2013 Edmonton Marathon

Sunday, 25 August 2013 - I complete my first marathon. The sunshine was wonderfully hidden behind the clouds, overcast and warm. It was 42 km to freedom, and I pounded the pavement all the way to the finish line. The Edmonton Marathon was wonderfully planned, and all the volunteers were delightful, supportive, and very enthusiastic.

Thank you to several wonderful supporters, that came out to cheer me on, take photos and even run with me for a few kilometers, and most of all thank you to Atomic Improv, my main training sponsor!

One of my favourite parts of the marathon is that with the huge number of runners participating, there is bound to be someone who runs at a VERY similar pace to you. Just statistically speaking, there is probably someone who runs very similar to you, in pace, but also in style. What is interesting is that some of these people that you match up with on the trail, with a similar pace, have a similar body type, and some are so very different.

My Garmin fenix watch, tracked my pace, and distance and I was able to throw the tracking directly up on Runkeeper as soon as I got home.

 

It was a flat and fast route, that was a very nice route. There are plenty of overlooks on the river, Valleyview Drive, Ada Blvd, etc. It would be hard to find a more beautiful view of the river from the north side of the North Saskatchewan.

The results are posted already, all thanks to the chipped-bib attached to my leg.

Overall place: 85 Finish time: 3:34:23 | Chip time: 3:34:06 Average pace: 5:05 Age group place: 19/97 | Gender place: 69/405 10km split time: 48:06 | 21.1km split time: 1:41:31 | 30km split time: 2:25:49 | 35km time: 2:52:36

Missed the Boston Marathon qualifying time by a few minutes… but that is a nice goal for next time. I feel very proud, and not as stiff as I had thought I would.