Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon

Flying Pig Marathon, Cincinnati, Ohio. 5:15:50 finish, definitely not my best day, but I do have excuses. :-)

First the whining:

My “trick” right hip started acting up around the end of mile 8. This is the sixth time it has given trouble, the second while running. The pain is sudden and severe - like an ice pick jammed in the joint. It’s a stopper. For a while I wondered if I could finish, but learned that quick little shuffle steps helped a lot, whether walking or running. As long as I didn’t stretch the joint out too far forward (or backward?) it seemed to be much better, and in fact the pain would go away for minutes at a time. Also, it helped somewhat to press my hand against the outside of my thigh just below the hip joint, though my arm got tired of that.

Interesting: I was offered aspirin, ibuprofen, Aleve, and use of a cell phone. Runners and race officials alike were quite willing to help the old man shuffling along the curb. But when you smile and say “oh, it’s just a trick hip,” they accept that and go on their way.

Even without the hip trouble, I doubt that I would have made my goal of 4:15 (Boston qualifying time for 65-69), because I hadn’t been able to train properly for a hilly marathon and my hip flexors started to bother at about the halfway point. Near the finish they were limiting my speed more than the hip problem.

Good stuff:

I finished a marathon in Ohio, my 17th state and 28th marathon. Sunshine and I celebrated our marriage by running that race on the day of our 45th anniversary. The weather was perfect. Just lovely. I got the chance to high-five a lot of little kids and some big ones. I got in a beautiful long run in training for the NEXT marathon. We had an enjoyable trip to Cincinnati and back, and we’re safe at home.

Splits: 10:00, 18:33 (2 mi), 8:49, 9:50, 9:01, 9:46, 12:22, 18:26, 21:19, 30:40 (2 mi), 14:10, 10:26, 10:56, 10:18, 21:35 (2 mi), 11:30, 11:20, 11:25, 11:08, 25:45 (2 mi), 13:39, 12:59, 1:56. Temperature: 45 degrees at the start, 61 degrees at the finish. The sun shone the whole way, so it felt even warmer. I picked up a little tan!

The hip problem was almost gone Monday, the day after the race, and entirely gone Tuesday. Wednesday I enjoyed a short pain-free run. Thursday I’ll run some more and then go see my favorite internist to see if we can figure out what the problem is.




Tuesday's lunch: Organic brown rice pasta, homemade organic pasta sauce, shredded parmesan & asiago cheeses, organic mixed veggies.


Wednesday's salad: Organic romaine, organic shredded carrots, shredded jicama, cucumber, blue cheese, organic strawberry, pistachios, organic red wine vinegar, pepper.


Wednesday's dinner: Wild-caught Alaskan salmon with yogurt & seasonings, organic peas & carrots with pepper, orange.