Freedom Run Marathon Race Report

Better late than never. The race was about two months ago. On October 14th, I wrote about problems with a cold leading up to the race.

The day of the race I felt pretty good. I drove in the dark to the race early in the morning. It was cloudy and drizzling on and off, but the temperature was comfortable. I parked in a white water rafting company' s parking lot and took a shuttle to the Harper's Ferry Visitor's Center. We waited about a half an hour after the walkers started. We walked a short distance to the starting line. There were only a few hundred runners in the marathon. The start was delayed a bit because a ambulance was needed for a walker even though they had only started a few minutes before.

Finally we started, as it began to become light, although it was quite foggy. I have been to Harpers Ferry many time so was familiar with the area. I got into a comfortable pace. The third mile was thru the historic main street of Harpers Ferry, we then went on a walking bridge and had to go down some winding steps to the C & O Canal. This is about 13 miles on the C & O west of where I live. I have always wanted to run from my house to Harpers Ferry, but have never worked out the logistics.

The next ten miles were on the C & O Canal going west. It was still cloudy and foggy weather wise. The trail was mostly shaded and it was very comfortable running weather. I continued to feel good, but was starting to become concerned that I was going to fast. I wanted 9:30 minute miles, but was doing 9:00 minute miles. It was pretty uneventful. The water stops were well stocked with energy gels. I went to the restroom around mile 7 and broke my water bottle. The worse $25 I ever spent. Around mile 7 I started to use a girl who was running at a good even pace, as a pacer. I stayed with her for the next 8 miles or so. I reached the half way point in under 2 hours. This was about 7 minutes faster that my first marathon, but little did I realize how difficult the second half would be.

Right before I finshed on the C & O Canal the sun came out. The remainder of the race had no shade at all. After mile 14, we were on a small country road that was going up a very large hill. Myself and all the runners around me walked up most of this hill. At around mile 16 we got to Antietam battle fields. This was the most difficult part of the race. It was continuous rolling hills in the sun with no shade. I had slowed down quite a bit by the time we got to Antietam and by mile 18 I was mixing walking and running. Around this time we were seeing the half marathoners who were running in the opposite direction. My brother was doing the half and I saw him around mile 19. Part of the reason I chose this race was due to the scenery and the history of the course, but when I was running thru Antietem, I was so worn out that I was not mood to reflect upon the history.

Around mile 21 we finally got finished running thru Antietam and most of the remainder of the course was on the side of the road on Route 65 going from Sharpsburg, MD to the finish at Shepardstown, WV. It was not quite as hilly, but just as sunny. There was absolutely no crowd support until the end. I continued to mix running with walking from miles 21 to 24. There was just an occasional runner who would either past me or I would pass. At mile 24 I was able to slowly run until the finish.

As we got near Shepardstown there were more people. There were five races and the area around the finish was the central hub. The finish was in the Shepardstown University football stadium. I ended up at 4:34:55, which was about 18 minute slower than I was in the Frederick Marathon. I met up with my brother shortly after the finish. This marathon took more out of me than the first. I was not moving too well after it was over. I had to take two shuttles to get back to my car.

I ened up 152nd out of 307 finishers. The winner had run a marathon in the spring that was 17 minutes faster and here is a link to a blog of the female that came in 3rd talking about how difficult the course was. http://mile-posts.blogspot.com/2009/10/freedoms-run-marathon.html . Hearing that others struggled made me feel a little better about my finish. When selecting the next marathons I run, I will be looking for a flatter course with better fan support. In addition, I learned to never run a marathon in a white shirt and that more body glide is needed on sensitive areas.