Done Disney... with a PR!

My training really slacked off, normally I do over a thousand miles a year but didn't even hit 500 Miles in 2011. During the tough winter with record snowfall I was training for the NY Half's and happy with above average times for me in both the Central Park Half and 13.1 in Flushing Meadows. After those two events I never got back into a routine and was only running once a week, if that...

In December I started thinking New Year's Resolutions and decided to do four Half Marathons in 2012, since  Team in Training was sending a crew to Disney I tagged along for the run with an over confident attitude... It's Only a Half...

My last trip to Disney in 2010 for the Goofy Run was the coldest events I have ever run and my luck with weather continued to Nashville where we had tornado warnings and followed me to San Diego with blistering heat...  Delight weather started this years season... Morning temps in the 50's were good for running and the sunny mid 70's made for a great afternoon recovering at the pool.

My Finish Time - PR'd on my slow side

Suppose I should touch on the run... when I caught the 4:30am shuttle I felt kind of off... Normally I'm not nervous before an event but I was sweating and felt nauseous on the walk to the start.  Disney is not the place to go if you are running for time, it's crowded with several tight spots but I plugged along for a new record slow pace.  Actually I'm a "middle of the pack" runner so you could say I timed this flawlessly.  My pace was the exact average of all Connecticut runners right down to the second!

The real enjoyment of event weekend is the after party and the TNT crew was one of the more festive groups this trip.  After the Victory Party that included 900+ Team in Training Runners the Connecticut Crew took on Downtown Disney until sometime after midnight...

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.

New York Marathon - 2009

The gloomy forecast leading into the 40th running of the New York Marathon did not materialize on Sunday morning, only had a few sprinkles as Pat and I met on W51st at 6:30 to begin our journey to the Staten Island Ferry. An hour later we were cruising by the Statue of Liberty on our way to the starting line.


Thankfully the sprinkles stopped before our boat and bus ride ended because the next half hour or so was the long slow shuffle to the staring village. On one side our path was lined with Portable toilets and the other side filled with buses. The stink from either the chemical toilets or diesel fumes is usually enough to make me nauseous but on marathon morning it didn’t bother me. Once in the starting area we had a few more hours of waiting before our wave would hit the streets for a 26.2 mile trot.

Four hours after leaving the hotel it was finally time to begin. We made our way into the corral and hiked a quarter mile or so to start running over the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge into Brooklyn .

We planned a nice easy pace so I was a little fidgety at the start and took several photos while on the bridge.



Surprisingly the race with about 42,000 runners was not as tight as I expected so we moved along pretty good sticking to our planned pace during the first HALF but as we left Brooklyn and ran into Queens the congestion was a little more noticeable.


After a few congested miles we crossed the bridge into Manhattan where the long stretch up 1st Avenue appeared to give us plenty of room to maneuver but instead our bodies decided to slow down. The later miles of the race was more of a jog between walking breaks but after mile 24 we picked it up and ran to the finish. Although NYC was by far my slowest marathon it was a lot more fun hitting each timing mat with a partner. Along the way Pat mentioned more than once that she'd once she finished the marathon she could cross it off her list and never have to go the distance again. Two days later when she was back in Florida she mailed me a copy of her confirmation for the NYC Marathon Lottery in 2010...

Philadelphia Distance Run - 2009

This was the second time I traveled to Philadelphia for the historic half so I knew the course was pretty flat and since temperatures were forecast to be cooler then last year I had hopes of a PR. My fastest half was in Hartford back in 2007 before I knew anything about training but for some reason I have not hit that single digit pace since in a 13.1 miler.

The race drew a crowd of over 12,000 runners including gold and silver medalist and headliner Ryan Hall the American World Record holder for the Half Marathon.

In an effort to ease congestion in the city streets a "wave" start was implemented this year and it was my first experience with the slow release process. Personally standing in the corral for an extended period is not the way I like to begin a long run. The course went through the downtown streets before looping back near the starting line at mile 4.5 and we were still standing there waiting to begin as the leaders passed. Once underway the race actually felt more congested then "normal" races since I was surrounded by such a high concentration of runners at my target pace.

When I finished the downtown portion of the race and looped by the starting area the leaders were crossing the finish line. Ryan Hall did win with a pace of 4:44 minutes per mile. I chugged along for another hour maintaining my 10 minute miles but fell off pace towards the end and finished 7 minutes behind schedule. Thinking it might be easier to adjust my expectations to a 10:30 pace in the future.

Philadelphia was the start of my busy fall season, in a few weeks I'll be running the Hartford Half and gearing up for the New York Marathon on Nov. 1st. Between race weekends I still need to earn a living so if you are looking to buy or sell a home on the Connecticut Shoreline contact Dan Cummings, The Running Realtor.

Providence Marathon - 2009

On the last weekend before my birthday I wrapped up my Rookie Year as a Marathon Man with my forth finish in Providence. Little did I know last year at this time as I was preparing to run my first marathon in San Diego that I would run so much in my 50th year.

The New England weather forecast waffled back and forth in the week leading up to Providence and I was expecting to see rain but was pleasantly surprised when it held off giving us cloudy conditions with a temp in the 50's. Pretty close to ideal for running.

This was the first time I used a heart rate monitor during a marathon. In the past I have gone out to fast and figured that caused me to slow at the end. I felt good and tried to hold my pace based on my heart beats and ran at a 10 minute mile. Just after mile 6 was my first bout of technical difficulty. My ipod shuffle was clipped to my waist and I perspire heavily even in cool weather so it got wet and failed. Since this was my 4th long run I was prepared and stopped to get my back-up MP3 Player and realized I should keep it in a plastic bag with just the wire of the headphones extending out.

Running the Miami Marathon I blistered pretty bad which led to my slowest finishing time so in Providence I tried out a new brand of shoes. Noticed a little knee pain around mile 9 so I stopped to stretch giving me my first encounter with a friendly runner. She was the type that offers a big smile and words of encouragement along the course.

Ever since I started running I've been a bit of a gadget guy and now in addition to my standard running gear that includes a GPS on my wrist and a music player pumping out a selection of classic rock tunes I carry my cell phone & camera. I only stopped once just after mile 14 for a photo and as I tuned back and snap a shot that friendly smile from mile 9 was in my viewfinder. Over the next several miles we passed each other a few times before my old legs slowed and Deb Jones maintained her pace finishing while I still had a mile to go.

After four marathons I still haven't figured out what it takes to maintain a decent pace and will continue to challenge myself with the long run. So far this year I have two half's on my schedule, Fairfield and Philadelphia plus I signed on for the grueling Goofy Challenge in January 2010.

Miami Marathon Memories - 2009

My Miami Marathon adventure started off on the wrong foot and never really eased into the right pace. The plan was to arrive in Florida a week before the race so I could adjust to the warmer weather after training during the snowy New England Winter. Monday morning we woke to discover unexpected snow was falling. The highways had not been plowed and traffic moved slowly so we arrived just in time to board our 6:30 flight.



Since we had so much snow in Connecticut I didn’t put as many miles as planned on my new marathon shoes. I purchased two identical pairs of Kayano 14’s and used one during training but only had about 25 miles on my racing pair. Marathon morning I was a bit concerned because my left foot had been sore since my last run in my race day shoes and there was a bruise on the topside of my foot.

Shortly after 4:00 am Pat and I were in line at the Miami Beach Convention Center waiting to board the shuttle to the starting line and despite the expected crowd of 15,500 runners it was fairly easy to find Wendy and Frank.

After a half hour of chit chat we all parted ways to our starting corrals. The race itself had a few starting glitches but nothing major. Thought they squeezed runners to the side a little early crossing the bridge at mile 2 or 3 so they could open a lane for traffic and had to pour my own drink at one of the first few water stops but after that it seemed fine and there was more snack food along the course than either of the other two marathons I ran.

My foot didn’t feel too bad once I got going but the later miles were tough. As we ran through a residential area with fairly loose roadways I could feel a pebble in each of my shoes so just after mile 16 I stopped to get them out. By mile 20 the heat on my feet was a pretty clear indicator that I was blistering and my pace dropped to about 13:30 for those last 6 miles as a walked and jogged to the finish.