County Music Marathon

Dave and Dad drove down from Chicago and were supposed to time their arrival with my flight arrival, but those pesky truck stops and all their gadgets and gizmos were too tempting for them. So they were 40mins late - I caught the free shuttle to the hotel. I'll have to figure out some way to forgive them.

Nashville was once again awesome! We managed to find a Carrabas for the pre-race meal, which was exactly the pre-race meal I had at the other Rock and Roll marathon I've done (Phoenix). Anyway, they have a trio chicken sampler that is not on the menu (with a side of pasta). I order it every time and consider it my secret weapon. Its like rocket fuel for marathoners. I think i might consider only doing marathons where there is a Carrabas.

Ok, the race was great. We pulled right up to the start corral and sat in the car until the pouring rain stopped, which was about 8mins before the start. So Dave and I were bone dry, but all the other people that got there early were soaked. Too bad for them. But the joke was one me, because while I was able sit in the car for a while, I also had time to drink more Red Bull than i normally do. Result: a nasty case of an upset stomach at mile 3 and 7 (use your imagination).

Aside from having to chase down Dave after two potty stops, I had a very even race. In fact, my second half was only about 35 secs slower than the first. Dave and I separated around mile 18 where I was feeling really good, so I went for it and negative split the last 6 miles. The crowd support in Nashville is amazing, even for the second half which runs without the half-marathoners. There are bands everywhere you look.

In the last six miles the course runs through a somewhat isolated park. The first time i ran this race, I really struggled through this portion. This year, I had no problems and actually enjoyed the shade.

I often here people say that the course is difficult because of the late race hills. When i first ran Nashville I totally agreed, but now I'm not so sure. Compared to some of the races I've run, Nashville's course is great. The hills aren't enough to seriously slow you down, but if you aren't ready for them they can cause some pain.

In the end, I bettered my previous time by two mins. Finishing in a very nice 3:37. For still being in training mode for the 50 miler, I'll take it. My favorite part of the race and weekend was spending time with my brother and Dad. Dave ran a 3:51, which was great considering the wicked winter he had in Madison.

After the race we dropped off Dad and went to a bar that had about a hundred beers on tap. Just another confirmation that beers tastes better after a good long run.