Tucson Marathon 12/13/09

I went into this marathon hoping to break 3 hours. As the marathon was getting closer, I was thinking of trying for a 2:55-2:57. That was my "A" goal, a perfect day, the stars aligned. Anyways...

Before we headed down to Tucson on Saturday, we met our close friends for breakfast at the Orange Table in Scottsdale. They make my lucky "Monkey Cakes"- bananas, almonds, and coconut. They are to die for and I love any kind of pancake! It was also Terri's birthday!
After breakfast, we caravanned to Tucson, hit up the expo, and drove the course, as they had changed parts from last year. My sister, Marisa, also wanted to see it as this was her first full marathon! The course looked very daunting. Don't get me wrong, there is still some nice elevation declines, but many more hills than I remember. The entire beginning is rolling hills, miles 7-9 were some nice steady inclines, inclines toward the end, and a hill at mile 23. Marisa was looking a little nervous! (I think we all were!) We went back to the hotel, ate chicken and rice, showered, and tried to get some sleep.

We woke up at 4am and I was ready to rock! The weather was supposed to be perfect!I wore a holiday red top that Terri gave me (brought me luck!), Nike boy shorts, arm warmers, red/white striped gloves, and a red poinsettia for my hair. Quite festive! We dropped Shannon off at the 1/2 marathon busses, and Mike dropped us off at the full marathon busses.
Matt, Marisa, and I got on the bus, met our friend Donovan and shuttled to the start line. It was about 40 degrees. We went to the port-o's, took off our warm clothes and made it to the front of the start line just in time.
My mile splits:
Mile 1- 5:54 nice downhill, was nervous that I was going too fast though. Caught up with the first gal, we talked for a bit.
Mile 2-6:46- Rollers
Mile 3-6:37
Mile 4- 6:43
Mile 5- 6:42 Took a Vanilla Gingerbread GU
Mile 6-6:36
Mile 7- 6:32
Mile 8- 7:52- Big incline for about 1.25 miles. Intentionally took it this slow to save energy
Mile 9-6:57
Mile 10-6:34 Took second Vanilla Ginger Gu and a salt tab
Mile 11-6:33
Mile 12-6:36 Started worrying that I was going too fast although I felt really great
Mile 13- 6:39 This is where God decided to make it interesting for us runners and gave us a 10-15 mile per hour headwind for the rest of the marathon. That wind was brutal!
Mile 14-6:42 I tried to draft, but I couldn't find anyone!
Mile 15-6:47
Mile 16-6:51
Mile 17-6:44- Took a GU Roctane
Mile 18-6:50 Passed a girl and many men that tried to pass me. :D
Mile 19-6:40
Mile 20-6:57 Where is the turn??? :) Passed the second place female who zoomed by me at mile 2. Started my mantra that my daily mile friend John H. told me- Be strong Ariana, this is your race. It really helped, thanks John!
Mile 21-6:56 Took a GU Roctane
Mile 22-7:03 Start of the incline- and my decline!
Mile 23-7:14
Mile 24-7:08
Mile 25-7:09 Didn't think I was going to break 3 anymore, than I hardened up and made myself push. I was NOT going to let all of my hard work go to waste.
Mile 26-6:57
.33 (per Garmin)-6:14
I turned the corner and saw the clock said 2:58:xx, I was going to do it!!!
I ran through at 2:58:54!! Second female finsher, 11th overall finisher out of 1,246! I broke 3 hours!!! That is a 6:50 minute per mile pace. Official results:
https://www.runraceresults.com/secure/raceresults.cfm?ID=RCLK2009
I was so happy, I of course cried.

It was a little too close to 3 hours for comfort, but with the wind, I'll take it. :D
I felt really good the entire way. My legs never cramped up, no stomach problems, and the miles just flew by. However, once I stopped running, my legs seized up like no other. Very painful! So I just walked around and tried to shake tham out. I could still move, just not very fast!
Shannon and I:
My brother Lukas and I:

I found out that Shannon had met her goal of 2 hours for the half-marathon! So amazing! She worked to hard this training cycle. She beat her previous time by 30 minutes!! Unbelievable!

I was able to see Matt come in at 3:13. Not what he was shooting for, but with the wind, he did SO amazing. I am so proud of him! His average pace was 7:22. So awesome!
Above: Matt getting ready to make his final move and pass this guy! And he did!


Terri came in at 3:15, looking as strong as ever. This girl is an amazing athlete. Just so solid every run!
Terri's husband Mark- His FIRST marathon! came in at 3:16! They did SO awesome!!!


Then we waited for my sister. It was getting close to 4 hours, and I honestly thought with the wind, she may come in at 4:15. She was just shooting for under 5 hours.
All the sudden, Shannon spotted her coming around the corner looking totally zen!
We were screaming our heads off for her. I looked at the clock--3:56!!! She crossed at 3:56:41. Unbelievable! My first marathon was a 4:36!!! She rocked it! I think she is ready for more now... I cried again. So proud of her. Unreal.
The awards were not supposed to start until 12:30, at about 11:45 I hear my name being called our for my award! I got a trophy. Matt and Terri both got third in their age groups and got a sand art. As you can tell, its a small race. :)


Pic of my festive-ness. :D

After the race, we went back to the hotel, checked out, and Shannon and I went to the hot tub with a few beers. We dunked our sore legs in the pool first and it felt really good! We left Tucson and later that night went to our friend Mark's house to celebrate Terri's birthday. He had make-your-own pizzas with homemade dough and all of these gourmet toppings. So amazing! To top it off, he had homemade Limoncello and Tiramisu! A perfect way to end a great weekend!

Today my legs are much more sore. Time for some massage. I have a really busy week at work, so I may actually take the entire week off before I attempt any recovery runs.

Next up- I am signed up for PF Changs full marathon. I think I can do better. It all depends on how I recover though as the race is 5 weeks away. I am also meeting with a coach on Saturday who is also a phenomenal runner, so I am VERY excited!