The long awaited race
report... life has been so hectic since my return that I haven’t had a chance
to sit and put thoughts to paper. But better late than never as they say...
Training for the race
went extremely well until 6 weeks before the race. The SI injury really derailed
me, both physically and mentally. It took everything I had in me to continue to
believe that the race would go well and that the dreaded “death march” wouldn’t
be too painful. I knew I’d be good until about 30-35k then all bets were off.
Still, I had paid for it and I promised myself I’d be at the start line even if
I had to crawl through the finish.
Pre race:
Flight to Paris was
uneventful, trek to the apartment in the 18th went very well. Time
to get organized, short nap and off I go to meet a running friend at the expo. We’re
having a lot of fun touring the expo but less fun when people/vendors at the
expo thought we were American grrr... we kept correcting them about being
Canadian! I buy a blue Paris Marathon hoodie and a few gels. Rain is on the
forecast for the next day and since I don’t fancy running a marathon with wet
shoes, I decide to skip it. I ended up sleeping 13 hours. I guess my body
needed it.
I set off to do a bit
of sight-seeing in my new hood, eventually make it to a park. I see lots of
runners and I wonder how many will be on the start line the next day. I’m
feeling better about the race. I know it will be tough, especially in the last
part but I also know that I’ve done it before and can do it again.
As always, I have 3
goals for the race: A goal is 4:45; B goal is 4:56 (same time as Scotia); C
goal is 5 hours and D goal is to simply finish. I try to remain calm during the
day while not tiring my legs too much with lots of walking. I take tons of
pictures. I have wifi so I can keep in touch with friends back home. I have my
pasta dinner with a bit of wine, after all, when in France... one drinks red
wine.
Morning of race:
I always need a lot
of time morning of races as it takes me a long time to work up an appetite. I
made the oatmeal the evening before so all it needed was a quick reheating in
the microwave. Get dressed, load up bag and set off for a very easy 15 min
commute. Weather is beautiful. Sunny, cool, perfect for a race. As I get in the
subway and check which side I should go, a guy behind me just say “c’est a
gauche” (it’s the left entrance) so I follow him. There are a few runners with
us. I chat with him, he’s from Martinique, comes to Paris every year to run the
marathon. We exchange a few war stories then it becomes obvious that this guy
is an elite... still, great person, very humble and I was able to get a few
tips. That’s what I love about other runners, you can always learn something
from talking to them. I’m always very open to advice. As we get close to the baggage
check area, I thank him for the company and wish him a great race Tentative plans
with Kathryn were to meet at the baggage check around 7:45 or the family
meeting area after the race. I wait for about 15 minutes extra then I make my
way to my corral. I expected to have more portapotties in our corrals but as it
turned out, it was only one on each side. So I decided to line up to pass the
time. I never made it in the hour I was in the corral. I was wearing my green
short sleeves top with ¾ tights. I forgot my arm warmers but had my gloves
which proved to be a VERY good move. I wore the plastic bag we were provided
with in the race kit. I didn’t cross the start line until 9:15, 45 minutes
after the start of the race (corrals had different start times).
Race:
When we finally set
off and I crossed the start line, I had a strange feeling come over me. There
was no turning back, I was running the marathon! I had my 5 hour pace band, my
3 goals in my head. The scenery is magic, there is something about running in
the most beautiful city in the world (at least in my eyes). Crowd support is
very good. I see a few Canadian flags and I feel a sense of belonging. While
waiting for the race to start I was listening to the conversations around me so
gathered a bit of intelligence on the race. I learned that we were going
through 3 tunnels and all of them had a bit of a steep descent and ascent so
knew to pace myself. I keep checking the pace band at every milestone and I’m a
bit fast by about 2 minutes. I’m hoping it won’t come bite me in the end...
We enter the Bois de
Vincennes and things get a bit tedious as there is less crowd support. There
are many Americans on the race and they’re very vocal on the fact that water
stations are at every 5kms. For the life of me, I do not understand why anyone would
do a race and NOT get familiar with the route. It boggles the mind. Still, I am
enjoying the crowd support. Note to self though, next time use a different name,
Running Goddess is great but not so much in Paris. Maybe go for my name or
Canada. We finally leave the park and I remember this part well as it is the
same route as the half marathon. We go around the Bastille then off to the
quays. The first of the three tunnels is about to be reached. It’s also the
longest one and I lose GPS signal. The crowd cheer as we go through the
tunnel... same crowd would eventually get very quiet after the 3rd
one... I’m careful with the downhill so I can tackle the uphill and stay
strong. I decided not to wear my fuel belt (saved space in my luggage) and
carry the small bottle of water so I can take a sip at every walking break and
with my gels at every 6k (as it turned out, it was more like every 7k).
Legs were good,
getting a bit tired at the halfway mark but nothing too severe. I soldier on,
cheering on people who are out there to support us especially the Canadian
flags! I also exchange my bottle of water at every second water station. Weather
is still nice, a bit windy and I’m still wearing my gloves.
At the 30k mark, I
start to feel tired but pace is still very good. If I can continue, I’m on pace
for a 4:40ish finish. However, the proverbial wheels fell off at the 35k mark. By
that time, my left hip was very sore, I had a good pace but I just couldn’t
sustain it. The remaining 6 kms were done in almost one hour. Power walking was
tough. I kept thinking that walking one kilometre is MUCH longer than running
one kilometre. Silly thought... of course it takes longer! But I needed the
rest. I kept repeating to myself that I had done 2 marathons before and I was
well on the way to finish marathon #3. After a few sets of running 5 minutes, walking
10, I have enough energy to do a very strong kilometre. Then flop... at the 39k
mark, I get a reviving small glass of red wine from the unofficial table for
the Marathon du Medoc. How could I pass the opportunity?
As we finally leave the Bois
de Boulogne, of which I remember very little other than how some of the
surfaces were tough on tired and sore feet, and get to the final roundabout to
take us to Avenue Foch, I start to think to myself “ok, this is it, you’re
almost done, don’t give up now, keep going, you can do it” I start to hear the
announcer for the finish. As I get closer, I hear “and these runners are under
the 5 hour mark!” This lifted my spirits considerably. I had no idea what my
time was as my Garmin stopped at the 31k mark. A few more photo ops and there it was, the
much loved finish line. I grab 2 bottles of water from the nearest water table,
get my finisher Tshirt, medal, poncho and go to the baggage check. I try to
find some food but all I can find are apples. I grab one, thankful for the
taste. Get my bag then meet Kathryn and her family. Then I give her the
birthday card that we had prepared for her special day. She ran the marathon on
her birthday!
We went to the place she stayed with her parents, had a small celebratory lunch then I went back to my place to change, shower, and get ready to meet my friend Julie for dinner. I sported my 3 beautiful blood blisters proudly! I had accomplished marathon #3. I had done it, I was still alive and happy with my time.
In closing, I loved the race, the organization, the crowds, the route, even the dreaded cobblestones. I will do it again for sure. Don't know when or if I will be with a group of friends but I will definitely make my way to the start lne again.
Statistics because we all love them...
Official time: 5:45
Real time: 4:56:59
Overall placement: 29,500
Category placement: 693 out of 945 in women master (over 50)
Splits:
5k: 33:33
10k: 1:06
15k: 1:40
21k: 2:22
25k: 2:49
30k: 3:24
35k: 4:00 (that's when the wheels fell off)
42k: 4:56
