Speaking of Marathons

Tuesday is here and the long Memorial Day weekend is now history. I will be out and walking again this morning, hoping to get in a long walk of 12 miles or more before the day turns hot. I have a 4 mile race coming up on the 3rd of June and I hope to do well in it; with only 4 practice days left, I have to make them count. And of course the practice will help with the upcoming marathon in Anchorage, on the 17th of June.

Jill and I were discussing our future marathon plans yesterday while we did a fast 6 miles around Susanville. (80 minutes) She will miss the Portland event this year as the family is involved in a wedding on that date. But, the following weekend (October 7th) we will do the Susanville Bizz Johnson Trail marathon that goes from Westwood to Susanville. Since she is going to miss one of our favorite marathons, we will probably try for an early marathon (January) in Phoenix. Of course we discussed the possibility of a Hawaiian marathon and I need to do some research on that. I know there is a marathon in Honolulu, but that’s really a “Big City” marathon with high rise buildings for a backdrop. It’s a very popular event and draws a large crowd…that’s always a good thing for a walker. And there is a Maui marathon, but I’ve never been to Maui and so I’m not sure of the course? There is also a Kona coast marathon and I’m attracted to that one because it’s on the Big Island. Although I don’t find the Kona coast all that picturesque, it might be the best of the three possibilities.

(I just looked at the website for the Kona marathon and walking, not running, seems to be the preferred method of propulsion for that one! The website is sparse and I’m not able to get a good idea of the course.)

OK, I just looked at another website, this one with pictures and a review of the course. And just as I thought, the majority of the course would be on the bleak highway that leads to and from Kailua-Kona. It’s not a pretty picture!…well, it’s still a possibility but it goes to third place in my list of possible Hawaiian marathons.

(Later) I’m back from a fast walk. I decided to do a fast one today and a longer, slower one tomorrow. I didn’t have anything to eat this morning and decided that it might be risky behavior for a long walk and I will be sure and have breakfast tomorrow before I start. How fast was it? According to one clock, I did the 6.25 miles in 79 minutes. That’s a good 12.64 minute/mile pace. There was some confusion about the time as my GPS unit said 1:14. That would have given me an 11:84 minute/mile, but the clock in my car said 1:19. And I do remember hitting one milestone a good 4 minutes earlier than normal…so did I or didn’t I do the faster time? I’m going with the conservative number and will try it again on Thursday to see if I can replicate that time.