Monday, October 10, 2011

CALF = DNF; Chicago Marathon 2011 Race Result

Twenty one successful Marathons, and then Chicago, 2011 - my first DNF! It was disappointing, as I had four very good months of training to prepare. Then, in Houston on my final semi-long training run one week prior to the Chicago Marathon I violated my Kenyan Way coach's good advice and ran 45-seconds faster than my target marathon pace. After nine-miles I felt my right calf-muscle suddenly cramp-up, which wasn't relieved by stretching. This feeling unfortunately didn't go away fully in the subsequent week's taper, and briefly got much worse only two days before. Despite my continued discomfort I decided to start the race, but, with my calf hurting badly and cognizant of the Houston Marathon only three months off, I exited the course to capture the following video of the elite men's race on my iPod Nano at miles 1.5, 13.1, 16.5 and the finish. Despite all my years of running this was literally my first opportunity to spectate a world-class marathon event, and I truly enjoyed it!

11 comments:

  1. Great video! That must have been a rush (literally) seeing the elites go by at that crazy speed. It still blows my mind that they put together 26+ miles at a pace I could never do for even ONE mile!

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  2. Great video Mark! what a cool experience to see this first hand! Still wish you would have been running it though!

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  3. Mosop ran a brilliant race. He was clearly playing mind games by going into that gear so early. This was something to behold for sure.

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  4. Nice video. I don't know whether to chastise you for not following Sean's advice or congratulate you for making the best of a sour situation.

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  5. Sorry about the DNF but you made the right choice to stop early. Great video! It is always special to see the elites in real life. So fast! You never get an idea of the speed on TV. Non-runners think they are just jogging because they look so comfortable. Hope you recover well.

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  6. Hey Mark! First, I am sorry to hear about the DNF, that must be really tough, especially after all that training and traveling. Interestingly, I had a DNS, as did everyone else in my race this weekend, because the race was canceled. Big bummer.

    Really enjoyed your video and so glad you got that experience. I know you are going to love watching the trials at the end of January! Watching this video brought me back to all those Bostons I spectated. Seeing the lead pack (and of course elite US runners) up close is such an amazing experience. Also, looks like the weather in Chicago was a treat. Thanks for sharing!

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  7. Regrets on the DNF, good luck in Houston! Looks like you made the best of a bad situation...

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  8. Sorry about the injury Mark. Enjoyed the video (but you missed the women!) - I watched the live feed late Sunday night and it was pretty exciting, got to say. Looked a beautiful day, but a bit warm for the slower folk.

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  9. Thanks, all! Ewen - yes, I felt bad to not have the time to wait for the women, but my time was limited since walking east from mile 16.5 to the Grant Park finish I just barely arrived in time to catch Moses Mosop.

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  10. Sorry to hear about your calf injury. Great video, definitely got a feel for the race, and the anticipation at the starting line. Did look a little hot out there. Amazing how fast the elites were going by!

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  11. I think DNFing and re-directing to Houston is the right call and I agree about getting to the start to see what would happen.

    Nice video too.

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