9 Seconds...

Nine seconds can pass very quickly without much significance in most aspects of life, but with athletics 9 seconds can be a total game changer. For example Reggie Miller, a retired NBA player, once scored 8 points in 9 seconds. I wonder if his opponent that night, the New York Knicks, wish they could have those 9 seconds back. I too wish I could take 9 ticks of the clock back, those are what separated me from running my first marathon in Indiana under 2 hours and 30 minutes. Breaking the finish line in 2:30:09 ranks pretty high on my career list of other achievements nearly accomplished. These near misses started in middle school cross country when virtually every race I would finish runner up to Wayne Walls. It continued on the high school  track team while I chased down the All-Conference marks that required running a 4:48 mile and a 10:30 2 mile. My career bests ended up being 4:48.4 and 10:31 respectively, so close yet so far away. Unlike my high school career, I still have the chance to run down a sub 2:30 marathon in the state of Indiana.

The Sunburst Marathon is my local marathon. Geographically speaking it is not the closest marathon to my house, as the Maple Leaf Indoor Marathon is two short blocks away, but I still consider Sunburst my home turf. My interest in competing in the Sunburst Marathon actually began in June 1997 as a 14 year old living in Ironton, Missouri. That year I received a card in the mail from a Michigan resident which contained the South Bend tribune story about the Sunburst Marathon. Written in the card was something to the effect of, "Maybe someday you can run this race too." Little did I know that years later I would end up winning the Sunburst Marathon for the third time, and be annoyed I did not go 9 seconds faster. As for that person who sent me the card, they did not go to the race to cheer me on, their loss.

The competition at the 2012 Sunburst Marathon was very similar to the 2008 version that I was able to win. The top two contenders were once again Ryan Greutman and myself. He also won the 2011 marathon and has run a 2:26 marathon before. It was going to be a tough battle.  Ryan is widely considered one of the best marathon runners in the state and typically wins most local races he competes in. To compound the situation my last two weeks of training have not gone well.

The race started with roughly 5 of us guys running together for the first half mile, but by mile 1 reality set in and it was down to Ryan and I. Not too much past the mile marker Ryan decided he wanted to settle in with a slower pace. I was not sure if this was a ploy to get me take the lead and then pass me later, as I used that strategy on him 2008. I charged to the front and tried to find my running rhythm. At the mile 6 turn around my lead was up to roughly 30 seconds, but my rhythm was still eluding me. I clicked off a few 5:35-5:45 pace per miles, but they seem to take more effort then normal. Doubt was beginning to creep in as to how the race was going to turn out, and sadly enough I was only at mile 9!

For the next several miles I tried my best to expand the lead, which was up to a little over 1 minute at mile 10. My first wind was running out. I was ready to catch that second wind, unfortunately it would take several miles before the second wind arrived. Miles 15 through 20 were all run close to 15 seconds slower than I normally would be for that section of the race. I hit the mile 18 turn around with a 3 minute lead, which can easily be lost in the last 8 miles if I did not start running stronger. Mathematically speaking Ryan would only need to run 25 seconds per mile faster than me and the win was his. I still had one final trick up my sleeve. It was time for the chickens to come to roost.

I allowed my mind to completely check out of running the marathon and switch to pushing harder for friends and family who are dealing with tough issues in their life. My struggles in this marathon paled in comparison to what some people are facing in their life, including my own family. This trick worked like a champ. I was able to get legs churning pretty strong, winning the marathon was no longer in doubt as my lead was expanding. I went from running 5:50s per mile down to 5:25-5:35s. A sub 2:30 looked like a strong possibility. Then came the final half mile. My right leg once again started to cramp, so annoying. It caused my last mile to be a 5:51 and a finish time of 2:30:09. Ryan finished a strong 2nd place, just like in 2008. Actually our times were nearly identical to what we ran that year. I was 22 seconds faster than that year and Ryan was 11 seconds faster than his 2008 run.

One major difference between the 2008 marathon and this years is that Melissa was also able to win the females race. It was our 10th time both winning the same marathon. We enjoy being a successful married couple, just like the example set by Peter and Tammy Casaletto of Goshen, Indiana. With my 100th marathon coming June 9th I can no longer dwell on my near miss this weekend. It is time to prepare for the next challenge.