April 20, 2013
Marathon #10 / Marathon (or beyond) #12 / State #8
Finish Time: 4:28:16 (3rd fastest)
Place in Marathon: 377/685
Garmin Marathon Link
First and foremost, let me just say that in addition to being in the top three finishing times for me, this was in the top three as my most enjoyable marathon - including the entire experience of the pasta dinner, the race itself and visiting Kansas City, MO.
The only big negative had nothing to do with the marathon and everything to do with poor preparation and planning on my part. That is, I missed my flight to Kansas City on Friday morning. I found out later that a number of security personnel at the Hartsfield Airport had been laid off, with Friday being the first day that went into effect...so, lines were extra long. And I just got there too late. Still, I was happy to get there on the next flight, only having missed a couple of hours I would have had in KC.
Having heard how flat and barren KC and Olathe would be, since they are in the great plains, I was pleasantly surprised to see there were gentle rolling hills (small, but there) and plenty of trees. I'm from Atlanta and so I'm used to running on hills and Lots of trees. Kansas City (and Olathe) seemed like nice cities. The people I encountered all seemed exceptionally friendly. This included the people working security/shuttle/rental car counters at the airport as well as all the volunteers and police officers assisting during the actual race.
As just a little background, Olathe is about 45 minutes from the KC airport and is basically a suburb of KC. This was the 12th/13th (can't remember which) running of the marathon. The race starts and ends at the Garmin headquarters in Olathe. The race theme is the Wizard of Oz - they embrace it fully, with the finisher's medal this year featuring the Tin Man. (Picture to come soon)
I got a rental car from Dollar after I arrived. This was my first experience with this rental company, and not one I would soon repeat. The car they gave me had numerous scratches and a dent I had to make them aware of, all of which could have been overlooked had the steering wheel not shook uncontrollably at spends in excess of 55mph. Totally ridiculous - and it did it so much that my arm got sore trying to hold onto it. Of course by the time I realized it I didn't want to go all the way back.
In KC, I checked out a highly rated little bistro/lunch place called Gennessee Royale Bistro, where I had their potato cheese soup and a chicken salad sandwich. Both were very good and I recommend, although it was pricey for what it was.
I also checked out the Toy and Miniature Museum in KC. It was only $7 to go into and very extensive. I'm a big kid at heart, so this was extra special to me. Needless to say, I got lots of pictures of dollhouses and miniatures. Fun stuff.
It was an easy drive to Olathe where I checked into the Candlewood Suites. My room had a full kitchen, which was awesome, and they even offered on site laundry and free DVD 'rentals.' I would definitely stay there again. It was helpful too since I had a toaster for my bagels before the race - beats what I'm used to (chewy bagels on a butterfly ridden stomach isn't so tasty).
Packet pick-up was uneventful, but fine. Pasta dinner that night was fantastic. Scott Jurek was the keynote speaker. I'll say now that I have (of course) bought his book. I had read about him and knew he is an ultramarathon icon from the book Born to Run, but I had not yet read his book. I met some cool people at the pasta dinner as well, which was the best. In the past I have gotten lonely for races I travel to by myself, so this was a nice change and break from my norm. Night was relaxing. Watched Click with Adam Sandler and slept soundly.
I woke up pumped up for the race and wide awake, even having only gotten 6/6 1/2 hours of sleep. Up with plenty of time to take care of business and eat 2 bagels with lots of cream cheese.
I got to the race with plenty of time (my hotel was only about 2 miles from the start/finish) and stayed in my cozy car until about 10 minutes before the start. It was in the low 30 degrees at race start, so the longer I could stay inside, the better!
Race start had a hot air balloon, keeping with the Wizard of Oz theme, which I really liked. National Anthem moved me more than usual, with the Boston Marathon having happened that week - and a number of the marathoners had been at Boston the week before. It was very quiet in rememberance/honor of the victims as well as solidarity as Americans.
During the race I stuck with the 4:20 pace group from the get go. Figured I wouldn't finish with them (I tend to take bathroom breaks, and haven't been running that pace for a while), but it was a good time to aspire to for the beginning. I also wanted to chit chat with people again. I met and talked to a guy named Cornell until about mile 9, which really made the time go by quickly. Nice guy, lived in the Kansas City area, but from Romania originally. He was running his first marathon, and I'm happy to say he did fantastically! He finished around 4:26 (I finished in 4:28).
Try as I might, I couldn't catch back up to the 4:20 group after my 5+ minute bathroom break (there was a line). And, of course, I had to stop once more around mile 16. There was fantastic support on the course - lots of people cheering throughout. I've become fond of running without earphones, and when I do I feel much more connected to other people. I'm also very grateful for all of the supporters on the course and did my best to thank them for their support/coming out. The course itself was beautiful. The 2nd half was run on a wooded biking/running paved trail about 12' across, which I really enjoyed.
I felt strong for this race - and that was sort of my mantra. I wanted to finish in a good time (anything under 4:40 would be good to me, and under 4:30 would be awesome) and was very focused. I recited, silly as it may sound, "Strong, gentle, light, fast" over and over in my head. Sometimes I found I was mouthing/whispering it aloud unconsciously. It was a good reminder as well as affirmation. And I finished just that way, having sped up from my pace up until mile 19ish (10:23) to the end (10:15).
Finish was great, with free (good) beer (Bud Light Platinum, Shock Top, etc), pasta and mac & cheese. Medals were great Wizard of Oz theme - shape of a heart with the tin man - and the 2nd largest I've received to date (only surpassed by the Disney marathon). Also received a tech shirt after finishing (on top of the cotton shirt!). Very nice swag.
This was one of my very favorite races (and my 3rd best time!), and I look forward to coming back to run this one again in the future. Still waiting on pictures to be posted, but once I see them I'll see about adding a couple here.
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