Woops. I've wanted to run 20 miles of the Portland marathon course and today was the only weekend that worked between now and race day. I normally don't like to drive somewhere to run (it just seems like a waste of time when I can start a run from my front door) but I made an exception today--it's only a 20 minute drive to downtown so not a big deal. The 'woops' came when I arrived and I had forgot my watch. I didn't want to drive home and then return (no need to start the morning with 60 minutes of driving) so I ran watch-less for the first time in a long time. I parked in front of Dr. Parent's office on the waterfront, near mile 4 of the marathon course. From there I ran the course....to the finish. I added a bit around mile 9 of the actual course (the turn around on Front St). I wasn't sure where the exact turnaround was so I continued on to the nearest intersection so I could map my route correctly once I got on a computer. Anyway, it was good to get an idea of the course. The hill up St. Johns Bridge was a little longer than I expected, but not as steep either. The downhill is pretty good (mile 21?) by the Adidas headquarters followed by a slight uphill on Interstate Ave. Overall I liked the course. I like how you leave the city and then return which provides a visual of the final destination. We'll see if I feel the same on October 10th! The 2nd 'woops' is for the overall distance. I figured it would be close to 20 miles, maybe a bit more, but not 23. Actual distance was 23.3 miles but seeing how I like whole numbers, I'll blog it as 23. Needless to say, I was pretty thirsty when I finished. I hadn't drank anything during the run and the only thing I'd eaten, other than a banana as I was driving into the city, was a pack of Jelly Belly Sport Beans. Wish I new total time and pace...
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