By Mark Ziegler
This week I intend to finish a virtual Cape Cod Marathon. This challenge brings back memories of the same race which I ran in 1987, back when my legs were stronger, I puffed less on hills and had more confidence as a runner.
The marathon was on November 15th , south of Boston, in the historic port town of Falmouth, Massachusetts, about half way up Cape Cod. The morning was cold and bright, with a light wind off the sea. More than 400 runners lined up on the main street for the 8:00 am start. The coffee shops looked warm and snug – many of us wondered why we weren’t inside with a Sunday paper and a steaming mug.
I had tried to qualify for the Boston Marathon seven weeks earlier in Montreal. My start was too fast and I was already suffering at 21 km. I ended up walking and jogging to the finish, feeling depressed and embarrassed. After the race, I decided to “re-group” and use my base level of fitness to train for another race that fall. Cape Cod, the New England championship, was the obvious choice. On weekends and in the dark after work I ran along winding bike routes in Ottawa.
So Cape Cod was another chance to qualify for Boston! I decided to run a smart race – at a set pace that would bring me in under three hours. I kept monitoring my breathing, my legs and my overall energy level. It did not matter when other runners passed me. The important thing was to stay on pace.
The course was beautiful, with rolling hills covered with pine forests, brilliant red cranberry marshes, long sand beaches and villages dating back to well before the American Revolution.
My strategy thankfully worked. With two miles to go, as I passed the lighthouse at the turn into Falmouth, I knew that I could make my target time. A powerful woman was running a few hundred metres ahead and a little voice tempted me to go for broke by trying to catch her. It didn’t help that my brother-in-law, Gerard, was very worried that I was cutting it too close! I decided to stay with the same pace and trust in the digits on my Casio watch.
I crossed the line at 2:58:40. It was not my fastest marathon but it was the most satisfying. There was both joy and relief at the finish.