Country Music Marathon - 2010

My first visit to Nashville was fun although my running was far from what I’d anticipated. The Country Music Marathon was tossed onto my to-do list as an after thought while running with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training in preparation for the Rock-n-Roll Marathon coming on June 6th.

Since my training was behind due to the late addition of the CCM I started doing double long runs on the weekend and managed to develop a little sciatic pain. Before I even landed in Nashville I was concerned about going 26.2 miles.

Severe weather was expected for Marathon Day and by mid-afternoon on Friday the Rock-n-Roll organizers of the Country Music Marathon released a notice of their contingency plan for race day. Any marathon runner that did not reach the Half Marathon split with a pace of 10:20 minutes per mile would be diverted off the course and complete the Half. I’m not a fast runner but getting to mile 11.2 at that pace is within my range but typically my pace slows in the long run and I have yet to finish a 26.2 mile run in four and a half hours. There was no information provided in the event a runner could not maintain a 10:20 pace. There were also rumors that although that was there “official” informational release they might divert everyone to the Half.

Based on the limited information I decided to run a rainy Half Marathon on Saturday morning instead of going for the full. As is typical with many sensationalized weather forecasts I woke to find no rain in the morning but it was warm with 90% humidity.

I felt great so instead of sticking to my planned 11 minute pace I ran 9:30 for the first 3 miles thinking the rain will be here shortly to cool me down. Amazingly patches of blue started to appear and the sun came out. The rainy race was turning out to be a Hot, Humid and Hilly run. As I reached mile 11.2 I thought for a second about taking the turn but stuck with my instincts and continued on course for a Half Marathon finish.

After my finish before the rain came I started to hear the stories of disappointment and disgust from Marathon runners that were diverted off course. Come to find out very few people were allowed to run the full 26.2 mile course.  I made my way through the crowd, pick up my gear at bag check and wandered all the way to the parking lot without finding the TNT check in tent.  To make a long story short I went back, checked in and return to catch the shuttle to the hotel.  Shockingly the tail end of the Half including the Hula-Hoop Girls were still going by mile 12 in a wave of sprinkles and heavier rain.

Nashville wasn’t the Marathon Run I signed on for and race organizers create an unhappy atmosphere for many runners due to their inability to make a logical safety call in a timely manner but all in all I had a good time and will consider a return trip for a Full Marathon someday.

The Goofy Run – 2010

My first event the New Year was a double header in sunny Florida to undertake the Goofy Challenge by completing a Half Marathon (13.1 miles) on Saturday morning then getting up on Sunday to tackle the 26.2 mile marathon course for a total of 39.3 miles.


After landing in Orlando I boarded the Disney Magical Express to my resort and began my winter running vacation. Friday morning was chilly but the sun was shining as I made my way to the expo, picking up the packet was surprisingly smooth.

Half Marathon Morning was a completely different story. I overslept until 3:15am so I hopped into the shower, skipped coffee in my room and rushed off the catch the bus to the start. Glad to see I wasn’t the only one in line at 4:09 am! While on the way to Epcot the first signs of precipitation could be seen on the windshield. Before leaving my room I did venture outside to check the weather and if felt like a tolerable temperature to run in shorts. Stepping off the bus it was cold and windy with sleet starting to fall. I never expected these conditions so I was only dressed in running shorts with a throwaway sweatshirt to keep my upper body warm. Unfortunately Disney did not provided ANYTHING for runners while we hang around waiting to begin. My last marathon was New York where there was food, coffee, tea and even a large tent to block the wind in the starting area.

My plan was to target a 2:30 finish time but the run itself was not what I expected. The festive atmosphere of Disney filled with sunshine and photo opportunities that I anticipated never happened… Instead it was dark and gloomy with sleet bouncing off my head in FLORIDA! As I ran the first few miles I couldn’t help but think how poorly the course was designed and was happy my wife didn’t plan to be a spectator. We ran down a 6 lane divided highway with the runners on the right three lanes, a sizeable grass median separated the next three lanes than a temporary fence contained the spectators. At the end of that stretch of road the runners merged into onto a one-lane ramp where they were dumb enough to place the first water stop creating even more congestion, wonder if Dumbo was the course Designer! After a few miles the sleet turned to a light rain and I fell into a comfortable pace to finish a bit ahead of schedule.

Sunday morning at 2:15 am it was time to get ready for the main event. Since I was up on time I brewed coffee, showered and dressed better since the temperature was below freezing. Wearing a sweatshirt and pants to be tossed once warmed up I made my way to the starting area so I’d make it to the 4:30 Tweet up with @maddyhubba @chrissduffy and @marathonchris. After 15 minutes or so we went our separate ways for a final port-a-potty stop before the long run.

It was cold but dry so I was able to snap a photo of the fireworks as we started our journey! I was still wearing my throwaway clothing at mile 10 since it was such a cold day but figured it was time to brave the weather and shed the layer. Course support on the Marathon was much better than the Half. At two locations bananas were handed out and they had mini chocolate bars and raisins at another spot to keep runners fueled. It remained chilly for the entire morning but my body held up fine and I managed to stay on pace for my planned 5:15 finish time. Just after mile 22 I pulled off for a few minutes to check my email and tweet my location so my final time was 5:16:29. The Goofy Run is not an event I’d plan on every year but it is one of the more prestigious challenges that every marathon runner might want to consider.

The first call I received after completing the race was from Pat, my NY running partner, she asked if I felt any different but I'm still the same Goofy guy.