Teresa and the kids came down to watch, and also Grandma Chestnut was there, after staying with us for the last two weeks. My mom and dad also came to watch. We stayed the night in Indianapolis both the Friday night before the race and the Saturday evening after the race.
My final time was 4:55:34, with a pace of 11:17. At the halfway point (13.1 miles) I was at 2:18:52, with a pace of 10:36. My overall place was 496 of the 659 runners who completed the race.
Hal's final time was 3:32:05, with a pace of 8:06. At the halfway point, he was at 1:43:46, with a pace of 7:58. His overall place was 76, and he was second in the men age 19 and under.
It was a nice day for running -- 48 degrees at the start, with a mix of clouds and sun throughout the morning. The race started at 8:30am, and the course went through Benjamin Harrison state park and along a river trail. The fall leaves were in color, and there were a lot of times that I looked around to admire the scenery as I ran.
The race combined a half marathon with the same start time as the full marathon, which was interesting because I sped up a bit in mile 12 as the people around me started running faster to finish out the half marathon. It was also more sparse in the second half of the race. I tried to keep my mind on running as many 11 minute miles in a row as I could, and worked to keep my pace slow for the initial miles so I wouldn't run out of energy as I went. I was hoping that I might get under 5 hours time, and was happy with my effort and very excited for Hal. I ran the marathon at a faster pace than either of my two 20-mile training runs. It was really neat that Hal and I got to do it together, and it was fun that we were able to cross paths twice during the race to cheer each other on. It helped to have our family there cheering us on, as well.
It started to get quite difficult for me in mile 23, although I'm not sure if I hit the "wall", but I knew I couldn't run any faster than what I was going. My pace was slower by that point, but I ended up running the whole race, without stopping or walking. I did grab plenty of fluids along the way, much more than I would have in a practice run, and I believe that helped. I saw Teresa as I neared the finish line, which was neat, and I saw everyone waiting for me at the end. I was quite exhausted and sore -- I found it hard to stand and walk, but was happy to have done it. It's Monday now, and I'm still feeling some of the soreness, but it's much better now. Glad to have made it!
