Towpath Marathon (Oct 14, Akron Ohio)
Just before the start and at the packet pickup there was a drizzle. Walking back and forth across the wet grass our shoes got very wet. It stopped while we were waiting for the gun and last minute bush watering. As things warmed up, there were many discards along the way. Then we got a drizzle again.
The course was a short distance on a roadway and then on the towpath. It was in some places paved with macadam, several sections were a wide board walk, but mostly it was a very fine gravel covered with a dusty powder. It was compressed to the point of being hard as concrete. It was very uneven and with the rain many places puddled because of no drainage.
The good runners got through the run before Mother Nature did her thing. Heavier rain. High gusty winds. The puddles were more frequent and deeper. The returning runners were zig-zagging to avoid the deeper puddles. The grass alongside became just plain mud.
Earlier I was getting warm so I threw away a t-shirt. Now I need more protection so I picked up somebody's thrown-away wind jacket. It was soaked through. Luckily it had a hood.
The sweep lady on a bicycle went by quite often. Each time she was covered with more and more of this slurry like material. She tried to stop and fell off entangled with her radio wires. She did manage to give me directions to the turn-off for the finish line. Most of the water and aid stations were abandoned, but they left fluids and goodies at protected sites.
With all these things going on I still managed to finish in a long walk. Waiting for me was my finisher's medal. They then gave me a 4-wheel ride to the food tent. I was given some hot perogies by the "Perogie Queen" and plenty of fluids. That surprised me.
Now the wind was even stronger but the Sun came out. Top it off -- they gave me a ride back to my car! I started the motor to warm up and changed out of my soaking wet clothes, shoes, and socks. There was one more vehicle in the parking lot. I wondered if there was another runner still out there.
-- Joe Familio
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