As I got closer to the race, I decided to set my goals as:
1. Finish and be happy with it
2. Qualify for Boston (although they set the standards higher this year, I will be entering a new age group next year, so my 49-year-old qualifying time of 3:55:00 becomes my 50-year-old qualifying time of 3:55:00), and
3. MAYBE pull off something in the 3:40's.
But I felt so good. While we were in Sacramento loading up on french toast the day before the race, Sean suggested that maybe I was setting my sights too low on this one. My training was going so well that he thought I might PR. I thought about it and decided that I was going to maybe not PR, but that I certainly had a shot at a 3:30-something, so I adjusted my goals a bit:
1. 3:54 (enough to buffer that BQ by one minute)
2. 3:40-something
3. 3:30-something.
While it would be great to get a PR at my age, this was not the day to try it, because I've heard too many horror stories about people overrunning the first half of this race and dying in the second half. A PR for me would be 3:33:59 or less, which would mean either a consistent 8:05 or an amazing negative split. I wasn't confident enough to start that fast in either case, so we'll leave that for another race.
The expo was great. Extremely well-organized, and a very helpful and friendly bunch of volunteers. It was also wonderfully medium-sized. There was enough going on that it was fun and engaging (and I found a good deal on a good sports bra - I'd left my favorite in the dryer at home), but not overwhelming in crowd or in offerings.
Race day weather was amazing. We were flanked by rain on Saturday and Monday, but Sunday was clear and cold and sunny. It was very dark at the start, however. The instructions on the website said "buses leave the convention center at 5:00". I wasn't sure if that meant that there was a window or if they all left at once, so I decided to leave the hotel at 4:40, just in case. As it happens, it was a good idea. There was a line most of the way around the block when I arrived at 4:50. It was really cold, and I was enjoying the warmth of my throw-away layers of sweats. The buses showed up exactly on time, and we filed on. Our driver, the lively Cherie, talked us through the evacuation procedures and popped back into the driver's seat. Aaaaaand the bus didn't start. Cherie kept a cool head, although she was undoubtedly getting worried. Her cheerful shout outs went from "It'll be just a minute, we'll get you going" to "They're gonna help me out here, just get comfy, we'll get you there" to "There will be another bus here in TWO minutes, don't worry!" We all filed off the bus back into the cold, and all the other buses had left. Cherie popped out and said "I'm just gonna try ONE MORE THING", and flipped some switch at the outside of the bus, and when she went back in... VROOM! We filed back on and got on the road. That was a little adrenaline spike, but not too bad.
It seemed like a very long ride to Folsom, but we arrived in time for me to cycle through the porta potty lines twice and see a lovely sunrise. We lined up in our self-assigned waves, and one of the members of the band Cake (from Sac'to) played the national anthem for us, and we took off.
I've heard horror stories of people starting this race too fast, so I took my usual approach of staring at my Garmin so as not to overrun the first few miles. I try to "be a stone in a stream" and let all the people who are going out too fast pass me by, taking care to remember what some of them look like so I can see them again in the last 5 miles as I pass them. It's a strategy that works well for me, keeping me slow at first and pushing me in the tough miles.
They bill this race as "fast" and "net downhill", but they don't really tell you quite how hilly it is. It's really quite a lot of rolling hills, especially in the first 16-18 miles. After that it's chill as heck, but there is a lot more uphill than their marketing department would lead you to believe. That said, I like rolling hills, so I was very okay with it, but I wouldn't say it's an easy course!
Thanks to my Garmin, I was able to keep a really consistent pace. When all was said and done, my fastest split was 8:08, and my slowest was 8:17. Remarkably consistent, for me at least. The only part I really hated was mile 25, but I pretty much always hate mile 25. Coming around the State Capitol at the end was really fun, not only for the visual, but the great crowd support. There was a guy dressed like Jesus at mile 26 with a sign that said "The End Is Near", which made me laugh out loud. (That and the person nearer the half holding the sign that said "Toenails are for Pussies" were my favorites). Coming up Capitol Avenue to the finish, I put a little kick on, and was delighted to have finished with a solid 3:36:30. The second-fastest marathon I have run (after Chicago 2014), and a Boston Qualifier by 18.5 minutes.
Overall it was a very positive experience and I would recommend this race highly. I had only two criticisms: One is there was nowhere nearly enough water at the finish line. After I left the finishers area and found my husband, we had to look around for probably 10 minutes to find water, and then it was only a little cup, not sufficient to mix my Recoverite, so I had to get back to the hotel to have my recovery drink. I know CIM is trying to have a low carbon footprint, but maybe they should consider a bottled water sponsor. We're all pretty dehydrated when we come across, and can't reasonably stay in the chute until we've rehydrated. Just my opinion.
Secondly, and I hope someone from CIM gets back to me about this, is the behavior of one of the pace mentors really bothered me. I started out in between the 3:30 and 3:35 pace groups, and spent about half the race with 3:35 right on my heels. I don't like to run with the groups, just because I find the crowding kind of stressful, but I know they are a great offering in big races for people who want the guidance. And I know that a great pace leader can be a game-changer. One of the guys leading 3:35, however, was a little upsetting. He kept smack-talking people wearing the Nike VaporFly shoes, saying things like "look at all these people wearing those ridiculous $400 shoes thinking they are gonna be the ones getting a 2 hour marathon". "Look there goes another guy. He's gonna run a 4 hour marathon." Then around mile 17 or thereabouts he says "Oh great. Here comes the MOST BORING 4 miles of this marathon." I was disappointed for the people running in his group. There's fun banter, and there's taking people down. I hope someone has a conversation with this guy about how to say things in a positive way. At mile 17, for instance, "here's where we need to dig deep as we start to get back into the city" would have a more positive vibe than basically telling them to prepare to be miserable for 30 minutes. We need to remember when we're civilians versus when we are representing someone's business/event/marathon. Anyway, that's my soapbox. Other than that, it was a terrific experience.
Thanks so much to P.A.C.E. physical therapy for getting me back on my knee, and to my amazing sponsor Hammer Nutrition - Tissue Rejuvenator during my recovery, as well as frequent use of Recoverite, Endurolytes, and Fully Charged got me through training. Endurolytes, Race Day Boost, Anti-Fatigue Caps, Fully Charged, BCAA, and Hammer Gels: Mountain Huckleberry, Vanilla, and Peanut Butter on race day helped get me to the finish line.
