Marathons: Paul #55, Leah #45, State #38 : Myrtle Beach Marathon 2015
14th February 2015, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, USA
Finish Time = 3:39:27
The Myrtle Beach marathon was on a Saturday and with a mandatory packet pickup on the Friday we both flew there from our respective work locations on Thursday evening. All was going well until we landed in Charlotte airport to change planes to Myrtle Beach, only to find that the flight was cancelled due to high winds. There was no way we were getting there by plane that night.
We made the decision to rent a car and I drove the 200 miles from Charlotte to Myrtle Beach and we arrived just after midnight. We both had a full day of work the next day, so we worked from the hotel and picked up our race packets in the evening.
The morning of the marathon was cold (0C / 32F) but it was sunny at least and we were grateful for that, considering the harsh winter storms that most of the East coast was enduring. We layered up and went over to the race start. The logistics were easy (especially as we stayed in a hotel 2 minutes walk from the start) and we joined the starting pens with no trouble at all even close to the start time.
Starting in the dark
We’re in there somewhere
The course was nice, virtually all of it was on public roads which did have an uncomfortable camber during certain stretches but also sea views along Ocean Boulevard and fresh air. As we ran we amused ourselves by reading the hotel / motel sign advertising words all as one sentence.
Like “ONE NIGHT SPECIAL NON-SMOKING”
(Screenshot from Google Maps)
Or “BREAKFAST WIFI, LUNCH SALAD”
(Google Maps blur)
Well, it seemed funny at the time.. factor in marathon brain.
You could tell it would be a great place during the summer, it was very beach / vacation oriented and plenty for families to do. I think we saw at least 6 or 7 adventure golf courses. There were also some amazing sea-front houses along a section of the course. The cool weather was working well for us and we were keeping up a good pace without as much perceived effort as other times.
At mile 16 we stopped to use the restroom, there was only one so we took turns and waited for each other and then decided as it was heating up somewhat that we would take a layer off our top half. All in all that stop took a few minutes but we figured we were making good time for the sub 4.
The wind picked up in the second half and we did regret taking our second layer off, it was too hot with it on but with it off the cold wind would easily penetrate a single t-shirt layer made of wicking-material. We kept up consistent pacing and when we hit mile 25 I looked at my watch and realised if we ran the final 1.2 miles at an 8:00 minute mile pace we’d finish just under 3:40, however if we kept at our current pace we would be just over. This was much faster than we normally run marathons and we were feeling fine, I pointed this timing fact out to Leah and asked what she thought of a 3:39. She wasn’t overly keen on the idea but as I stepped up the pace she got on board. We ran the last 1.2 at an average page of 7:30 to finish in 3:39:27, our 3rd fastest marathon to date and we felt completely fine. We were even discussing where to go for lunch during the final mile.
Go Pro cameras mounted on the check points along the course, took pictures
The medal was fun, a pair of flip flops which I’m sure definitely signifies Myrtle Beach in the summer months. It was a great race and I’d recommend it for South Carolina.
Flip flop medals
I’m crediting our successes in 2015 so far to more frequent training and increased sleep. Hopefully we’ll be able to continue on this path.
Elevation Graph from my running watch:
Very flat
We love hearing your comments and feedback! Please feel free to add something using the form below. When you press Post Comment it might seem like it has disappeared, but it has been sent to us. We’ll read and publish it as soon as possible. Thanks!