RACE REPORT: Steamtown Marathon

Submitted by: Ursula Forrester

Okay, so I've technically been a marathoner for almost five years. Because..... if one finishes a marathon within the allotted time, you are a marathoner. If you traverse the distance whether you run, jog, skip, walk, hop or crawl (or a combination of these) and you cross the finish line, you are a marathoner. Basically, if you run an official marathon race and have an official finishing time, you are a marathoner. But somehow, I didn't feel (truly) like a marathoner until now.

The Steamtown Marathon on 10-10-10 was my 7th marathon. It is a point-to-point marathon running from Forest City, PA to Scranton, PA. Some of the reasons this race sounded appealing are that it is mostly downhill, the course is very scenic, including a few miles of rails to trails paths, and the field of runners is reasonably sized (capped at 2,500 runners). Plus, it was held on 10-10-10. The date alone just sounded too cool to miss. We also received goofy email updates weekly from the Asst. Race Director guaranteed to make you giggle (a bonus!). But the main reason to run it is because other club members were going to be there. Eight of us from the Rocky Mount Endurance Club traveled to Pennsylvania and ran the race. Having fellow running pals there to share the pre-race, post-race, and travel experience makes it that much better.

Going into this race, I definitely had my eye on a specific time goal. I had high hopes of running this one (indeed "racing" this one) and trying to achieve a time I should be able to if properly trained and healthy. I wanted to break the 4:30 barrier. That's 27 minutes faster than my previous best, but I thought is was "doable." My training went along very well. I checked off a successful 18-miler and then a good 20-miler too. I was feeling good (and not injured...but shhhh...don't mention that -- don't want to jinx anything). The week before the race I slept well, ate smart, and felt mentally prepared. On race morning, I wore what felt like a good outfit and the weather was perfect. 34 degrees at the start. It was a cold, beautiful, sunny autumn day.

We climbed aboard a LACKAWANNA school bus just after 6:00 a.m. to make the 45 minute trip to our starting point. We were greeted by super excited, enthusiastic cheerleaders from Forest City High School as we exited the bus. They handed us each a purple "good luck runners" ribbon. Nice touch. I discovered the school mascot was the FORESTER. Painted on the gym wall was "Forester Pride: Winning isn't everything but the will to win is everything." It was a "sign." I was optimistic it would be a good race. After doing the usual pre-race prep and hanging out inside the gym, I headed out to the starting area with Eric and Steve 5 minutes before race start. I wore my yellow running skirt, red RMEC shirt, gray headband, and black/red MCM visor. Plus, I started out with an over-sized sweatshirt on too.

One of the biggest downhill grades was in the first mile but it was short. Short and steep. We were warned multiple times in race communications prior to the race NOT to bank time on the early downhill portions of the course. If you did, you'd regret it because the quad pain would be so great late in the race. So, I had this in the back of my mind. My strategy? Just run comfortably. Don't push the pace on downhills, but don't hold back. It seemed silly to walk on steep downhills (indeed, it would have been), but I considered it. Instead, I decided I would try to walk :30-1:00 minute of each mile (at least in the beginning)....incorporate intentional speed walking breaks. For at least the first 90 minutes, I did walk once every 10 minutes. My splits over this portion of the race were all in the 9:00/min mile range (two of them sub-9:00!).

I dropped my sweatshirt at Mile 4. I was plenty warmed up although it was still very cold outside. One thing that makes this race so attractive and memorable are all of the small towns you run through along the way. People were always out cheering. The crowd support was wonderful. In fact I even remember a couple of dogs barking too as if to cheer for us! It seemed they all had a bank in town too with one of those digital displays showing the time and temperature. Nothing like getting the temperature update along the way. Since Halloween is approaching, there were lots of cool decorations. One of my favorites was the witch attached low on a pole coming into one of the towns (around Mile 5). She was "smooshed" into the pole and the sign read "BEWARE OF LOW FLYING WITCHES." The leaves were optimal too with the fall foliage coming alive. In one town, I could see leaves on the road in the distance. It almost didn't look real. Bright yellow and orange leaves scattered across the road beneath a canopy of trees lining the street and in between the shadows cast by the trees. It would have been worthy of a photo.

This is the first time I've run a marathon without my camera. I've transformed into a somewhat minimalist runner. Besides running clothes, shoes/socks, gloves and a visor, I only had my race bib (including timing chip) snapped onto my race belt, my iPod, GPS watch, and three gels in my pocket. But OHHHH... what awesome opportunities for terrific photos in this race. I only wish I had some of them. One piece of feedback I gave the race committee was "more photographers on the course." I only saw two photographers until I reached the finish line. And one of them wasn't ready (fiddling with his camera). Bummer! That was the one guy stationed on the trails part of the course. Oh well.

I checked my watch at the 10 Mile point. I was at 1:33. Hmmm...not bad. So, could I reach 20 by 3:06? Well, probably not, but wouldn't that be nice? I checked my watch again when I reached the half-way point. 13.1 miles in 2:02:35! Wow! I only have one half marathon time faster than that. But could I run the second half that fast? No, I was sure I couldn't. But I was motivated not to let myself down. I wanted to make the second half respectable. My legs would be getting more tired and tight. I would have to push harder. As long as I felt I could still push, I needed to do that...keep pushing myself. There would be more uphill towards the end of the race. If I can just keep going knocking off one mile at a time going at a decent pace, I knew I could finish with a good time. Just before Mile 18, there was a fluid stop. I took a cup of All Sport and walked about 20 steps. When I started to run again, I remember thinking that time was harder to get moving. Uh oh! My legs are tight...tighter than they felt at the end of my 20 miler. But, there's no other option than to keep pushing. Only 8 more miles left....just take it one at a time. I was at 2:52:51 when I crossed the 18 Mile mat. Not too long after that we were back on some of the trails. I passed a volunteer around Mile 19 and he looked at me and said "Look at you. You're even running with a smile on your face." I responded "Why not? It's a beautiful day!" Plus, I already felt deep down I was going to have the best race of my life thus far. At 20 Miles, I was at 3:16. So, the second "10 miles" took me 10 minutes longer (a minute per mile). And I spent at least 2 minutes making a necessary potty stop, so it's okay. At this point, all that's left is a 10k. Only a 10k! It happens to be one of the hardest 10ks you'll ever run, but somehow thinking of it in terms of the smaller distance helps.

I realize soon that the under side of my arms are getting chafed. Oh boy, I forgot to put bodyglide there. Lucky for me, there was a medical aid table just past Mile 21. Hooray for vaseline! Funny story though -- a man at the table (another runner) says to me "You know that's Vaseline, right?" I reply "Yes, I do." as I apply it under my arms. I'm still wondering why he thought he was letting me in on some big secret. Wearing Vaseline to avoid chafing made sense to me. Maybe he thought I was using it as deoderant?!? Who knows! All I know is that it spared me further chafing. And it was worth the 30 seconds I lost.

The next few miles were just about moving forward at the best pace I could muster. I had taken two gels at this point, tried to drink the electrolytes on the course regularly and I choked down two half bananas during the race (all in an effort to keep up my energy and try to ward off cramping). Ahhhh...dreaded cramping! It's terrible. Anything but cramping. Between Mile 23 and Mile 24, there was a decent hill. I was running up it at first but quickly realized I (1) was teetering on cramping in my hamstrings and (2) could just about walk up it as fast as I run up it. So, I started marching up the hill while deliberately breathing deeply. Halfway up, I look over at a runner passing me and realize it's my neighbor and fellow club member, Jeanette! Oh my! We've each run 23+ miles and here we are meeting up on the race course. Amazing! She continues on powering up that hill at a steady pace. Once I'm near the top of the hill, I began to run again. Eventually I catch up to her. I thought to myself whether I try to stay with her or just continue on. I chatted for a moment, then opted for continue on. My rationale was that at this point in the race you can't predict what will happen. It's best if we stick with our individual races.

I keep running as fast as I'm able. Every time I check my watch my average mile pace is between 10:30 and 11:00. I just can't seem to push any faster. Once I pass the Mile 25 marker I can feel my emotions starting. I'm fighting the urge to cry. I'm counting down the distance in tenths of a mile remaining. I know I will finish under my goal time. I feel more twinges of cramping in my calf muscles. I'm talking to myself. Actually, it was more like "yelling" at my muscles to CUT IT OUT! NO CRAMPING! It's the last mile and I'm going to make it! just the last .2 left. I see John on the race course at this point, which is cool because I knew his wife had to be close behind me. I'm trying to still run it in as fast as possible when my toes cramp. UGH! Are you kidding me? Nooooo!!! I keep going but gingerly. I cross the finish line in 4:21:19 with my arm raised up in celebration. I'm handed water, a silver blanket, and awarded my finisher medal. And right there at the end of the finisher shoot is Ryan to give me a congratulatory hug and pass me his phone with Michael's number already dialed. Then I see Dave and Derek and I hear about Eric and Steve finishing too. And Jeanette did finish right behind me. In fact, once the official results come out I realize her chip time was only 5 SECONDS slower than mine. We ran almost the exact same time.

When I finished I was crying. One of the volunteers asked if I was okay. YES, I am. I'm GREAT! I'm HAPPY!

It was AMAZING! UNBELIEVABLE! Emotional! I finally RAN a marathon in a time I thought I should be capable of achieving. I finally did it! It was hard but it felt so good. I feel, more legitimately now, like a marathoner. Yes, I am a marathoner.

So, now that I've somewhat recovered, what's next? I decided. It will be the City of Oaks marathon on 11/7/10. I've never done a piggyback marathon but decided to give it a try. We will see what happens. Thank you Steamtown Marathon for a great race experience!