Tell Me Why You Love to Do the 26.2

Take your mark… get set… no thanks. I wish I could but I can’t. Not this year anyway.
The Ocean Drive Marathon is March 30 and I am in no shape to run it. Not many people are. It takes a special breed of person to want to run 26.2 miles. Do you have any idea how far that is?!
The first time I ever heard of Cape May was when I was searching out my first marathon to run. I looked high and low for the perfect race and the only reason I didn’t choose the Ocean Drive Marathon was because it didn’t fit my schedule. Instead, in 2013, I ran the Burlington, VT marathon and it was one of the best things I’ve ever pushed myself to do. Deciding to tackle one of these monsters is not just something you wake up and jump into on race day though. Generally, you must train for 14-18 weeks, build up your endurance, strength, stamina and mileage, and squelch the nagging Clark Griswold voice in your head that tells you “this is crazy this is crazy this is crazy!” It is crazy. But I’m pretty sure crazy people live longer.
There was a time, back around Thanksgiving, when I plotted out my 18-week training program. Since I moved down here with the missus, I’ve been super amped to participate in the local race. Probably the easiest part of training for a marathon is the look-ahead aspect where you plug in the anticipated weeks’ mileage on a calendar. After that preliminary legwork is done, the real legwork begins… or ends, if you’re me. I never did quite get past Week One this time around. I think it was the cold temperatures that did me in. Whatever it was, I wish I had stuck in there. I have never lived in a county with such unbelievably flat land before! Seriously, living in this county is like living a runner’s paradise. With no hills to get you down, you just cruise.
It’s actually kind of sadistic to schedule a marathon for the end of March though, don’t you think? That requires a runner to train through the entire winter! No amount of Under Armor could have prepared you for the biting cold and snow we experienced down here this past season. Being that this was my first winter in Cape May County, I have to say, I wasn’t thrilled with it. I can’t imagine getting up every Saturday (or Sunday) morning and running 8, 10, 12, 14 miles and more through that stuff. I applaud all who plowed through it. Your reward is coming soon.
I can only presume that the Ocean Drive Marathon is scheduled at the end of March so as not to interfere with the precious summer season. Would shutting down streets for six hours in May or June really make that much of a difference? Or is the idea to draw a big crowd before Memorial Day. I guess that’s always the goal. From a tourist-driven economy’s perspective, I can see how it works. But speaking as a runner, boo.
But then again, nobody wants to train during the dead heat of summer either. The best seasons are the cool ones – the ones that wear shades and blow gentle breezes in your face as you keep pace on the back roads and gaze out at the ponds, swamps or ocean and think, “I’m alive, baby. Bring on that next mile.”
I know that feeling; I’ve been there and I miss it (don’t miss the chafing though). It’s terribly difficult to get started and even tougher to keep your momentum and dedication going for so many weeks, for so many miles, for so very long – all the way to the starting line and then just one more run to the finish. You’re almost there, runners. You are so close you can taste the victory and I envy you making it all the way. In fact, I’d love to share your story with others.
Whether March 30 will be your first marathon or your 30th, if you’ve travelled an interesting road to get here, please let me know. I’d love to cheer for you, take your picture, and celebrate your Herculean accomplishment on race day, and publish your story in the April 2 edition of the Herald.
I’m looking specifically for two runners to profile. One seasoned marathoner and one first-timer, ideally. Please email me a little about yourself. Or, if you have a friend or family member running the Ocean Drive Marathon and would like to see their story published, please convince them to contact me! Only willing participants need apply. Also, with apologies to the rest of the world, please only contact me if you are from Cape May County – it’s our one bias here at the paper.
If interested, you can reach me at bcahill@cmcherald.com no later than March 23. Tell me why you love to do the 26.2.
Bryon Cahill has a Twitter account @shakabry where he knows the highway’s jammed with broken heroes on a last chance power drive… but tramps like us, baby we were born to run!