Monday, October 20, 2008

Nike Women's Marathon Race Report

I mean, my LONG 26.2 miles training run. (And warning, long post!)

I still can't believe I ran the Nike Women's Marathon yesterday morning. It was my 5th one to date. And probably one of the most challenging course, I've ever run. There were so many grueling hills in the first half. What were they thinking changing the course to have even more hills? Even for San Francisco, it was a bit much. Seriously, it made SFM seem easy in comparison! I ran the NWM Half about 4 years ago and it wasn't nearly as bad. For those of you, who want the shorter version: I ran my slowest marathon ever, finishing at 4:35:19.

So the first picture is the starting line at the NWM that I took with my phone. I met up with the Jamba Juice team around 6:15am at a near by JJ store and we walked to Union Square together. By the way, I didn't go to bed until about 12:15am but I woke up surprisingly recharged and ready to go at 5:40am! I was just excited. But not nervous! It was strange, like I was getting up to go on a regular weekend morning run or something. But, knowing that I was going to run a marathon got me really pumped up on the way to San Francisco. However, seeing the streets blocked off for the race was what finally gave me the butterflies in my tummy!!. And, second thoughts and doubt. What the hell was I thinking running a marathon without proper training? Oh well, too late at that point. No pain, no gain. Right? We were told that JJ team would get a special escort to the front of the line, behine the Elites. But as we got closer to the starting line, the crowd of 20,000+ people soon swallowed us up. We lost our team leader and well, my friend and I (and Duane who wanted to see me off at the start) soon had to navigate on our own. We were trying to get through the bodies of people that were lined up behind the 6:00 to 8:00 min corral and there were way too many people pushing to get through. It was nuts. The few race coordinators that were around told us they knew nothing of the JJ start section! At that point, I started to panic. I still had to go to the bathroom and drop off my stuff at bag check!! I told my friend she should go look for her co-workers because I had to take care of some business. After a few minutes of frantic search, Duane and I found the porta-potties. And the lines were ridiculous. I sent off Duane to drop off my bag and I waited in line... Fortunately, the line moved quickly but I started panicking some more when some lady began to sing the national anthem. Omg, 2 minutes to go! Good thing I went to the "bathroom" because I'm sure I was a few pounds lighter at that point! ;-) We ran around to see where I could enter the race corral area but it was impossible. Too many people were also trying to do the same thing. Just then the gun went off. YIKES! It was starting! And then I saw several runners, going under the elastic fence that separated the corrals and I followed them right through. Funny enough, it was my pace group: 9:00 to 10:00 min pace! As I started running, I waved good bye to Duane. He was wishing me luck and I could see that he was really excited for me. (I think he wanted to run it, too. Next time Baby! Maybe the CIM?) What a great hubby I have! Waking up at crack of dawn to drive me to the city, walking me to the starting line and wishing me good luck! And he was going to come back to pick me up at the end. I waved bye to him and crossed the starting line. I was only 3 minutes behind the official gun time.

I started off at a comfortable pace, about 9:30. I ran the first 2 hills comfortably and thought maybe I'd finish around 4 hours and 15 min. Wishful thinking. When we started climbing our 3rd big hill up to the Golden Gate Bridge around mile 6, I knew I was in trouble. That's when I first started to walk. And after that, I walked up almost all the hills. I kept telling myself that this was a training run! No need to over do anything. No injuries! The rest of the first half wasn't that bad. I clocked in around 2:10 according to the 13 mile mark and was feeling pretty good. I thought I could finish under 4:30 at this point. But once I got on the Great Highway, I started getting discouraged. Especially when I saw the Elite runner coming in to their last 2 miles or so. It also didn't help that I walked so much. My thing is, once I start walking, it's so easy to stop and walk. And the walking becomes much more frequent than I would like it to be. (See Leslie? I walked, I took your advice! ;-) The majority of the 2nd half was around Lake Merced and I didn't like it at all. I think the area around Lake Merced is a bit boring! I've ran around it before and didn't like it then, either. I had to stop around mile 14 to slather some Vaseline between my legs! I put Body Glide all over my body except that *part*! I started chaffing around mile 12 and it hurt so bad. It hurt even worst when I walked so I had no choice to run until I saw the next aid station. But, wow, the Vaseline totally worked. If I ever run out of Body Glide, I know what to resort to from now on! Oh anyway, back to walking. I think it was also easier to walk because there were so many walkers during the race. I think I hit the wall around mile 17 and it lasted until the end. I couldn't get back in the swing of things. I was shuffling and as much as I wanted to, I had difficulty pumping my arms. I was thrilled to see the mile 20 marker but even then 6 miles seemed SO far away. I walked some more. And ran. Painfully. When I approached the final 2 miles, I wanted to run the entire way. But no, I had to walk again. The last mile, I did run the whole thing. I wanted to stop so badly. But the spectators were starting to build around the end so of course, my ego wouldn't let me stop. I was so happy to see the end. I was so tired, I didn't even have the energy to sprint the last 100 yards or so. I usually sprint in but I knew I was already past the 4:30 mark and figured, it wouldn't make a huge difference. And again, I told myself that it was a training run. A training run with a shiny Tiffany bling! Oh and I got to see Aron that too far from the finish line and that perked me up to finish strong.

By the way, there were TONS of Team In Training runners... it was like a sea of purple moving along. Or maybe the "purple wave "is more appropriate? I really enjoyed seeing runners from various states and reading their causes. I always get so moved by runners with "in memory of" or "I'm running for ___". Of course, it was way too crowded! Apparently there were 20,000 runners on the course.

Here are just SOME of the amenities on the course:

- The Coat Check and Coat Donation around mile 2.5 was awesome. I didn't run with a coat but if I had, I may have donated it to this good cause! You see so many people tossing their jackets and sweatshirts early on in the race and this is a great idea to give these to charity.
- Socks by Lady Foot Locker - Why socks? They are not easy to carry! I grabbed a pair because I was kinda delirious and I can't pass up anything free. Especially running socks. Although, I regretted it as soon as I took it. HOW THE HELL AM I GOING TO CARRY THEM? I saw a few socks thrown on the ground past their table. I guess others changed their mind, too. I saw some ladies wearing them like gloves. Very smart! I put mine in my Nathan pouch. And completely forgot about it.
- Luna Moons - In a small cup. Thank you! I didn't have to struggle trying to open the packages! They had this one flavor that was kinda orangey looking but I could NOT tell what the flavor was. It was yummy, though.
- Ghiradelli chocolate squares - I love these. They were the best pick me ups. I think this was around mile 20 and I was dying for just about any kind of carbs at this point.
- There were also 2 Pedi Care Stations provided by Lady Foot Locker at miles 6.5 & 13.3 but apparently, I missed them completely. Although, there is no way in hell I would stop during a race to get manis and pedis? Hello, this is a timed running race!
- Jamba Juice smoothies at the end. God, they were so good and so filling. But I was freezing after I finished 2 cups. Haha. Yes, 2!
- How could I not mention the Tiffany necklace and the SFFD fire fighters handing them out, telling me that I did fantastic? I think I managed a smile at the end when I got my necklace. And man, I earned it! (Great photos of the necklace and finisher shirt on RoadBunner's race report, btw.)

I thought the food at the end of the race was just blah. Luna bars, bagels, bananas and water. Nothing really exciting. Ok, the smoothies by Jamba Juice were a nice though. But hello, they are one of the sponsors of the race! I thought SFM had better finish line food. But, an awesome ammenity at the end was being able to check your race results via laptops. Of course, by the end, I was limping around in pain and wanted to go home badly. Everything hurt so badly. So I didn't get a chance to check. I didn't even get to say hi to Audrey or Aron, who were both texting me. I wish I had checked my offical finish time because the website with the results were having technical issues all morning and I wasn't able to see until around noon today. Which was:

I actually don't live in Emeryville... That's the Jamba Juice headquarters!

This is a photo of Donato, who also works at Jamba Juice. He ran the full marathon in drag. I heard he ran the full in tutus last year. Notice his cute purse?? :-)


You can get more scoop on the Nike Women's Marathon from these ladies who posted their race reports and mini trailers already: KK, Alice, Marathon Martiza, RoadBunner. Oh and of course, check out Danica's race report from her Virtual Nike+ Half Marathon. I'm still waiting for a few more of you to upload your race report! ;-)

I am really happy that I finished. Even if I walked and ran a slow race. I am really happy that I didn't injure myself in the process! Oh and can you believe the NWM raised over 18 MILLION dollars? Wow. I feel really great about myself in so many ways!! And to all of you who ran the half and the full yesterday, YOU are amazing. Really. Ok, WE are amazing! ;-)

39 comments:

  1. Congrats on plowing up and down SF hills!

    When I first moved to SF I felt like I was living in a Dr. Seuss book with all the hills. Too bad running a marathon in SF doesn't give you the benefits of a fiction book character...like wings :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Great race report. Was it ever flat? You did amazing! Your time was really good, be proud. Plus you were part of something special.

    I am with you on the walking. Once you start it is way to easy to keep doing it.

    The necklaces are very nice.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great report and congratulations on another marathon. Thats a great time, I can imagine how hilly it must have been, so you did great!

    ReplyDelete
  4. There were some flat parts. According to the route map, about half of it is flat but it didn't feel like it!! In case you're wondering, the course map is here:

    http://insidenikerunning.nike.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/40000_2032_course_map_v7.pdf

    ReplyDelete
  5. Congratulations! You did an awesome job! Hills in a marathon are tough so you should feel great about the whole thing.

    Loved the race report :-)

    ReplyDelete
  6. OMG, I'm totally in admiration that you finished and in a respectable time. Great job!!! You're amazing!! It sounded like a crazy course too. You're going to kick butt at the next one!

    ReplyDelete
  7. you did amazing!!! your time is great!!! i wish i could say the same for mine! the crowds and hills really kicked my butt come mile 17 and i reverted to a lot of walking! :( Congrats! and good luck with the rest of your training for CIM!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Great race report! I totally agree about Lake Merced... they should do something to add more entertainment there because there aren't too many spectators out there either. In general, I didn't enjoy the last 10 miles of the full course :)

    And so funny that you didn't have your body glide between your thighs - that's the first place I put mine. * jiggle, jiggle *

    Also, I stopped by my pedi-station. I think it was just more first aid stuff like vaseline, band-aids etc plus free socks. So you must have stopped at yours if you got socks.

    Great job! You finished in such a good time even with walking - wow! Especially for such a difficult course!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Awesome job! Id say thats pretty great considering you didnt train!
    I cant believe they had all those random stops along the marathon. Were there actually people getting mani and pedi's? WTH? hahaha.

    I was gonna run the nike+ virtual half this weekend, but i'm only up to mile 7 in training and jumping up that much could possibly make some problems. However, 45 dollar entry for a tiffany key chain was very tempting, i figured if i wanted it that bad, i could buy it for cheaper!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Great race report! And good to hear about the amenities - such nice touches :)

    Congrats on a great time on what sounds a TOUGH course!!!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Great job! Running in San Francisco...I can't even imagine a marathon there. I've done Bay to Breakers and that was bad enough.

    Love the race report.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hey! I loved the race report. Big congrats to you on the finish and conquering those hillls. I've never run in SF, but even hoofing it around with shopping bags is hell :P
    i LOVE the guy in drag. did he keep his gloves on the whole race?
    great job, girl!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Congratulations. Like you said, it was a training run!

    I totally and completely agree about Lake Merced. I wish they would do something different. I HATE that lake ! ;)

    I saw Donato, on the course (he was about on the back side of Great Hwy, and I was going out). Just seeing him in the gown and the gloves gave me such a nice boost!

    ReplyDelete
  14. WOW they hand out a lot of stuff at those marathons. No wonder you run them. I think the smoothie would have been awesome. Great run on a tough course!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Great job, Julianne! I'm really impressed and proud of you, and I think you ran a really SMART race. I was thinking about the run on Sunday, kinda wishing I'd gotten in this year, but oh well -- I can try again next year!

    ReplyDelete
  16. You definitely still rock. :)

    ReplyDelete
  17. Well done! I would love to do a women's race but not too many in Canada...Another marathon completed!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Congrats on the race, even though you used it as a training race you still ran 26.2.

    Great race report sounds like a really fun race to be a part of.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Ummmmmm chica what are you talking about?!? You did AWESOME!! ;D ;D Especially considering the course and your training. Wow that's insanely fast AND you took walk breaks!! (I'm totally with you on that subject. Once I start taking the frequency increases)

    ReplyDelete
  20. Oh my gosh, I MUST run this race one day! You Cali girls get the BEST swag. :D

    Looks and sounds like it was a blast, even though you had a tough race.

    Congratulations!

    ReplyDelete
  21. That may have been your slowest marathon BUT you ran it with no real preparation and ran it at a very good pace!! Congrats on running! Well Done!

    ReplyDelete
  22. Great job! The free stuff sound tempting.

    And it's hard for me to run once I start adding some walk breaks in there.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Great job! Hills DEFINITELY deplete energy quickly, not to mention psychologically they can be very demoralizing. I am so impressed that you managed to pick it up and run the last mile (and when you could despite hitting the wall early) even though it was "just" a training run for you. I hope you are celebrating and your quads aren't too ripped up from those hills!

    ReplyDelete
  24. Just impressive that you finished it and didn't give up!!

    Great job!

    ReplyDelete
  25. you are so awesome!! it was SOOO exciting to see you run by :) GAH i still wish i was paying better attention! you did amazing!!! CONGRATS again on another marathon finish! rest up and get ready for some fun CIM training!

    ReplyDelete
  26. Great job, hills and all!

    I am glad to see I am not the only one running 26.2 as training run!

    ReplyDelete
  27. Great job and congratulations!!! This was a tough course and I think your time is awesome! I'm sad I didn't get to meet you, but hopefully I can spot you at CIM. I'm not running it, but going to cheer so now I can add you to my list of peeps to scream for!!! :)

    You rock!

    ReplyDelete
  28. Amazing job! Congratulations on finishing it. I too am one of those 'once I start walking I can't stop walking' types. Ahahaha. It sucks!

    ReplyDelete
  29. Super job, Julianne. Grace race report. Very inspirational how you pushed through and finished. I don't know how you could ever consider 26.2 as a training run. That's mind-boggling to me.

    At least you got some nice blng to show for it. Congrats!

    ReplyDelete
  30. Wow. That course sounds pretty intense. Tiffany necklace for finishing? That is a pretty cool prize.

    ReplyDelete
  31. WOW! Great job on the run. And I am super jealous you got to run in such a schwagged out race!

    ReplyDelete
  32. Hi Julianne. This is Donato. I was just googling for race reports on the NWM and stumbled on to yours. Great race report and a great effort by you. You did a great job on a tough course. it was a good day to race and was fun to be part of the whole event and to run for our team! I hope I provided comic relief for everyone out there. :)

    I hope to see you out there again some time! :)

    ReplyDelete
  33. That hill to the GG Bridge is a bitch, actually the ones on BOTH sides of the bridge. And I've done it only for charity walks! This year I did run it because I was so freaking tired of walking after about 20 miles or so. You did great though. I hope I get to run it next year. It would be a good "training run" before the CIM or Big Sur even. HMMMM...???

    ReplyDelete
  34. Congratulations! I give all you full marathoners credit. I went into it thinking if it was a lot of fun I might throw my name in for the full next year. Uh...NO! I know I was super undertrained but the course was not really inspiring to run another 13.1 miles. I am like you...once I start walking it is so easy to keep taking walking breaks. I also agree on so many people walking in general. If everyone else had kept pushing up the hills I might of, too. But it was easy to just go with the (walking) flow!

    ReplyDelete
  35. Good thing you didn't get hit by a messanger. Congrats on completing what seems impossible to me at this point. My co-worker was on the coarse with you! one of the 20,000. Didn't get her race report yet but she was part of the purple wave.

    ReplyDelete
  36. Great report! That's awesome that you can still get that time on a very hilly course undertrained! Congratulations!
    I definitely understand what you're saying about walk breaks... taking one makes it more okay to take another, and another...

    ReplyDelete
  37. Bwha! I saw Donato on the course and took a picture because I thought it was so hilarous. :)

    Congrats!

    ReplyDelete
  38. I just found your blog after you commented on mine. I'm bookmarking it right now! Great race report. I agree with you that the race food was kind of blah but the Jamba Juice was fantastic. I also had two! (Even though I was so cold my teeth were chattering!) And I saw that guy in drag multiple times! He was close to my pace. How did you get on the Jamba Juice team?

    ReplyDelete