I'm easily talked into things. The sales people at the make-up counter love me because I buy whatever they're selling. A good friend of mine asked me to come run the Utah Valley Marathon because she's chasing a NYC qualifying time (yes, NYC holds a proportion of entries for qualifying times), and she was told that this was one of the faster marathons out there. She traveled from NC for this race, so I planned a trip to meet her from Oakland.
A quick, easy flight from Oakland to SLC, and I met my friend at the airport and then we drove the 40 minutes to Provo. The Utah Valley is quite breathtaking, surrounded by snow-peaked mountains to the east and west, while it's 80 degrees in June down in the valley.
We arrived in Historic Downtown Provo (quite adorable), and checked in at the host hotel, the Provo Marriott. The expo was held just next door in the conference center. The expo itself was pretty small, but it had the basics. They did have a series of speakers throughout the day - beginning and ending with Ryan Hall. Ryan spoke about things he's learned about running in his 18 or so years. These tips included: rest is important, listen to your body, eat as close to natural as you can. For a 34 year-old-guy, Ryan Hall still seems like a 22 year surfer. He had the shaggy hair and all and awkwardly read off his phone.
On to the race. First let me say that since this was really just a training run for me, I didn't pay too much attention before arriving about logistics, the course itself, any of those things. I knew it was point to point, starting in the mountains and running into downtown Provo. It turns out the shuttle bus to the start was schedule to move runners from 3:30 am to 4:15 am. We opted to get out there at 3:45 (yipppeee) and road a school bus up. While it had been in the 60s and balmy in Provo, it was damn cold at the top of the mountain. We were both just in a running gear, no check bag, no throw-aways. We survived our hour in the cold, and got friendly with a couple other runners.
At 5:45 we corralled up, and then they shot the gun at 6 am sharp. No announcements, no national anthem. We all looked around, and shrugged, and then the group started moving. So, we started rolling down. My dear sweet friend, who is a faster runner than I am, was trying to get me to run with her, but after a quarter mile, she started to pull ahead, she called to me to follow, but I told her to go. I knew all along that we wouldn't run together, but I do love her.
On my own, we were running residential sections of the road - lined with farmhouses, ranches, churches. It was all very nice, and the backdrop of the mountains were beautiful. The first few miles are the steepest, and I let myself run a little faster than I intended - which was fine, I felt okay. That downhill kept on until mile 8, and then we hit rollers for a while (elevation below):
A quick, easy flight from Oakland to SLC, and I met my friend at the airport and then we drove the 40 minutes to Provo. The Utah Valley is quite breathtaking, surrounded by snow-peaked mountains to the east and west, while it's 80 degrees in June down in the valley.
We arrived in Historic Downtown Provo (quite adorable), and checked in at the host hotel, the Provo Marriott. The expo was held just next door in the conference center. The expo itself was pretty small, but it had the basics. They did have a series of speakers throughout the day - beginning and ending with Ryan Hall. Ryan spoke about things he's learned about running in his 18 or so years. These tips included: rest is important, listen to your body, eat as close to natural as you can. For a 34 year-old-guy, Ryan Hall still seems like a 22 year surfer. He had the shaggy hair and all and awkwardly read off his phone.
On to the race. First let me say that since this was really just a training run for me, I didn't pay too much attention before arriving about logistics, the course itself, any of those things. I knew it was point to point, starting in the mountains and running into downtown Provo. It turns out the shuttle bus to the start was schedule to move runners from 3:30 am to 4:15 am. We opted to get out there at 3:45 (yipppeee) and road a school bus up. While it had been in the 60s and balmy in Provo, it was damn cold at the top of the mountain. We were both just in a running gear, no check bag, no throw-aways. We survived our hour in the cold, and got friendly with a couple other runners.
At 5:45 we corralled up, and then they shot the gun at 6 am sharp. No announcements, no national anthem. We all looked around, and shrugged, and then the group started moving. So, we started rolling down. My dear sweet friend, who is a faster runner than I am, was trying to get me to run with her, but after a quarter mile, she started to pull ahead, she called to me to follow, but I told her to go. I knew all along that we wouldn't run together, but I do love her.
On my own, we were running residential sections of the road - lined with farmhouses, ranches, churches. It was all very nice, and the backdrop of the mountains were beautiful. The first few miles are the steepest, and I let myself run a little faster than I intended - which was fine, I felt okay. That downhill kept on until mile 8, and then we hit rollers for a while (elevation below):
My plan was to run easy, maybe 10s, see how it goes, walk through the aid stations. Honestly, I have not been marathon training. at all. I was feeling good through the midpoint at 13 miles, and by mile 13 the temps were rising and it was getting to be warm! The course had aid stations every 2 and it gave me something good to focus on I continued to feel alright through to mile 19 or so, and then the fatigue started to work it's way in. It was around this mile that I was regretting not training more.
My walk breaks became a little longer after mile 21, and my hope of finishing sub-4:30 were gone. A sub-4:29 would have made this my second fastest marathon to date. In the last two miles, I started running with another girl, Jenny. We had actually been sitting together at the start. She was running in her first marathon. We were together when we spotted the the finish line - which you can see for at least 1.5 miles before you get to it. I'm not sure if that is good or bad, it seemed soooo far and yet so close.
I pushed through and finished with a time of 4:33. I'll take it. I met up with my group at the finish. While my friend did BQ, she did not meet her goal of NYC qualifying. Although all BQers got a shirt. Post-race we showered, ate, and then I napped. It was glorious.
Overall, not a bad race, but I wouldn't run it again. For being a net downhill, it was still tough, and the heat and direct sunlight made it tougher. The organization was great, volunteers were amazing. This made a great weekend get-away, but the primary reason was to see my friend, not to run a marathon.
Provo is adorable, although it can be a little tough to get a drink. Liquor laws are a little wonky. Most restaurants that serve alcohol can only do so if you also order food. We did find an AMAZING restaurant, Communal - seriously if you ever find yourself near Provo, go there.
My walk breaks became a little longer after mile 21, and my hope of finishing sub-4:30 were gone. A sub-4:29 would have made this my second fastest marathon to date. In the last two miles, I started running with another girl, Jenny. We had actually been sitting together at the start. She was running in her first marathon. We were together when we spotted the the finish line - which you can see for at least 1.5 miles before you get to it. I'm not sure if that is good or bad, it seemed soooo far and yet so close.
I pushed through and finished with a time of 4:33. I'll take it. I met up with my group at the finish. While my friend did BQ, she did not meet her goal of NYC qualifying. Although all BQers got a shirt. Post-race we showered, ate, and then I napped. It was glorious.
Overall, not a bad race, but I wouldn't run it again. For being a net downhill, it was still tough, and the heat and direct sunlight made it tougher. The organization was great, volunteers were amazing. This made a great weekend get-away, but the primary reason was to see my friend, not to run a marathon.
Provo is adorable, although it can be a little tough to get a drink. Liquor laws are a little wonky. Most restaurants that serve alcohol can only do so if you also order food. We did find an AMAZING restaurant, Communal - seriously if you ever find yourself near Provo, go there.