day.