Marine Corps Marathon Panel Interview

Four of our Pacers Ambassadors ran the Marine Corps Marathon (MCM) last weekend. I had the opportunity to interview them about their experiences.

Name: Caldwell Clark
Number of Previous Marathons: 0
Age: 31
Finish Time: 4:21:58
Location: Leesburg

Name: Tom Farnam
Number of Previous Marathons: 5
Age: 65
Finish Time: 7:01:22
Location: Alexandria

Name: Erik Price
Number of Previous Marathons: 2
Age: 27
Finish Time: 3:22:19
Location: Fairfax

Name: Rebecca Turchin
Number of Previous Marathons: 0
Age: 31
Finish Time: 4:11:01
Location: Alexandria



Why did you choose the MCM?
Rebecca: Easy locale and I've heard great things about it as a first race. Lots of crowd support was enticing, too. Plus, living in DC--gotta do MCM, right? :)
Erik: I really like that McM is non-profit and usually won by local (or semi-local) runners. Not having a prize purse keeps it from being too competitive and keeps registration costs down. Organization is always excellent too. Its the People's Marathon!
Caldwell: This is a large, well run marathon, right in our backyard. It seemed like a perfect fit for my first marathon.


Have you ever run the MCM before today?
Rebecca: No

Tom: No

Erik: Yes, in 2009

Caldwell: No

Did you have a goal? If so did you meet it?
Rebecca: Yep--and nope. Pretty severe foot cramps started at mile 18 so I had to stop and stretch several times. If I'd subtracted my stretch times, I would have been in at 3:52. But oh well, next time!

Erik: Yes, my goal range was from 2:59 - 3:09. I did not meet it. After being on pace for a 3 hour marathon, I started getting fatigued around mile 20; since this is fairly normal I slowed my pace a bit to stay more in line with a 3:10 finish time. Around mile 22, I began getting very bad cramps in my calves causing me to have to walk certain portions. These spread to the rest of my legs and a few upper body muscles. At several points I had to stop and stand still before stretching, slow walking, fast walking and then running again. Though I was disappointed, I am trying to look at this as a learning experience (haven't quite figured out what i should be learning yet).

Caldwell: I had the goal of 4:00:00. Having run multiple 1/2 marathons this year under 1:50:00, I thought that this was an obtainable goal. I did not appreciate just how difficult the entire 26.2 really is!

You ran the Army 10-miler last weekend-- do you think that impacted your race today?
Rebecca: No---I did a really easy Army 10 last weekend (ran with a friend who was doing his first), so that kept me in check in keeping my pace down and pretty much resting up for this weekend.

Erik: In hindsight I believe it negatively impacted my time. I love the Army 10 miler, but I would not do it again if its only 1 week before a marathon. I had planned on just running it easy, but I have a tough time running slow during a big race.

Caldwell: I think it was a great wind down to the MCM.

What was your race strategy?
Rebecca: It being my first marathon, I really just wanted to finish without being in so much pain that I'd never want to do another marathon. I hydrated really well the week leading up. I made sure to do the first few miles pretty slowly so I'd have energy left rather than busting out of the gate and then bonking.

Tom: Beat the Bridge and finish.

Do you think your race reflected your training?
Rebecca: Um---a bit. I was really disappointed in the foot cramps. But I felt great--I had plenty of energy and air so, had it not been for the cramps, I would have been golden.

Erik: No. I was very disappointed. Though a 3 hour time was an aggressive goal, 3:10 was well within my reach.

Caldwell: My race plan, put together by Pacer's own, Chris Farley, was great and set me up to reach my distance goal. I met my main goals, to finish with a smile on my face and run the entire time.

Favorite part of the course?

Tom: Coming down Spout Run with the lovely fall colors in the morning sun.

Caldwell: Georgetown on Halloween was as I expected... wild!

When/What is your next race? Do you have any future marathons planned?
Erik: Doing a couple 5ks this fall. I am doing the Disney Half-Marathon and Marathon in January (The "Goofy" Challenge). I may choose to run the Half very conservatively and then try to break 3:10 in the full. After that I would like to focus on speed in the spring before doing another marathon next fall.

Caldwell: My next race will be the Jingle All the Way 10K in December. I am planning on MCM '11!

What mental tactics did you use to help yourself through the hard parts?
Rebecca: When I'd get tired, I'd make myself smile---it gives me a jolt of endorphins that kicks my body back into a good place. And interacting with the crowd when I was tired re-energized me, too. And, really, just seeing yourself cross that finish line in your head--makes it easier to make it a reality

Tom: Just keep going. Do not give up.

Erik: I kind of cycled through a bunch of different tactics in my head:
- Just 1 more mile, or 1 more lap (400 meters), at a time.
- Okay, this guy in front of me is cramping up too and walking, once he starts running I start running, and I dont stop unless he does too.
- As much as I want to stop or give up, giving up is for the weak, to be a marathoner you must be strong.

Do you have any advice to share for marathon runners?
Rebecca: Have fun with it---if you train adequately, it lets you really enjoy the experience. I think I had a perma-grin for basically the entire race. I think it's important to revel in the experience and the environment--that's what the accomplishment is about.

Tom: Do not let the little stuff get you down. Focus on the primary objective(s).

Erik: Marathon Running is hard. Whatever your pace finishing is truly an accomplishment, much more then in any shorter race. My biggest peace of advice is to run "your" marathon. Running with a pace group, a pacer, or hitting a goal time is important, but run it for yourself. Better to be proud of a slower time than disappointed with a faster time. In training, focus on the marathon at the expense of shorter distances. Err on the side of caution. Unlike shorter distances, you can't push through injury or find the inner strength if there is none left. You can never know what to expect the last 6.2 miles, and only another marathon can understand this.

Caldwell: As a marathon rookie, I am not one to give advice, but I honestly do believe that the training is the work and the race is the reward.