Jenelle and I flew to the Cayman Islands on Friday evening to give me a little time to adjust to the weather before the race on Sunday. I ran two miles on Saturday morning at about 7 a.m. to get an idea of how it would feel on race day. I was sweating quite a bit, considering I had been outside for about twenty minutes. We went to a grocery store later on Saturday, where I bought plenty of fluids, including two 25 oz. sport water bottles that I used to make Accelerade, my drink of choice, from the powder mix I brought with me.
Rise and Run
The race started at 5 a.m., so I got up around 3. I "warmed up" just a bit, as it was already quite warm (over 70 degrees F), and I boarded a bus for the starting line at 4. Jenelle was able to make it to the start (in a rental car) about a half hour before the race began, so I got to hang out with her as I went through my usual pre-race routine. As the race started, I carried one of the Accelerade bottles along with plenty of GU and sport beans.
Away We Go
The Cayman Islands Marathon course is a double loop. I don't recall much of the scenery during the first loop, mainly because it was still dark out. The crowd gradually thinned out as we made our way along the course. I could tell that the warmth was increasing the effort required. My early mile splits were between 8:45 and 9:00, but my heart rate was in the mid-150s. My early pace was about the same in the double-loop Tybee Island Marathon two years ago, and my heart rate was in the low 140s. The other indicator was the hydration factor. Before I reached the five-mile mark, my Accelerade was gone, and I had also drank water and/or Gatorade at each of the aid stations.
Awesome Aid Stations
Considering the heat, I was VERY impressed by the amount of support at the aid stations. Volunteers were full of enthusiasm, and would do just about anything to help (besides run the race for you, of course). I think all the stations had cups of water and Gatorade, but some of them had bottled versions as well! I found this to be very helpful, as I could grab a half-liter bottle of water and drink it slowly over the course of a mile, capping the bottle in between swigs -- no spilling!
Loop One Continues
All of my mile splits for the first half of the race were at or below nine minutes. I felt pretty good, but I could tell that the heat was wearing me down. I ran into Jenelle at several spots along the course. She had my second bottle of Accelerade, which I picked up around mile 13, and lots more GU and sport beans.
Stay Cool
As the sun came up and temps rose into the 80s, I found a new way to use my race cap. I noticed that the aid stations with bottled beverages had large coolers of ice. At least three times during the race, I took of my cap, filled it with ice, and put it back on. I would occasionally have to remove and replace the cap to redistribute the ice a little bit, but other than that, the technique worked well. There were times that it didn't even feel like there was ice in my cap -- that's what running in the heat does to you, I guess.
Second Time Around
I finished the first half in about 1:57. The second loop of the course was a lot more lonely in between aid stations, as there were no half marathoners to keep us crazy 26.2ers company. Another discouraging factor was the sun beating down. It seemed like it took forever to get to the turnaround point of the second loop, even though I hadn't slowed down that much. Still, the enthusiasm at the aid stations was great, and cheers from Jenelle also lifted my spirits.
Am I There Yet?
Fatigue set in for the last few miles (as it usually does). I had done my best to drink fluids and consume plenty of GU and sport beans to stay energized, but perhaps my pace was too aggressive considering the weather. The good news is that I never cramped up, which means I was not dehydrated at all. I could definitely feel my quads getting sore, so I took quite a few walk breaks on the way back. I was hoping to stay below four-hour pace, but I couldn't quite keep that up.
The Final Stretch
I passed by Jenelle with less than half a mile to go. The course continued north for a bit, turned left, turned left again, and went back to the south to get to me to the finish. This worked out well for Jenelle, who was waiting to get a shot of me crossing the finish line. I picked up the pace a little bit as I reached the 26-mile sign. Which brings me to one of the few complaints I had about this race. My GPS measured a distance of more than 0.4 miles between that sign and the finish line. The sign seemed to be placed well relative to the 25-mile sign, so it's possible that the course was long. In any case, I had enough energy to keep running to the finish, and an announcer called out my name as I crossed the line in 4:04:28.
Post-Race Fun
I kept walking as the announcer interviewed me, asking how I felt and what aid station I thought was the best. Reviewing the video (which I'll eventually post), it looks like I'm trying to get away from him, but I was actually thrilled to be interviewed. I guess the familiar teaching to "keep moving" during the cool-down was well-ingrained in my post-race routine. The finisher's medal features a turtle, which I thought was pretty neat. Since I finished shortly after 9 a.m., my post-race meal consisted of breakfast with Jenelle at a restaurant near the finish line. The last time my post-race meal was breakfast was the Disney Half Marathon in 2007, at which I crossed the line around 8:30 a.m.
Final Thoughts
Though I had hoped to do a little better, I was satisfied with my time. And I still had enough energy to go kayaking the next day. My first international marathon experience was a great one. It's hard to say where and when I'll race next, but I can pretty much guarantee you it will be somewhere comfortably cool. :)
Race statistics:
| Miles 1-5 | 8:56 | 8:44 | 8:43 | 8:51 | 8:59 |
| Miles 6-10 | 8:44 | 8:44 | 8:59 | 8:47 | 9:00 |
| Miles 11-15 | 8:59 | 8:47 | 9:00 | 8:49 | 9:04 |
| Miles 16-20 | 9:06 | 9:18 | 9:17 | 8:56 | 9:32 |
| Miles 21-25 | 9:11 | 9:49 | 9:33 | 10:39 | 11:02 |
| Miles 26-End | 10:47 | 4:12 |
- Finishing Time: 4:04:28
- Average Pace: 9:19/mile
- First Half: 1:56:56 Second Half: 2:07:32
- Fastest Mile: #3 (8:43) Slowest Mile: #25 (11:02)
