This was the 8th Annual 26.2 with Donna National Marathon to Finish Breast Cancer! This is THE RACE of the year for me. This is what I run for! All year long (Mar-Jan) I run half marathons across the country, trying to check off the fifty states, but also train for the full marathon (the one and only I will do) and raise funds for The Donna in February. You see, The Donna is the only Marathon in the US where 100% net proceeds benefit the Mayo Clinic (70%) for breast cancer research and the Donna Foundation (30%) to help those in financial need to get through their treatments. Fundraising is completely optional, but even part of your registration goes towards the cause. Once you realize what these monies have helped to create (a new vaccine trial for triple negative breast cancer patients is the latest), its hard to not jump on board to help the cause! Plus, there are fundraising incentives that include some pretty cool gifts and Jaguar tickets! I have participated every single year (officially known as a Streaker) and can not see myself NOT participating.
THE YEAR LEADING UP TO DONNA
We will start this blog back in the beginning of the year. As a reminder, I completed 2014 Donna marathon with a Huge PR, crushing my 5 hour finish time goal with 4:55, a whole 34 minute improvement! So needless to say, I told myself I needed a break from running. Yes, I still managed my half marathons, but I was running VERY little other than that. And before I knew it, it was months down the road and I had slacked for a whole 6 months! Well, you could probably guess, my performance had plummeted. I completed my running year without a single PR. Not only was I disappointed in myself, but I was scared I would not be able to 'match' another 5 hour marathon finish time.
DONNA TRAINING SEASON
My training season was pretty strong. I tried to do a whole 26 weeks of training, however, the heat took a little toll on that. I also had to regain my 'base' of what I had slacked on, so it ended up being more of a 16 week training program. By October I was able to start adding over 13mile runs to my training. For 3 months I was able to manage no less than 25 miles per week, with most at 30-33 miles per week. I had 5 days that were 20 miles or over. I kept with the breaking up the miles like I did last year (ie, 2x10mile runs a day) to aid in faster recovery. Besides the running, I tried to do Pilates and Yoga at least once each a week. I did drop the weight lifting training this year, which I think may have been a mistake. Something different I did do this year was run in high altitude while on a ski vacation just a few weeks before race day. It was very little miles, but it was 3x of very heavy breathing! I don't know if that did anything or not, but I feel that breathing training would definitely help.
WEEK OF DONNA
The week of Donna is packed full of events! Being a Streaker (someone that has participated in Donna since day 1) and also a Top Fundraiser, I was invited to the One Ocean VIP Reception. This is an interesting event with hordeourvs and cocktails mingling with some very important people that make this event take place. The Donna Ambassadors are also there, which is always interesting to hear their stories from all over the world.
Saturday there is also a 5K in the morning (held at the same place as the Expo, and provides a medal too) and then a by invitation pasta dinner held at Mayo Clinic. Unfortunately I have bypassed the invitation to the pasta dinner the past couple years because I have been more focused on resting since race morning starts at 4am. This year I heard it was fantastic as they did a tour of the Mayo Clinic laboratories.
EXPO
The Expo is held at the Prime Osborne Convention Center located in downtown Jacksonville and is a 2 day event packed with vendors from all over the world. It is free and open to the public and is one of the best expos I have ever attended as there are so many shopping and educational options. There is a Donna Merchandise area as well as other breast cancer organizations set up. Donna herself is there meeting with the runners, as well as Jeff Galloway, the man responsible for the run/walk theory. Kurtis Loftus, the artist responsible for the great designs of the tshirt, medal and posters was there with a table set up to make custom spray painted shirts for $25.
There are local running shops like First Place Sports, as well as ones from afar (I ended up purchasing from the state of MI!) who come stocked with sale merchandise. We are given a reusable drawstring Donna bag, and there were free noise makers (varies every year, this year was thunder sticks) and yard flags to anyone who wanted them.
There was a pink fire truck you could sign parked outside and inside there were huge billboards with encouraging words such as Strength, Love, Finish that you could leave messages on. These would be placed on the beach for our Miracle Miles section of the course.
PARKING
Parking for the race is open 3 1/2 hours prior to the Starting time with 2 separate entrances, so there is plenty of time for everyone to get there on time. We start at the TPC Sawgrass (for those that don't know, is a huge golf event location) which has more than enough spots for runners and spectators.
STARTING AREA
The Starting Area is pretty big and spread out. Once you get out of the parking, there is the UPS Gear Trucks, which is very easy to pass off your belongings. They transport it to the Finish for you. There are also so many porta potties, you never really have a long line to wait in. Besides Dunkin Donuts being there handing out coffee, there was also water, bananas, and muffins if you forgot breakfast. There is a big warming tent with tables and chairs, or there is also portable heaters scattered around to keep you warm. If you forgot your sunscreen, because its still dark out, don't worry, there is even a table for that as well. This year they tried a new line up. Flags were up with finish/pace times and you placed yourself where ever you pleased. There would be pulse starts for each time. If you did not line up early enough, you started later, but it didn't matter. Your own time doesn't start until you cross the Start timing mat with your chip on your bib. This made it easier to start with your friends and loved ones instead of being separated off from each other in separate corrals. A big part of it is to still be 'considerate' to other runners and staying true to your own pace and line up accordingly. I started in the first group which actually was a lot larger than I expected, but was not impacted with slower or faster runners trying to weave around.
COURSE
The course is A to B starting at TPC Sawgrass and finishing appropriately at the Mayo Clinic. There is a shuttle that takes you back to the start parking lot once you are finished. We run through Ponte Vedra, Jacksonville, Neptune, and Atlantic Beaches, with about 1-2 miles (depending on if you are running the half or full) run right on the hard packed sand. The beautiful white sand beach is where you are engulfed by the beauty of Jacksonville. The sky is still filled with beautiful colors as it is still early in the day. If you look close and if you are lucky you can see the dolphins swimming right along side us. The course is constantly in the beach neighborhoods where you see an endless stream of people coming out of their houses to not only cheer you on, but they have set up elaborate decorations and even 'aid stations' stocked full of oranges, waters, pbj sandwiches, bananas, candy, beer, mimosas, anything you can imagine, they have you covered the entire course! ....until the last 3 miles of the marathon which runs on JTB (a closed highway). The course is completely flat until you reach the last mile where you have enough of a challenge to prove your marathon strength with a small bridge.
WEATHER
All week there was a close eye on the weather. All over the US has been a brutally cold and snowy season and it was looking like we would be impacted by a strong cold front with high winds. Even race morning was predicting what was opposite of what we actually had. I swear this race is blessed. It ended up being in the 40s early and 50s later. There was some wind, but it was not a consistent direction, and it was never steady either. I arrived with long sleeves and pants with gloves, but ended up removing my sleeves and ran in a tank. By the end of the day I was saying I could have even gone down to shorts and tank, but I was fine. It was a gorgeous day!
MANTRAS
I totally believe that running, at any distance, is half mental. I try to go into marathon day with a list of mantras to get me through when I start to boink. This years included....
Better your Best
Embrace the Suck
Breathe thru it
Run with your Heart
AID STATIONS
There is tons of GU available on the marathon course.
On the second half I noticed they split up the water and Gatorade, instead of having both of them every mile, which made it weird because I like to swish out my mouth with water after a swig of Gatorade. A secret to the aid stations (esp the ones with a medic tent) is, they have aspirin and chips if you need, which I always love a mouth full of salt around M18.
GOALS VS RESULTS
My initial goal was to just match last years performance, since it was such a huge PR. But I have also always PRd on this race, so of course I didn't want to end that streak. I would have to maintain a 10:29-11:16 pace to finish between 4:35 to 4:55.
I wore a 4:35 pace tattoo that I had picked up at the Expo to keep me on track.
I am probably the most backwards runner there is, as I like to go out strong for as long as I can and then ease up at the end. For the marathon I do a consistent run/walk method. Below is what my goal was vs what actually took place.
M1-3 - 3x30, Actual-M1-12 3x30
M3-7 - 3x45, Actual 3x30
M7-13 - 3x1, Actual 3x30
M13-16 - 2:30x45, Actual M12-15 2:30x30
M16-20 - 1:30x45, Actual M15-18 2x30, M18-20 2x45
M20-23 - 1:30x45, Actual M20-23 1:30x45
M23-36 - 1x45, Actual M23-26 1x1
I took a GU every 3 miles starting at M6, a mouthful of water and Gatorade for every hydration station, a couple of bites of oranges somewhere on course, and a mouthful of chips around M18.
I ran the first 7 miles with my friend Constance who was taking on her first half marathon. I definitely felt like I wanted to run faster (like I always do and then crash early later) so it was good she was there to keep me consistent. I unexpectedly ran into a friend Barb on the corner around M16 where I was just beginning to die down. I had co workers support (my work hosts a hydration station) at M8 and 18. My bartender friend surprisingly yelled out my name from behind the bar as I passed by at M 19! My friend Michelle was holding posters right after M20. And of course I had to take my usual shot of beer (the best carbs there are) at M21.
From the first couple of miles, I thought my GymBoss (pace alert) was dying or broken. It would go through one cycle of run/walk, but then stop. Luckily I was able to realize I could just push the button after the end of each cycle to start another. Unluckily, (but probably luckily) I forgot to do this several times and ran longer than I was supposed to. Thankfully it did last the entire race. I really stressed the first miles thinking I would not have a pacer at all. Unfortunately I realized after the race the exact problem and solution for it. (hand to forehead!)
Looking back, I was amazed how well I felt on the 3x30 (run 3 minutes, walk 30seconds) for so long. I was very consistent on overall pace the entire race until those last three-five miles. I could have definitely pushed myself more on JTB for the last 3 miles where I dropped down to a run a minute, walk a minute. With my performance and knowing what my body can handle, I will probably never allow myself to do another 1minute walk break again.
Physically my body was never in any serious pain. I had a nagging right hip and right knee ache and then some sort of feet pain I have never felt before in my life, for the last 10 miles. It is hard to describe, but it was like I was running barefoot. Like a raw feeling, or when your feet are asleep and then starting to wake up again. Nothing too terrible, just interesting.
FINISH LINE
Because I didn't know anyone doing the marathon this year, I was really expecting anyone at the finish (which is pretty usual for me). I slowly crossed the finish with a 5 minute PR and pretty much started hyperventilating. I was overcome with emotion and started to cry, but for some reason it led to almost a full blown panic attack. I continued to take my medal and walk towards the Finish Village when I looked up and saw Constance and her family still there. After a hug my breathing started calming down.
Constance and I stayed for a bit to enjoy the Finishers Village. There is pink champagne (which I had never been able to find previous years), Michelob Ultra, soup, and later we found out there was free pizza and hamburgers being handed out by Mellow Mushroom and Hardees. There is also a massage tent if you want to stretch out your muscles!
SHUTTLE
We didn't stay much longer and made our way to the shuttle to get back to start. It is always a long 30 minute drive back (so make sure you have your back up clothes, flip flops, anything you want to make you comfortable after the Finish Line)
AFTERWARDS
After the race, we went to a friends who whipped up some yummy food for us. We met up with a couple other half marathoners and shared running stories.
SHIRT
The Finishers Shirt is a long sleeve gender specific tech shirt. I know they have been trying different qualities and designs for the shirt over the years. I do hope that one year they can actually get the sleeve length right for ALL runners. I am a tall person and receiving long sleeve shirts really can be a hit or miss anywhere, but with that said I have plenty of other running shirts from other races where the length is just fine. This years shirt, is once again about 2 inches short. I am glad they went back to the beachy design. But the shade of the pink is also a little weird. It looks like a light pink color washed with a bunch of dark clothing.
MEDAL
I love our medal and the stained glass. This year they decided to make it a heart shape, which isn't my favorite, but something different. The wording on the medal is entirely too small. I would love for the 26.2 and Donna words to be more of a focus.
PHOTOS
There is a good amount of photographers on course and at the Finish. There are also a slew of local photographers that end up posting additional (not organized) photos on multiple news sites, as well as Facebook pages. This year was cool as being a 'Streaker' we were given a $20 discount to use with Sport Photos and I was able to order a custom keychain for free!
STREAKER EXTRA!
It has been pretty cool the past few years they have gone out of their way to show appreciation to the Donna Streakers.... those that have run every single year. This year they gave a heart running ribbon heart saying "Streaker 8 Years".
OVERALL THOUGHTS
If you want a standing ovation for all the hard work you put into training 16 weeks for a marathon, you should experience the Donna. It is literally 26 miles of people lining the streets cheering you on, calling out your name, saying Thank you for Running. The crowd support is among the largest I have seen in all my races. Running on the beach is also a huge highlight, making something stressful as a marathon, more relaxing and enjoyable. There is an awesome Galloway training program that can get anyone to run their first marathon. If the marathon is too much, there is always the half, the relay, or the 5k the day before!
Marathon #6 -4:50
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