Marathon #72: Rehoboth Seashore Marathon, DE

3:57 finish, 328/928 place overall. Flat, scenic, and well organized race along coast of Delaware. Weather was ideal. Not my best time, but back under four hours, so no complaints.

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Marathon #71: New York City Marathon, NY

4:17 finish, 18519/49828 place overall. Relatively flat in early part of course except for bridges, but gets hilly during later miles in Manhattan. Great crowd support and entertainment as always in NYC, but also extremely crowded course - more so than ever this year. Okay weather, but a little warm in later miles. Strong first half, but slowed down severely later due in part to having to constantly slow down and weave around much slower runners/walkers in middle of course. This was my 8th and possibly last NYC Marathon, at least for awhile, due to the expense and hassle of qualifying and the severely crowded conditions.

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Marathon #70 (finished 50 states): Hartford Marathon, CT

3:54 finish, 600/1909 place overall.  Fairly flat, well-supported course through mostly residential areas of Hartford and suburbs. Ideal cool weather for running. Felt consistently strong through most of the course with only a minor slowdown in later miles. Nice to be under four again and finally done with the states.

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Photos

Marathon #69: Suffolk County Marathon, Heckscher State Park, NY

3:58 finish, 125/631 place overall. Mostly flat course along Suffolk's south shore, starting in Heckscher, running along Montauk Highway to Patchogue, and then back to Heckscher on the same route. Nice crowd support through towns - much better than Long Island Marathon. Warm and very humid, however, with not much shade. Felt strong through first two-thirds of race, but slowed somewhat as the heat and humidity got to me in later miles. Still managed to break four hours (barely) - first time doing so since North Dakota in early May.

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Marathon #68 (country #5, Can. prov. #1) - Run the Rock Marathon, Texada Island, BC, Canada

4:11 finish, 3/16 place overall, 1/6 place for males. Very hilly but scenic course on Texada Island - a remote ferry-access-only island between mainland British Columbia and Vancouver Island. Sunny but not too hot and mostly shaded. Small marathon with very friendly support from locals. Hills made for slower than average time as expected, but the tiny field - 16 marathoners total - allowed for a first place finish among males and third place overall.

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Marathon #67 (country* #4): North Devon Marathon, Woolacombe, England

4:54 finish, 97/170 place overall. Brutally tough but very scenic and unique trail course along the coast of southwest England. Mostly cloudy and cool weather, but hills were almost constant and often very steep with uneven surfaces. Race runs up and down rocky ridges, through sand and mud, and across large grassy meadows with sheep and cattle (and their foot-wide piles of droppings) all over the course. Spectacular scenery, however, with ocean and mountain views similar to the U.S. west coast. Toughest course and slowest time of any marathon I've ever done aside from Pikes Peak. With my lack of trail running ability and the amount of walking necessary, breaking five hours was actually an accomplishment.

* Although England is part of the UK, international athletic organizations and marathon clubs count it as its own country along with Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Race map and details

Photos - England

Photos - Scotland

Marathon #66 (state #49): Deadwood-Mickelson Trail Marathon, Deadwood, SD

4:14 finish, 91/358 place overall. Tough but scenic course on rail-trail through Black Hills. First half is gradual but relentless uphill, topping out at over 6,000 feet; second half is gradual downhill, finishing in historic town of Deadwood. Cool at start but warmed up fast with heat and not much shade in later miles. Hardest marathon in almost two years. Maintained normal marathon pace for first eight miles in spite of uphill, but altitude got to me in middle miles, and even with second half downhill, pace did not recover. Slowest finish time in awhile, but not unexpected given the course and conditions.

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Marathon #65 (state #48): Fargo Marathon, ND

3:49 finish, 458/1535 place overall. Cloudy and cool, flat course - ideal for fast time. Unique indoor start/finish in Fargodome football stadium. Course runs through residential areas, parks, and college campuses in Fargo and neighboring Moorhead, MN. Nice crowd support for such small cities. Fairly consistent pace throughout, only minor slowdown at end. Best time and first sub-3:50 in almost three years.

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Marathon #64 (state #47): St. Louis Marathon, MO

3:53 finish, 352/1354 overall place. Cloudy and mild, ideal for running. Okay course starting in downtown St. Louis, crossing river briefly into Illinois, then through various neighborhoods of the city - with some hilly sections - and finishing back in downtown. Started very fast, slowed down considerably late with hills, but ended with a time consistent with recent marathons. No complaints overall.

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Marathon #63 (state #46): Little Rock Marathon, AR

3:56 finish, 309/2442 place overall. Chilly with on and off drizzle. Somewhat hilly course through mostly residential areas, starting and finishing in downtown Little Rock. Enthusiastic and friendly support from locals in spite of bad weather. Felt consistently strong through most of course; minor slowdown with hills in second half. Nice to be back under four.

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Marathon #62 (country #3): Marathon Bahamas, Nassau, Bahamas

4:07 finish, 47/170 place overall, 3/13 age group place. Hot and humid, especially in later miles with direct sun. Relatively flat and scenic course - start/finish near downtown Nassau, crossing briefly into Paradise Island, then running along north shore of New Providence Island with nice ocean views. Heat got to me worse this time than it has in awhile, with major fatigue and slowdown in later miles. First finish over four hours since September, but ironically somehow good enough for a third place age group award.

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Photos