The Maine Marathon - Portland, ME

 



I had been/visited 49 of the US states and DC. I decided to enter Maine to get my states-visited count to 50. I also entered New Hampshire Marathon for the day before (but because of airline difficulties the Friday before, I missed NH….oh well, that left Maine).

I opted for race morning bib pick-up. I got there early as they did allow an early start and I had broken my left foot pinky two 10 days earlier so I was a bit concerned. But after I got my bib, I decided to just stay in the official start time.

The crowd was a bit larger than I expected but still easy to find a spot. I saw a few pacers – from 3+ hours to 5+ hours. I decided to stand next to a 4:45 pacer but never latched on or ran with that pacer.

The gun went off and we started running. As usual, it was a bit crowded at the start and it took me a bit of time to cross the starting mat. We ran along the shore. Weather was cool – but very comfortable (actually, almost perfect running weather for me).

First part of the course was mostly flat but then we started a small series of “rollers” that continued to the 1/2 way turn-around point (and back). The run took us through quaint neighborhoods, farm areas, and some wooded areas. Crowd support was almost constant and the aid stations well staffed. Volunteers were great.

I hit the 1/2 marathon at around 2 hours and was satisfied. My broken toe hadn’t bothered me too much. I decided to mix jogging and fast walking at around mile 14-15. I continued that way.

I chatted with other runners and was enjoying the race. At mile 25.75 I was looking at my pace, estimated the time it took me from start gun to cross the start pad, and estimated the times I stretched my legs at about 3 water aid stations and thought I had 5 hours in sight. I crossed the finish line in 5:00:18….close enough.



All in all, a very good race, very well organized, great volunteers and a beautiful location. Plus it got me my 50th state visited and 20th state with a marathon or longer finish.




Location: Portland, ME, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

THE LAST ANNUAL VOL STATE ROAD RACE 2026

Image
 THE LAST ANNUAL VOL STATE ROAD RACE 2026 This was my second go at the Last Annual Vol State 500k.   In 2024, I managed a finish with a time of 8 ¼ days.   I had a hope of doing better this year….but that remained to be seen.   For good luck, I attached a Buc-ees dog chew toy armadillo to my back….because I think armadillos are cool (we have them in our neighborhood and sometimes on our front lawn) and in recognition for all the poor armadillo road kill we see on the LAVS route (I was hopeful my armadillo – and me – would fare better).    The ferry ride across the Mississippi was nice.   Unlike two years ago, no eagle grabbed a turtle this time. There was to be a slight change…..two years ago, the race mileage officially started in Missouri on the other side of the river and the ferry ride back was part of the 314 miles.   This year (and last year I believe), the race started in the same spot, but the ferry ride was no longer included in the dis...
Read more

Berlin Marathon - Entered!

Image
  I am approaching my 68th marathon or longer and hope to complete at least 100 such events. Part of that goal is to include various international marathons, ultramarathons, triathlons or other endurance events in my future. I have completed Ironman Austria, Desaru Half-Ironman in Malaysia, Ironman Canada, and the Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc 100 miler in France, Italy, and Switzerland. My next international challenge is the Berlin Marathon. While I have traveled to Germany quite a bit for work with those past visits being mainly in Bremen, Frankfurt, Grenzach-Wyhlen, and Inzlingen, I have never visited or run in Berlin. I am now excited that running the Berlin marathon will allow me to see and compete in this city. This is especially true as my wife Corinne's family is originally from Berlin. This marathon trip won't be just for me to run; I am also using it as a fundraiser for a great cause: Achilles Internation al. Since 1983, Achilles has supported athletes with physica...
Read more

Summer Meltdown 1/2 Marathon

Image
  I ran a half-marathon August 9 morning. It is called the Summer Meltdown Half. I wasn't expecting much as my legs are still a bit sore/tired from that little 500k LAVS I did. But, have to keep training for Berlin Marathon next month. The day didn't start off great - my alarms (I set two) didn't go off! I gave myself plenty of time, but I happened to roll over and see that race start was in 65 minutes and I had easily a 45 minute drive....YIKES! I jumped out of bed, grabbed my running clothes I had set out last night, brushed my teeth, and hit the door (leaving my running watch behind). I flew down the roads in my car (when I could...seemed to hit almost every redlight between my house and the highway). Once on the highway, that 65 mph looked like "85" to me officer (and even then I went a bit faster at times). I saw a car pass me on my left and felt good as that driver would get the ticket.....15 minutes later that car and I entered the race start parkin...
Read more