My first marathon was the Rock 'n' Roll Savannah Marathon. The race was well organized and I really enjoyed it. Here is my analysis of the race by mileage.


Miles 1-13.1
My goal for the half marathon was to run at a comfortable pace. I decided to not focus on my watch and just run. I would check my watch to check the mileage and quick glance at the pace, but I continued on with comfort. The terrain in Savannah is so flat that I kept looking around expecting to be punked by a hill. In Atlanta, the hills are everywhere and they are relentless. I maintained a 9:45 pace for the half marathon.

Splits
5k-30:19
10k-1:00:35

Miles 13.1-19
The pivotal mile for the race was mile 15. During my training, mile 15 was the distance that determined the outcome of the race. I had no pain at mile 15 and I carried on. Fatigue started to set in during this mileage and I started to average 10.5-11 min/mile. I started to slow down so that I would have the energy to finish.

Miles 20-26.2
MIle 20 will always be known as GU or die. I don't like GU or jelly beans due to their flavor. When I got to mile 20, my brain was shutting down and then there was GU. With apprehension, I accepted the watermelon GU and slurped it down. It was like liquid gold, it jumped started my brain and I continued on the finish line.

From 25-26.2 my fingers were numb and I had been doing intervals since mile 20, but thanks to great runners I finished strong. My unofficial time is 4:39:27, which is 9 min longer than my predicted time but I will take it.

The scenery is not as nice as ATL, but the flat course makes up for the lack of nothing to see on the interstate.