1 post tagged “minimarathon”

Today my long-lost running partner Shawn and I ran the Indianapolis Mini-Marathon. We made this commitment shortly after I regained consciousness following the '06 Chicago Marathon; we decided that we should try to meet up at a race somewhat halfway between us (he now lives in Dayton, OH, while I'm still up here just northwest of Chicago). About a month ago we both concluded our preparations were vain and foolish efforts at best, and that the cleaning crew would most likely scoop up our corpses along with the other course-side trash, Gatorade cups, and bric-a-brac.

Turns out our angst and so forth was mostly misplaced. Cool, overcast conditions prevailed on Saturday in Indianapolis, and I'm guessing the start time temperature was about 60. A touch muggy, but quite good for this time of year. We got to the start corrals, lettered A through Z to subdivide everyone from elites to the almost-walking-the-entire-ways, and saddled up in the "B" and "C" zones respectively. Indy seems to have plenty of friendly volunteers on hand, a compact starting area for a field of 35,000 down a broad east-west avenue lined on both sides by hotels, and a course that provides an interesting twist on the usual out-and-back: 2.5 miles of it circle the actual Brickyard — the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. As someone born in Indy (but having lived just about everywhere else) and lucky enough to have viewed one 500 and several practice and time trial sessions, this was a special treat.

After a strange rendition of Back Home Again In Indiana (where "strange" is anything other than Jim Nabors at the ’500 itself) and the National Anthem, the starter up front waved the green flag (literally) and got the wheelchair racers started. Three minutes later, the rest of us got going in the usual ebb-and-flow manner of a field that massive. However, the field quickly spread out past the pinch-point of the start line and we were able to set our 7:30-ish pace almost immediately; a welcome change from the crush I'm used to with Chicago's larger races, even though this field size rivals any in the world. Being near the front helped immensely.

The race course was eye-opening. The first five miles wind along the White River and then head west into Speedway, which is a decidedly hard-luck part of Indy. Low ramshackle bungalows with peeling whitewash, uneven stoops and liquor stores on their shoulders lined most of the avenues we ran down. This is either refreshing honesty or civic boosterism of the most ill-considered variety by the event organizers. The truth is that, from downtown, there really is no other way to get to the Motor Speedway at this distance except to wind through the tough part of town. The spectators in and around these homes were all out in force, though, and were pretty supportive and enthusiastic.

When we made the big right-hand turn on to W 16th Street in order to get into the track, it was a sudden rush. I knew the tunnel underneath the grandstands was coming up and that we'd emerge on the other side in the infield and have the high-banked oval of this famous speedway to ourselves. I tried to take as many photos as I reasonably could during this stage of the race because I wanted to make sure I captured the experience. My W810i cameraphone is about as compact a device as I could have carried with me, and I think it did a pretty fair job considering that I took my shots in full stride. We emerged on the other side of the tunnel in the infield area, not yet on the track itself. After about a quarter mile of infield, we crossed through a gateway and onto to some of the smoothest pavement on the planet.

That oval looks a LOT smaller on television. Then again, the usual contestants cover that 2.5 mile circuit in about 40 seconds. I've heard that a some runners actually get down on hands/knees and kiss the bricks at the start/finish line itself (quite literally the "brick yard"), but I saw no such genuflection as I came down the straightaway. Running the track itself is something this race offers that of course none other can, and it's got to be among the most unique experiences available to runners.

The trip back into town resembled the outbound leg since it was mostly a reversal of the course back on itself. Some other observations:

• At least 15 or 20 bands lined the course, some within hundreds of feet of each other. Everything from Buffet to brawlin' rock to rap. More than a few were rockin' for Jesus.
• One water stop was staffed by Mormons on mission, or so I'm guessing by the shirts, ties, and black name badges. I generally feared sloshing up their crisp white shirts with a poor Gatorade hand-off, but they seemed to be good sports.
• A couple dozen cheerleading squads from area high schools provided energy along the route, even inside the Speedway. One fellow dropped "down low to the Apron" from the main part of the track to slap high-fives with one squad, who went positively bananas as a result. Someone near me jokingly called out "dirty old man!" but no matter what I think he got a pretty good morale boost out of the deal.
• At nearly every intersection in Speedway (the downtrodden neighborhood, not the track), there was an Indiana National Guardsman (or woman) who didn't appear to be armed. I just thought that was strange. Where were the regular police? Is this neighborhood really that dodgy? I didn't stop to investigate.
  

I lost pace in the middle third, falling almost into a 8-minute mile, but strangely I didn't feel that fatigued despite some growing humidity and my own lack of belief in my preparation. I gave myself the spurs for the last three miles and I'm pleased that my last full mile, without out-and-out sprinting to the line, was a 7:09. The final mile is a straight shot down New York street with a slight downhill off the bridge. It's a confidence-inspiring boulevard where the largest crowds congregate.

Finally, the finish line itself: I am going on record with my belief they mis-measured the course. This course, under ideal GPS conditions, should've measured 13.11 miles. My Garmin 205, Shawn's 305, my coworker Joe's 305, and one other fellow I "randomly sampled" all read at least 13.23 miles, if not more. What's more, from the first official mile marker through the end, my AutoLap feature that clicks off a mile according to the GPS track was ~50 feet ahead of the marker. That differential continued to climb with each marker. A few hundredths here-and-there for the inevitable weaving through traffic are easy to explain. but a full tenth of a mile (plus?) shouldn't appear out of nowhere, should it? Maybe the DoD scrambled the open signal on Saturday just enough to account for this, or somehow cloud cover or other phenomena explains it. But my Garmin 205 has been ridiculously accurate for almost a year; it went off within a few yards of my crossing the finish line at Chicago, with a full 26.2 under my belt. My regular neighborhood runs never vary by more than that same 15-20 feet. Anyone else have an explanation for what we all recorded? My official time was 1:40:47, but I think it's possible I hit 1:39-something for the actual 13.11 distance. Whatever — no extra cheeseburger for me, even if I'm right.

Distance "controversy" aside, Indy is highly recommended. Easy downtown accommodations are available if you plan ahead; the course is fast, flat, and unique; Midwestern hospitality rules the day.

UPDATE: GMaps Pedometer, a site based on Google Maps' technology and which I've trusted in the past to do distance measurement, says the course was 13.33 miles. You have to trust my own point-and-click accuracy (always a stretch) and my best interpretation of the official map. Thanks to havybeaks for the suggestion I get some online corroboration!