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FLRC Newsletter - November 2004 |
| Steamtown Marathon | |
October 10th was a perfect marathon day in Scranton: 47–57°, partly sunny, cloudy for the last 6 miles, lots of cheering fans, well organized race, good aid stations in a beautiful setting.
This was my first marathon since moving to Ithaca. My wife and I moved here with our six- and four-year-olds, and with a brand new two-week-old baby last September. Between starting a new job, having a baby, getting the oldest ready for first grade, and settling into new home in a new town in a new state, it's been quite a year! In California, my primary social and physical outlet was mountain biking, although I did run my first marathon two years ago at LA in a painful 4:45 (I didn't bonk, but neither could I eat or drink for 24 hours afterward—very bad). I had made a lot of mistakes, and I knew then how much I stood to learn about myself and life if I could stick to this running thing. Early on this year, I found out about the FLRC and had to see what people could find so interesting about running on trails instead of biking them! I was hooked after the Tom B race and have enjoyed many of the runs, being most proud of my effort at Virgil Mtn Madness (3:15:06). But I lacked consistency and focus to my running, still doing it mainly for "stress relief."
After experiencing a track meet early this summer, I decided to give speedwork a try and bought Hal Hidgon's book, and then started meeting up with Lorrie & co. Wednesday mornings at the IHS track. Because of their support and consistent focus, I was able to shave over 1 hour off my marathon time and finished Steamtown in 3:34:52—a huge victory for me. And I felt reasonably good afterward. This summer our family also made some major nutrition changes by eliminating most sweets and processed foods, and all dairy products including sports drinks that contain whey or casein. The better we ate, the more energy we seemed to have. And as a benefit it seems that the asthma I started experiencing out there in California (thanks to the smog and stress, probably) seems to be getting better. There is always room for improvement.
There is still one race to go this year. I have my sights set on Tucson Arizona December 5th. Yes, I know it's mostly downhill, but is that cheating if you want to qualify for Boston? Well, I don't think I'll be able to qualify this year, but I do want to run a 3:24:00 this year. And besides, the desert is a beautiful place in the winter compared to the snow and ice here in Central NY. But thanks to you all this is beginning to feel a lot like home!
Oh, and if you do Steamtown Marathon some year, please follow the advice to stick to your pace early on and avoid the temptation to go fast early on the downhills! And be sure to ride the real steam engine at the National Historic Site downtown—quite an experience no matter what your age.
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