My annual charity to the sport of marathoning comes in the form of volunteering to be a pace leader for one marathon a year. Lately, I've been volunteering at the Quad Cities Marathon in Moline, IL or Davenport, IA or Bettendorf, IA or Rock Island, IL. You know what? Let's go with Rock Island. That's by far the cooler city, in my opinion.
I usually pace the 3 hour and 10 minute group for the marathon. It's a comfortable pace for me to run and still cheer like a mascot and keep these runners and spectators entertained! It really is the one marathon I run where my throat is more sore than my legs afterwards. I paced the Quad Cities Marathon last year so I was familiar with the route and what to expect in the way of crowds. This is a great race! It's well organized, small and a fast course. I get a lot of Boston Marathon hopefulls in the 3:10 group and that makes the task that much more rewarding.
The weather forecast was for upper 60s and sunny. I rode the motorcycle into town the day before, celebrated Oktoberfest at the Bier Stubbe and crashed on a friend of a friend's floor for the night. Since my WA marathon in July, I haven't run with much consistency. Yep, I was back to my usual marathon training! This time, I was nursing a torn calf muscle and Morton's neuroma coupled with all the headaches of selling and buying a home, which both closed about two weeks before this race. I was averaging about 25 miles per week and slightly worried that a 3:10 pace might be a challenge. Of course, a few beers always helps to wash that concern away!
The start line was packed with runners in high spirits; this was ideal PR weather. I started with a group of about 10 people. I had runners come and go throughout the race but only one made it to the end with me. There's a point around 17 - 20 miles that gets the best of most runners. Today was no exception. I managed to bring this one runner in just under my 3:10 pacing goal time. Though he was the only one to make it, I would continue to see runners eventually cross the finish line and thank me for the motivation. It's inspiring to know that being positive can do so much for someone out on the course.
The highlight for me, however, was hearing someone at mile 23 yell, "hey, I know you. I know you!!!" as she proceeded to run after me with her 9-month old baby in her arms! I recognized her immediately as a woman I met in college as an orientation leader. This was 13 years ago and I haven't heard from her since (not even Facebook, gasp!).
Shortly after the race, I got on the bike for the 200-mile trek home on a crisp, sunny afternoon. The advantage of running enough of these is that my body recovers really well so sitting on a bike for three hours isn't bothersome. I suppose now I'll taper for the Milwaukee Marathon in two weeks. Can I call it a taper if I've hardly run?!
