This past Sunday was the 2013 San Francisco Marathon. This post is kinda long with lots of photos, so let’s jump right into it.
Expo:
I went to the SFM meet up and tweet up. I got to meet many of the SFM Ambassadors, some who I already knew and other’s I was glad to finally meet in person. I was glad that I went and got to talk to so many great people, talk about what distances they were racing and exchange in general well wishes.
@megatha and @kjference
@SeeSharpRun got me with the bunny ears… that’s what I get for saying “let’s do something funny.”
with @Eat2FinishLine as we photo bombed by Meg and Court.
me and my boy @QwietSt0rm
@chrismalenab, @Alisyng, and @danielavmar — Photo from @Alisyng with photo bomb by @accelerate
and we’ll end it with whatever this is. LOL. I don’t know if it’s more funny because I completely messed it up, or because it was my first ever attempted chest bump. I’ll work on it. But we’re both laughing at the end, so it worked out.
Shout out to @8hasin, @hmgiraffy, @PhDStrides, @paulettezf who I all had a chance to meet and talk with as well.
Pre-race Dinner:
I train with a large group of friends in San Francisco and there were 8 of us doing the full and 6 doing the half marathon. We gathered at a friend’s house and ate, drank and enjoyed each other’s company. This was exactly what I needed. It put me in such a great mood and to be surrounded by people who I have known since my first day of running was a blessing. They also surprised me with a special birthday celebration and a wonderful present which I plan on revealing soon. It was a surprise and to have my wife and daughter there was extra heart warming.
I’m lucky to have and train with amazing friends.
Race Day:
I trained aggressively. I wanted this race to be a “me vs. you” challenge. I don’t know who the “you” was, but I trained for 5 months in an effort to “prove myself.” At the start of the race, I was completely calm. I was feeling wonderful from the day before and to know that my wife and daughter were going to be on the course to cheer me on for Father’s day and to be surrounded by friends — there was no room in my heart on race day for anger or frustration.
Over the next 26.2 miles I would:
- sing out loud while running… frequently
- give a guy trying to BQ motivated by the Boston bombings course advice
- high-five the entire Sports Basement crew
- high-five a bunch of 2nd half marathon runners/spectators
- talk to Tony “Endorphin Dude” about his 100th marathon
- say hi to fellow twitter friends also running and give plenty of shout outs on out/back segments.
Complete serenity.
Mile 1: 8:20
Mile 2: 8:17
Mile 3: 8:44
Mile 4: 8:29
Mile 5: 8:21
I’m really happy with these first few miles. I have to admit that with my speedy start in San Diego, I was staring at my watch a lot of the beginning to make sure I was on pace. At this point we are approaching the Golden Gate Bridge.
Mile 6: 9:28
Mile 7: 8:35
Mile 8: 8:30
Mile 9: 8:44
Mile 10: 8:52
The Golden Gate Bridge (miles 6-9) was gorgeous. Honestly, it’s usually never that clear on race day. It’s typically foggy, windy, wet and cold, but it was absolutely perfect. Everyone that ran this year was blessed with ideal weather and an amazing opportunity for those taking photos.
Mile 11: 8:39
Mile 12: 9:22
Mile 13: 9:28
Half Marathon: 1:55:53
I’m really proud of mile 11… It’s a screaming downhill (-200 ft.) that I purposefully took controlled to save the quads. The temptation here is to fly down it after the climbs/crowds of the Golden Gate Bridge trying to pick up some time lost. This is where home-field advantage comes into play. I’ve been burned too many times at this point. Mile 12 is a climb back up and Mile 13 included a stop to see this lovely lady and take my favorite race day photo.
The best Father’s Day gift a running dad could ask for.
Mile 14: 8:31
Mile 15: 8:58
Mile 16: 9:04
Mile 17: 9:09
Mile 18: 8:53
Mile 19: 8:58
Mile 20: 9:10
The loops through Golden Gate Park. This was the wild card. Rolling hills through Golden Gate Park. It doesn’t feel like a climb, but you are definitely going up. I would have liked this area to be closer to 8:30 or even 8:45, but I kept it conservative and didn’t want to push it too hard resulting in bonking early. I kept thinking, get to mile 20. If the next 6 miles are low 8’s, a PR is still within reach.
Mile 21: 8:46
Mile 22: 8:33
Mile 23: 8:40
Started to feel some tightness in the left quad around 20 and thought it might cramp. I told it to knock it off and just kept moving. Not this year. I would have likes these miles to be closer to 8:15, but I’m feeling good and running strong. As I cross mile 23, I’ve got three miles to go. At this point, 3:45 is out of the question. Sub-4 is in the bag as long as I don’t crash.
Mile 24: 8:29 – Thought this mile would be faster, but it’s my fastest mile since Mile 5.
Mile 25: 7:58 – This is more like it, PR is not gonna happen, but running by feel. Only sub-8 of the day.
Mile 26: 8:15 – Enjoying the final miles and thinking, I get to rest after this.
Marathon: 3:51:05
At the finish line of my 17th Marathon
I can easily say that this is the “strongest” race I have run. The numbers are perfect. 8:30 on the flats or downhill portions, 8:45 on the rolling hills and 9’s on the uphill parts for a perfect 8:45 average. I couldn’t have asked for a more consistent pace on such a challenging course. There were some massive climbs and some fast downhill sections and I ran it strong enough to be happy across the finish line. I was never close to “bonking” and I left it all out there that I wasn’t sprinting at the end. Look at these splits, they speak for themselves:
1st Half: 1:55:53
2nd Half: 1:55:14
As much as frustration can fuel training, running with love, for the love of it, is a far more sustainable fuel. This race was filled with nothing but joy from the start. Sure there were moments that were tough, but I had a smile on my face the majority of the time. The last 5 months have been a long journey filled with anger, disappointment, and a spectrum of emotions, but at the start of the race, I was able to find peace and allow myself to “release” everything that was bottled up. Sounds very therapeutic, but it was just something that came over me. I felt incredibly at ease.
My 4th San Francisco Marathon Medal
Thank you to everyone for the well wishes and congrats. Your messages definitely played into how I was feeling on race day. I’m happy to say that I will be enjoying some much-needed rest before I race again and I’m glad to have found peace in 26.2 hilly miles.
Any and all comments are always welcome.
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nice recap and awesome run/pace! I know this was a more frustrating/slightly emotional race life/blog/whatever wise for you but I’m really glad you did your thing and finished super strong! way to go :D also, I love the “run all day” shirt!
Looks like a nice race, I think the Golden Gate would be my favorite part:) Sometimes I think a stronger race is just as rewarding as a PR! Great Job!
Congrats on running such a strong race!!
CONGRATS!! i know i say this after every race, but you’re seriously awesome!!
Congrats! Love the pics! The joy of running is written all over them!
SO PROUD OF YOU PAVEY!! That elevation would kill me haha. You totally rocked it out! And you deserved a perfect happy race!
Now have some donuts and REST! xoxoxox
strong indeed friend! that mental toughness set it and calmness. Best of both worlds. Plus first lady at half way point! cheers!
nice recap and congrats!
so glad you had such a great race!!
Love that nice even split from first half and second half–holy consistency! Congrats to you on so many levels. Most importantly, though, I’m glad you’re at peace with this race. Way to go!
What a great race you had! You finished very strong on a tough course! Congratulations and Happy Belated Fathers Day to you! Your daughter is a cutie!!
I do believe you are known industry wide and have friends EVERYWHERE! I love it =)
Congratulations!!! Excellent race! I love the picture of you and your daughter. Great job!!!!!
You are awesome! Way to run a great race. And I’m jealous of the medal. So cool! Maybe I will fly out for next years race. Gotta tackle my first 26.2 on the home turf here in MN first. :)
<3
This is just awesome and makes me smile. I love that you ran so strong and so happy! Congrats and thank you for being such an amazing inspiration.
Congrats to you on such an awesome race! Love the pics (especially the one with you and your little one!)
Cupcakes…holy moly. Mmm Mmm!
You rock PR!
LOVE the pics!! I can’t ever envision doing what you do & I am OK with that but you are amazing! :)
This looked like an awesome experience and race! One day I’ll see SF, One day!
Great recap, and congrats! happy belated fathers day :)
Congratulations on a perfectly executed and well run race!
Congrats on an amazing race!
Great race!!! Love the recap and so glad I got the chance to meet you at the expo! :)
Great job! sure wish I could run my negative splits during a marathon, but I haven’t quite figured that out yet:)
Way to run strong and happy!
Congrats! Loved your pictures & all your twitter updates!
Congratulations!! Such an awesome day to race on a challenging course! =)
Great recap! Congrats on running such a rewarding race. I hope I feel the same after mine in November!
DUDE! Congrats on your run! You KILLED IT! Glad to have met you at the meet-up! See you at Dumbo!
You are always meeting so many cool blogging friends! Cannot wait until the day we meet. If you ask me to go run with you, I will probably run away from you though, LOL!
And your daughter… SOOOOOOOOOOOO CUTE! Seriously. I don’t use the term CUTE loosely either!
Congratulations on a perfect race, PR!! Thanks for the great recap too — very motivating!
Such a strong race indeed. Can I tell you that joy just screams from all those race pictures? I’m so happy for you. An awesome Father’s Day indeed. My cousin is trying me to convince me to do the Half It All Challenge next year. After seeing that elevation map, not so sure…haha.
WOW! Loved the race recap and well done on such a strong, thoughtful and well-executed race! Glad it’s done and glad you felt so incredible finishing it…and love the pic of you and First Lady mid-race. So great. :D
Amazing! Congrats on finishing strong! So good to see you at the Expo. BTW – I often sing while running too! I might get strange looks, but whoa does it certainly help strengthen the lungs!
This is so wonderful! What a great race. Your running is inspiring!
If it wasn’t Father’s Day, I would have been out there cheering you on! I was in the east bay celebrating with my Pops.
I love love LOVE this recap. Seriously LOVE. THIS is exactly what a great race is made of. I’m SO happy for you! Congratulations and enjoy your well deserved rest!!
Nice job! Definitely a strong race. Happy belated birthday!
Congrats on an awesome race! And how special that it was on Father’s Day! :)
Amazing job!! I absolutely had a big smile on my face reading about how great your marathon experience was. :) Perfect!
Fantastic job! What a great Fathers Day!
Great recap! Hope to see you at a race one day!
It was awesome to see you pass by on the other lane on the bridge! Glad it was a great race for us both, and that you had a happy father’s day!
Awesome race man! Wish I had seen you to congratulate you! Enjoy your victory. Sometimes you don’t need a PR to know you rocked it!
Fabulous race re-cap. So glad this was such an amazing experience. Great job on the negative split. Congratulations!!
What a strong race! I am so impressed. Glad you had such a great Father’s Day!
What a fantastic race! Those numbers are so perfect, and such a strong finish, too. You just keep getting stronger!
could not agree more my best races are always those where I am enjoying every moment of the journey, a great reminder. congrats on an awesome race day!
Way to go you did awesome! Holy cupcakes. I need.
Great job! Your recap makes me want to run the race again. I’ve run the bridge twice since they changed the course, once in super dense fog, where you couldn’t see 25 feet above your head, the other time like the day you had, so crystal clear and beautiful you can see everything for miles around. Actually, I like it both ways.
Way to go. Perfecto halves!! I am in awe of all that elevation. Flat FL is a far cry from having hill strong legs!
Awesome race recap. It is fun to read about someone who enjoys a race so much. There are so many tough races we experience, and reading about one that is joyful and full of happiness is awesome. Great last 3 miles and consistent execution across both halves of the race.
so glad you were able to have such a fantastic race! some day I hope that will happen for me because I love the SFM. Btw…thanks for the great design on the “I Run This Body” shirt :D
Just read this and really enjoyed it!! It really motivated me by seeing all of your mile times, and knowing that those are times that I could one day be capable of for a marathon! Way to go!! I love reading recaps like this. I can’t wait to run my first marathon this December. Will definitely be coming back to read more recaps and get pumped!!
Just Read your recap to get me motivated for training. I will be running the SF Marathon for the first time and training in a very flat Toronto :( Looking at the elevation profile is making me quite nervous. Thank you for the detailed recap. I can’t wait to run it in July 2014