2015 DETROIT MARATHON PREVIEW

Course map, click to enlarge. Most the highlights are in the first half of the race. Belle Isle is going to start the death march.

Can't believe I'll be in Detroit in less than 24 hours. This trip feels kind of weird... I don't know whether to be excited or dread the race. Unfortunately the weather is still looking just as cold. It will be interesting to see how I do in the cold though, all my previous marathons have been in the 50s and 60s. I certainly can't use the "too hot" excuse for this race, but I'll probably be pulling out "too cold." We'll see. At least it should be clear and crisp. Might actually be kind of nice.

I leave tomorrow morning at 7am and get into Detroit around 5pm. I'm excited to see the Foster gang. We'll be keeping things pretty low key in the lead up to the race. See some of the sights around Detroit without screwing up my chances in the marathon. Should be fun. I got to see a little bit of the area back in the spring when we did the Indianapolis Mini Marathon but it will be nice to explore more. Just wish it wasn't going to be so damn cold.

As for the race itself, my main concerns are the weather (too cold) and sleep (too little). I meant to try to adjust my sleeping schedule a little bit before flying out there, but let's be honest. It's me. Not going to happen. Hopefully I can adjust quickly... if I can get 8ish hours on Friday night and 4-5 Saturday then I should be good to go. It starts at 4am my time, so that likely means a 2am wakeup call. I've done it before in Miami, but that was just for the half marathon. We'll see how it works for a full. Honestly, I don't think it will be too big of a deal during the race, but I'll probably crash pretty hard after.

The course itself looks really fun. The main reason I wanted to do this race was the course. If it was just some boring course through average parts of Detroit then I probably wouldn't have been jonesin' to do it. However, getting to run across the Ambassador Bridge into Canada and back through a mile long tunnel is pretty cool. Unfortunately those two highlights are in the first half of the race so there isn't a ton to look forward to on the back half. Normally in Portland I look forward to St. John's and seeing my parents and aunt right before mile 18. So we'll see. I'll look forward to Belle Isle because I know it is the beginning of the end.

The run up to the Ambassador Bridge is actually a lot like the run up to the St. John's Bridge. About 150 feet. So that shouldn't be a problem and it will be nice to have it at mile 2.5 instead of mile 16.5. I'll have to make sure to take it easy there and not let the beginning of the race excitement allow me to charge up it. The tunnel also is a small challenge... looks about like 100 feet down and then up. So that's another sizeable hill. Mile 8 though... shouldn't be a problem. After that, nothing major. I did read up that there is some noticeable uphill right at the end. And while on their elevation map it looks like small speed bump, the videos of the course show a decent hill. So that'll be something I'll need to be prepared for around mile 26.

Overall though it is very flat after coming out of the tunnel. The area in general is pretty flat so it's not surprise the "hills" of the race are mostly man-made. It'll be interesting to do such a flat course... my other marathon, Vancouver BC, was also kind of hilly. The main mental struggle will be once the half marathoners break off. The highlights of the course are over and 4/5th of my fellow runners will disappear. One of the major drawbacks about this race is the marathon is not featured and is almost a side event to the half marathon. I notice this every year in Miami and fell really bad for the full marathoners. That is a post for another time though. I'm just glad Portland caps their half at about 1/4th the size of the full and keeps the focus squarely on the full marathon.

We'll see how it goes. It'll be interesting to see how my legs react to the second marathon in 14 days. Because of the challenges that'll pose, along with sleep and the weather, I'm not setting any specific goals for this race. My plan will be to run with the 3:35 group (assuming I'm in their corral) and try to have a similar race to Portland. Maybe I do, maybe I don't. We'll see. No pressure to beat Portland and get under 3:40 or anything. I'd like to, but I'm not making it a focus or goal with all the unknowns. I would like to get under 4:00 at least, so if I have any goal, it's that.

This may be my last post until after the marathon, so until then!