Posted by Leif Irgens on October 09, 2007 at 12:36:16:
In Reply to: Re: Chicago marathon posted by Monetta Roberts on October 09, 2007 at 12:05:04:
Lisa,
My first - and last - marathon was run in such conditions in Burlington, VT of all places. I went in a bit overtrained to begin with and the temp. at race start was 76 degrees - higher than the normal high for that time of year (late May). By the end of the race, it was 91 and not a cloud in the sky.
I went out a little fast (due to being caught in the Port-o-Potty when the gun went off and frantically weaving through almost all of the 2000 entrants in the earlyl miles). By 5 miles, my HR's were unusually high, by 10 miles I was struggling to maintain pace. At half-way, I had given up on my primary time goal and was focusing on a Boston Qualifier as I was still basicaly on pace, crossing half-way around 1:32. I really should have dropped out at 16 miles but didn't want a DNF. I ended up walking most of the last 10 km as the 2nd half of the event dragged on for almost 2 and a half hours. I finished with a 3:58 . . . although, with all that walking, the heat didn't bother me nearly as much as others around me.
I can't place all of the blame for that race on the heat. Being overtrained was certainly a key factor (I look back at my training log and cringe at what I did in the three weeks leading up to the race) but the temps. didn't help that at all.
I learned two things from that race.
(1) Sometimes it's better to drop out than to dig in and finish.
(2) A marathon - like a half-IM or Ironman tri - is such a demanding event that pretty much everything needs to go well to have a good race. In a 10k, if you're not feeling right or if the weather is a bit hot, it may cost you a minute or two. Go into a marathon on a hot day or on a day where you're not quite feeling right and it can literally cost you an hour or more.