Race day
The Indianapolis Monumental Marathon is exactly the kind of race that tempts a half-retired runner back out the door: big enough to feel like a city event, flat enough to feel possible, and close enough to turn into one compressed, slightly ridiculous one-day trip.
| Indy |
Preface
The Monumental "Yak" Marathon in Indianapolis is famous around our Louisville village. Every time I chatted with American friends, they would talk about it with real excitement. It has a great reputation: flat course, and not far from us.
I had actually been hesitating about whether to go, mostly because I was worried my mileage in the second half of 2022 was not enough. Ever since coming back from the San Francisco Marathon, I had basically been in semi-retirement.
So I really needed a run to motivate myself, and the "Yak" Marathon was a good fit. The course is flat and fast, and it could help me light up another full-marathon state. Two weeks before the race, after missing the early-bird price and hesitating a little, I finally decided to sign up.
The registration page looked a lot like the Chicago Marathon's, very polished at first glance. Then I looked more carefully at this race and instantly felt it was worth it. The "Yak" Marathon is also one of the 15 largest marathons in the U.S., with both start and finish in downtown Indianapolis. And 2022 was its 15th running. I like big downtown marathons; they are an excellent way to experience a city up close. The number 15 felt good too. Worth going.
This time 47 was going to California for a conference, so she could not come with me. I compressed the itinerary and put the drive to Indy and the marathon into one day. The drive was only a little over two hours, so it would not be too tiring, but I did need to get up early. The race started at 8:00, and before that I had to arrive in Indy, find parking, pick up my packet, and warm up.
So on race day, November 5, I set out a little after 3 a.m. There were not many cars on the road, so the drive was easy, and I smoothly reached a parking lot near the start with plenty of spaces left.
I arrived a little early, so I walked around the nearby statehouse and Monument Circle. I had been here during the day before and remembered it clearly. This time, before dawn, the monument had a different look.
The Soldiers and Sailors Monument is one of Indiana's landmark buildings. It was built to honor Indiana soldiers and sailors who died in the American Civil War. At 86 meters tall, it is one of the tallest monuments in the world. Across from it, you can see the statehouse.
As it got close to 7:00, more people gradually arrived, and I picked up my gear very smoothly. Because I did not go to the expo, I chose race-day packet pickup, and the "Yak" Marathon handled this very thoughtfully.
After picking up my bib, autumn rain arrived, so I hid back in the car and waited for the start. Even though it was raining, the toilets near the start still had long lines. The autumn rain was not cold; it actually felt comfortable. This was great marathon weather.
Start
The rain gradually got lighter, and I did not want to keep hiding from it. That was not the attitude a marathon runner should have. I joined the crowd and waited at the start.
The crowd was noisy and everyone was eager to go. The sky slowly began to brighten. Finally, the long-awaited moment arrived. Start!
Running a marathon again is always exciting, but I was also nervous. After all, it had been almost half a year since I had run this distance.
Fortunately, autumn in Indy was comfortable, the autumn rain was fresh, and the fall colors were beautiful. Once I started running, it was easy to get into rhythm. My steps did not feel heavy, there was no burden, and finishing would be enough.
The opening part of the course was basically all downtown. Around mile 2, we reached the Soldiers and Sailors Monument, definitely a highlight of the race. Everyone ran while taking phone photos. By then it was much brighter, and the scene looked very different from what I had just seen before dawn.
There were photographers there too, and I struck a pose, but when I checked after the race, I probably was not captured. A little regret.
After passing the monument, we ran into local neighborhoods. I stopped at an aid station beside a church to use the bathroom, ate some energy gel, and kept running. Once you have run enough marathons, you know energy gels are absolutely good stuff.
The neighborhoods in autumn looked beautiful. Golden leaves were on the trees and on the ground, blending with the autumn rain. Stepping on them did not make a crisp rustling sound, but they were not very slippery either.
Midway through, I passed a Chinese aid station that left a strong impression on me. It was orderly and clean. I thanked them in Chinese, and the volunteers answered, "Jiayou!"
At this point I was running with the 4:30 group. Everyone looked after each other, and running felt powerful. The lead pacer kept interacting with us, and in the end she even had us introduce ourselves: where we were from, and how many marathons we had run.
When it was my turn, I laid out my glorious record. No more pretending, I showed my cards, and everyone burst into cheers. Although my weight was over the limit at the time and I did not exactly look legendary, I still felt secretly delighted and resolved to train properly again.
The 4:30 group was not easy to follow, and in the end I had to say goodbye to everyone. After the half marathon mark, I clearly felt my stamina was not as strong as before.
On a park section of the route, I suddenly thought of the run-walk interval method 47 often uses. I immediately downloaded an app from the Google Play Store and made a temporary plan: run 2 minutes, walk 1 minute.
I did not expect it to work so well. Running and walking felt comfortable. Thanks to 47 for the inspiration.
Before long, the 4:45 pacer caught up with me. I felt I was still doing all right and wanted to follow for a while, but I had definitely overestimated myself. So, let pacer go!
At last I was back downtown. Seeing an aid station, I quickly took some sports drink to prepare for the final push. When I met the monument again, I knew the finish was not far away.
To my surprise, before the finish I ran into my old Fleet Feet friends Myrdin and Justin. We took a group photo, and I got ready to finish.
The finish was close. I looked at my watch and saw I could finish under five hours. A few years ago, that definitely would not have been a satisfying result for me, but this past year, breaking five had almost become something out of reach.
Especially with mediocre training recently and my weight shooting up, 4:55:12 was pretty good.
Postscript
The medal was actually pretty good-looking, with the Indianapolis statehouse as the main element. There were also finisher gifts: blue knit hats for full marathoners and red ones for half marathoners. I asked for one for 47 too.
After the race, I stretched briefly, drove to Planet Fitness for a shower, then went to a Chinese restaurant for buffet before heading home. I got pretty sleepy while driving, and the strong wind kept howling, so I pulled into a gas station and napped in the car for a bit. Then I was full of energy again and made it back to Louisville smoothly.
One dusty day on the road, a compressed single-day marathon trip. It was not long, but writing this almost a year later, I still feel there is more to say. More importantly, at the "Yak" Marathon, I found a way to keep running again, and it still works for me now.
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Words | Arsenan
Photos | Arsenan
Design | Arsenan