Buffalo Marathon

Weather: Sunny, 60°F, 30% Humidity, Wind: SSW @ 15 mph; feels like 58°F.
Actual Run: 26.2 miles in 3:27:00 min. @ 7:00 a.m.
Pace: 7:54 min/mi.
Course: The Nissan Buffalo Marathon Course.

This morning Anne and I woke up early to drive the mile to downtown Buffalo from our hotel room at the Holiday Inn. The view from our window seemed to hint at the good things to come.



Anne and I have not been to this race in two years and the courses have been changed slightly. Unbeknownst to us (I'm not much of a map reader), the start had been moved about two blocks down the road from where it had previously been. We arrived at the start with plenty of time to spare, which turned out to be a fortunate thing as there was a HUGE wait in line at the port-a-john... a wait I was willing to make rather than potentially having to pull off to the side of the road. Needless to say, everything worked out and I had about five minutes before the starting bell (alarm?) to psych myself up... well, to stand there quietly and wait.



While the first half of the marathon was very fast (translation: mostly downhill) the second half was exactly the opposite. While I generally like uphill running, these were very l-o-o-o-ng gradual climbs which took a toll after a while. I did manage to stay with my plan the only variation being toward the last two miles during which I took an unplanned walking break to eat some watermelon.

I felt so-o-o psychologically strong throughout (focused), the only trouble coming down the final 400 meters, at which time I was aching to be finished. The fact that I was slightly ahead of my goal finish helped to further motivate me to push it on through. I was glad to hear my name mentioned my the person working the mic... a silly thing, I know, but exciting nonetheless!



I felt pretty good afterwards. While I was (surprise!) achy and a little thirsty, I was remarkably "together" and happy about my performance. My wife had said that after my first marathon, she had thought I was going to die, but also noticed how much better I had responded this time (my fourth). Afterwards we waited around as I gobbled down two apples and some water/Gatorade. I knew that some of my friends were there running the half-marathon (I pretty sure I heard them cheering and wanted tio thank them), but when I couldn't locate anyone we made a quick escape!


Now to take a few days off, relax and figure out what, if anything, is next!

Breathe in, breathe out… YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!