Atlanta Marathon: Head for the hills!!

Well, It was a beautiful day for the Atlanta Marathon. It began on a cold note, however, with temperatures in the mid 30's. I decided to stick with my long sleeved tech shirt, and used some socks for gloves. I ran in shorts, knowing that once we got going, I would feel about right. My hunches were correct, and I discarded the sock gloves somewhere in the first mile. It was a good run, but the hills got to me! I'll write a more complete report tomorrow evening. For now, here is a copy of my splits:

MILE         TIME      CHANGE      AVG. PACE  

MI  1            11:46        --                     11'46"/mi

MI 2             24:15       + 0:43 (6%)      12'29"/mi

MI 3            36:53        + 0:09 (1%)      12'38"/mi

MI 4            49:53        + 0:22 (2%)       13'00"/mi

MI 5         1:02:45        - 0:08 (1%)       12'52"/mi

MI 6         1:14:46       - 0:51 (6%)        12'01"/mi

MI 7         1:26:30       - 0:17 (2%)         11'44"/mi

MI 8         1:39:12      + 0:58 (8%)         12'42"/mi

MI 9        1:52:15      + 0:21 (2%)          13'03"/mi

MI 10      2:05:18       --                         13'03"/mi

MI 11      2:18:28      + 0:07 (0%)           13'10"/mi

MI 12     2:31:26      - 0:12 (1%)            12'58"/mi

MI 13     2:44:06       - 0:18 (2%)            12'40"/mi

MI  14   2:57:18       + 0:32 (4%)            13'12"/mi

MI 15   3:10:24        - 0:06 (0%)            13'06"/mi

MI 16   3:24:24        + 0:54 (6%)            14'00"/mi

MI 17   3:37:18         - 1:06 (7%)             12'54"/mi

MI 18   3:51:17         + 1:05 (8%)             13'59"/mi

MI 19    4:04:13          - 1:03 (7%)             12'56"/mi

MI 20    4:18:23        + 1:14 (9%)             14'10"/mi

MI 21    4:33:35        + 1:02 (7%)              15'12"/mi

MI 22    4:48:15        - 0:32 (3%)              14'40"/mi

MI 23    5:02:42         - 0:13 (1%)              14'27"/mi

MI 24    5:17:04         - 0:05 (0%)               14'22"/mi

MI 25    5:33:24      + 1:58 (13%)             16'20"/mi

MI 26   5:49:54       + 0:10 (1%)               16'30"/mi

5k in 28:03!! Marathon Next Week

I'm feeling good about next week's Atlanta Marathon. Tapering is going well. It is so easy to taper!

Ran a 5k road race in Conyers Race Against Violence this morning! Set a PR for 2011 of 28:03!! I haven't run that fast since my 28:28 last April in the Covington FUMC Steeple Chase! I believe that the cross training is paying off, especially for those short distances!

However, when it comes to the marathon, all bets are off. We shall see what happens next Sunday. Perhaps I will be able to give a good report about my race. I know that I can finish, I've proven that many times in recent years. The questions that linger in my mind, are:  Can I run it faster than 5:30? If so, how close can I come to the 5 hour mark?

Feeling great for now!!