Wow! I forgot how hot and sticky Minnesota is in the summer compared to Juneau, but a few miles into the Stillwater Marathon on Sunday, I remembered. Why did I run a marathon in the midst of my training? Well, a website I stumbled on recommended running a marathon or a 50 km event as part of one's ultra training because of the value of the water-stops. For a change, I followed the instructions which here advised not cutting back for the run but just adding it into the schedule. Since I'm an expert at defying tapering rules, I gave it a try.
It was a mass start of 4 races (marathon, half, 20 miler, and 12k). My partner ran the first two miles with me and then she split off for an impressive 12k finish. During the remaining 24.2 miles, I practiced holding at 10 minute miles, walking frequently, eating more, and rebuilding my store of Vitamin D after a rainy Juneau winter. Despite the heat I finished smiling, but the sprinkler at the end was the absolute best part!
Here are the Garmin stats and Satellite map: Untitled by anne.johnson1 at Garmin Connect - Details
The most challenging aspect of the weekend was getting up at dawn the next morning and running another 12 miles (a mini-sandwich). Generally, the day (or often days)after a marathon, I indulge myself by sleeping in and rising late for a large, guilt-free brunch. But no, this post-marathon morning I found myself trudging around the Minneapolis lakes laden with lactic acid. The last 6 miles were sheer drudgery and involved my stopping every 100 yards to stretch. I guess that's the point of the weekend 'sandwich'; a taste of the disabling pain that I'll feel in the last dozen or more miles of the ultra. Have I mentioned that I haven't registered yet?
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