DNS vs DNF

I've never DNF'd a race and I don't enter races just to go through the motions.  I'm either testing my current fitness, have a specific training purpose, or I'm racing to push my limits and compete.  That's why I've only run a few marathons total and why I decided to DNS IM Arizona in 2010.  With few exceptions, simply covering the distance doesn't motivate me.

Boston Marathon 2006 with dad.

In early 2010 my dad was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and I spend a lot of time traveling back and forth to CO spending as much time with him as possible.  He passed away in late July that year and I just couldn't focus on the quantity and quality of training that's necessary to race IM well.  I certainly could have trained enough to finish without a problem but it still would have been a big investment for a marginal outcome.  So I decided to eat the $500 entry and change gears to something that I thought I could actually accomplish something with what was left of the 2010 season.  I found a regional half iroman race in late October, cut my training back to something I could stay focused on and actually enjoy, and ended up winning the race and setting a new PR.  From the moment I decided to pass on IMAZ I immediately knew it was the right decision and don't regret it for a second.  I still went out to Tempe and got to watch Chrissy Wellington set a new world record - smiling the entire time.

That brings me to April 2012 and my ultimate goal this season to race well at the inaugural IM US Championship in Aug.  I started he year running a lot, had a blast doing the Ragnar FLK relay, and set a World Record for a tethered team marathon at Shamrock - fun start to the season.  I also put the Virginia 24hr Run for Cancer on my schedule as both a challenge and something unique.  It happens to be a quick drive from VA Beach and a friendly format for ultra running - 3.75 mile loop on a flat dirt and gravel trail.  I ran JFK50 back in 2009 and did fairly well (34th overall) despite my pace bombing the last 10 miles or so.  I set my goal for the 24hr event at 100 miles but I've been training as a triathlete, not a runner.  That means only 2-3 runs for roughly 30-35 miles per week.  I fully realize that isn't optimal to run 100 miles but I still felt confident that I could do it - 24hrs gives a lot of buffer.  But the problem is that I basically consider anything less than 100 miles a DNF.  For whatever reason I don't see anything short of 100 miles as being any sort of milestone past the 50 I've already done.  So I had 2 options for the 24hr run - go for it and run myself into the ground to hit my goal, or DNS and spend my weekend training to be the best triathlete I can be this season. 

As I'm finishing this post I have several friends 15 hours into the run - I'm at home with sore legs from running 18 miles yesterday and riding 65 miles today.  I'm bummed that I'm not out there with them.  I wasn't raising money for a charity or anything but I was looking forward to "running for cancer" for my dad.  But I'm happy that I made the right decision - Ironman is 111 days away and it's time to get serious.  I wouldn't have been able to give my best at either event if I ran the 24hr this weekend.  Instead I'll swim/bike/run my ass off for the next 4 months and dedicate this IM to my dad.

Mission accomplished

There I was, standing in the starting corral with 4 other dudes tethered to my waist with a few feet of rope.  In a couple minutes we'd be off for a running tour of the Virginia Beach oceanfront complete with an excursion through Fort Story and stroll down the boardwalk.  I posted a while back about this Guinness World Record attempt.  We planned to run under 3hrs but unfortunately had a couple of injuries on the team and had to make some late substitutions but we were still in great shape for beating the current record (3:26).  We figured on being right around 3:03-3:05 so we set out to run 7:00 pace and nailed it up through mile 16.  I was feeling great and everyone else seemed to be holding steady.  Mile 16-18 is when a marathon starts to get serious and if you are running at your limit things get tough.

You might be able to tell who is on cruise control and who is working hard at this point.

We needed to back off our pace to 7:20-7:30 for the last 8 miles to keep the team on track but there was never any risk of missing the record.  The last mile was all about guts and I'm proud of everyone for hanging tough and kicking the pace back up for a 6:57 coming down the boardwalk to the finish.  Our official time was 3:06:04, crushing the previous record.

This wasn't my fastest marathon and it wasn't the fastest I could have run on this day - I figure I was good for a 2:48-2:50 - but it was tons of fun.  For the first 15 miles we had a pack of clingers just sitting on our heels.  Maybe they liked our 7:00/mile pace or maybe they just wanted to hang with the cool kids.  All the spectators gave us great support and it was a really nice day to run a marathon.  Maybe next year we'll come back and knock out that sub-3hr unfinished business.