Rock n Roll San Diego Marathon 2013

Saturday
Since my last race at the Safari Park Half Marathon, I have done next to no running at all in order to give my left ankle and calf some much needed rest. Since I couldn't run, I had been hitting the weights and really working out the upper body. Surprise surprise, I'm pretty sure I overdid it and hurt my neck/right shoulder, the same spot where I've injured in the past. So leading up to the race I been having trouble sleeping with the annoying pain. I was somewhat not looking forward to the race, but I had to give it go since I've done this race every year since my very first marathon in 2003.

As Saturday morning rolled around, I packed up my stuff and headed down to the expo. I didn't plan on where to eat for lunch or dinner, which was pretty uncharacteristic of me. Also I forgot to the take the 15 freeway instead of the more popular scenic 5 freeway. Lo and behold, there was a huge accident near Camp Pendleton. Traffic was backed up for miles and was at a complete standstill.

Once I finally got past the accident at Oceanside, I was able to get to the Downtown area and parked at Horton Plaza. I parked here planning to leave right after visiting the expo and purchasing something for 3 hours of free parking. This would turn out later to be a bad idea since I would change my plans on the fly.

After picking up my bib, shirt, and goodie bag, I made my way through the very familiar standard Rock n' Roll expo. I pretty much went straight to their large booth area to sign up for next year's race for $95. I then picked up my parking pass that I had prepaid for $10 the week prior. I was assigned the convention center parking lot. Originally I had planned to park my car and take the trolley but decided to not deal with early morning public transportation and just pay for parking. I would've only saved a few bucks.

Expo time

Sign me up!

San Diego Supa-Chargers!

Parking Pass

I met up with a few of my local friends to say hi. Then I met up with a friend who was in town from Texas. It was her first race in California. We waited at the Skechers booth to say hi to our mutual friend. While waiting she bought a pair of shoes and I tried on a pair of the shoes that Meb wears. They felt nice, but I have so many unworn pairs at home and I still plan on sticking with Asics. So it was a no sale for me. After our friend showed up, we then decided to go eat at the Gaslamp Quarter. Out of the five years that I've spent in the San Diego area, I don't ever recalled spending time eating here. We first walked around a little to check out our choices. We ended up eating at the Rockin Baja Coastal Cantina. We shared some chips and guacamole. For the entree we ordered the Surf and Turf bucket for two. I also had some Coronado IPA. It was a lot of food, enough where I decided to just skip dinner. It was good hanging out with my friend.

Gaslamp Quarter

25oz Coronado IPA

Good guacamole and chips

Surf and Turf bucket for two

14oz Coronado IPA

After parting for our separate ways, I walked back to my car. I stopped by the Ralph's across from Horton Plaza to buy some drinks. I then stopped by GAP to buy something to get my parking ticket validated. Even with validation, I ended up paying $14 for parking. I need to find a cheaper place to park next time especially if I'm planning to eat in the area after visiting the expo.

I then hopped on the freeway and headed over to my hotel. This year I stayed at the Quality Inn located on Hotel Circle in Mission Valley near the 8 and 163 freeway. The room was pretty small, barely big enough for the bed and everything else. But it was clean and was definitely adequate for a one night stay. I got my race gear ready and relaxed in my room before going to sleep pretty early.

Race gear

Sunday
Got up. Got ready. As usual I was among the first to park. I walked over to the shuttle pickup spot for a quick ride to the starting area. I picked up some water and a banana then sat at my usual spot on the curb just across from my UPS truck. This year the marathon started at 6:15am while the half marathon starting 30 minutes later. I got my stuff together and checked my bag. At about 5:45am, the Maniacs gathered at the same spot as last year, the stairs in front of a church, to take the pre-race pictures.

Potty like a rockstar!

The infamous magical SAG wagon

Marathon Maniacs

Marine Corps marching band

Starting line

The Race
My goal for this race was to just finish.

I started with my friend in corral 2. We ran somewhere between the 3:30 and 3:40 pace groups. The pace felt okay, but only for about 2 miles. I wished my friend a good race and began to back off on the pace. I liked that the marathoners started on their own without the half marathoners. It felt like the race of old where everybody was running the marathon. By the time we entered Little Italy, I was reduced to having to walk more than I had hoped. Later I bumped into a couple of my friends dressed up as Fred and Wilma. I did not enjoy the 3-4 miles on the narrow concrete bike path through Mission Bay. The hard surface just beats the hell out of your legs especially when you have some sort of ailment.

Entering Little Italy

Fred and Wilma

1-2: 16:44 (8:22)
3: 9:03
4-6: 29:57 (9:59)
7: 11:36
8: 11:25
9: 11:21
10: 11:28
11: 12:24
12: 11:06
13: 11:26
Half: 2:17:52

One of my friends who was out spectating spotted me around mile 14. I was feeling miserable already so I didn't even notice her until she called my name. It was a little weird to be headed in the opposite direction on Friars Rd. As usual we received great crowd support in this section. We turned onto the dreaded 163 a little before reaching mile 20. The camber and the elevation gain really did a number on my left knee. I normally don't have knee discomfort when I run, but I had to walk most of mile 21. Luckily I ran into a fellow Marathon Maniac. He kept me company for the next couple of miles before taking off. Running next to the Balboa Park golf course was pretty nice. Then it was pretty much a straight shot down to the finish line. I was running on fumes crossing the finish line.

Climbing the dreaded 163

14: 13:58
15: 15:09
16: 14:53
17: 14:11
18: 14:14
19: 14:31
20: 16:34
21: 18:12
22: 15:53
23: 14:53
24: 15:42
25: 13:32
26.2: 18:11
Finish: 5:36:21

Post-race
The course was adjusted this year to where it was roughly the same as the old course but run in reverse ending at the Gaslamp Quarter. It was nice to change it up a bit. Overall I like the new course. I think they could only improve the course if they got rid of the 163 entirely.

I was pretty exhausted when I crossed the finish line. The calves were both cramping up and I started getting the chills and felt dizzy. I propped myself up at a nearby table where I started drinking and eating everything that I have on me... chocolate milk, Jamba juice, banana. I don't think that I've ever felt this horrible after a marathon. I even texted my friends that I probably won't be able to make the post race lunch.

Eventually I made my way to the UPS trucks to get my bag. I put on my jacket and sat down for a while while drinking some Powerade. After feeling slightly better, I got up and made my way to pick up my Super 6 Heavy Medal. I felt anything but super. I guess I might have been dehydrated. After all of the fluids that I drank post race I did not have the urge to pee. On my way back to my car, all of sudden I felt fine. I texted my friends to see if they were still at the restaurant. They were, so I made my way there, Station Tavern & Burgers. Parking was somewhat hard to find. It was all street parking. Makes me glad that I went back to driving a Mini Cooper. It was fun hanging out with my friends swapping race stories while having a couple of beers and some beer brats. We eventually left because we were done with our food and other people were waiting. We were going to go our separate ways until someone suggested that we sample some more beer at the Stone Company Store just around the corner. Who could say no to some more beer? :)

Ale Smith Nut Brown Ale

Beer brats

Green Flash 30th St Pale Ale