Name

Nick D

Sex:

Male

Age (at the time of first BQ):

23

Height:

5′ 11″

Weight (at the time of first BQ):

152

At which marathon did you get your first BQ?

Surf City Marathon (Huntington Beach, CA)

Tell us a little about the race.

It was overcast and about 60 degrees. Race went off at 6:30, just as the sun was rising. Plan was to try to break 2:45, but my goals were fairly flexible as it was my first marathon. Plan was to go out around 6:20 miles for the first half. After a couple of 6:20s and letting the lead pack go, I got over excited and started dropping 6 min miles. Kept trying to Ease off the gas but was close to 6 min miles until 15 miles or so. At that point I seesawed a little bit in terms of splits, but the markers might have been off because from 18-24 I was again right around 6:10-6:15 per mile. FInished at 2:41 and 6:09 pace. Ran alone from 5 miles to finish. Fairly small marathon.

How long had you been running when you ran your first BQ?

7.5 years

Did you run in college or high school?

Yes

What was your approximate lifetime mileage at the time of your first BQ?

15000

How many miles did you run in the year before your first BQ?

2500

Approximately how many races did you run in that year?

5

Did you follow a canned program? If so, which one? If not, can you give us an idea of what your training philosophy was?

No; Mostly mileage, a few tempos and fartleks, very little track workouts. Ran far less than when I was in college (around 50 mi/week during training for marathon opposed to 80/week in college). Fell and got hurt 1.5 months out from race, had 2 weeks with very little training and then was able to resume without issues after that. Most important parts of training were long runs (3 18 milers, 1 20 miler, 2 22milers

Did you run with a running club or utilize a coach?

No

Did cross training play a role in your training? If so, how?

No

Did speed work play a role or specific workouts play a role in your training? If so, how?

Not much, wish I had done more.

Any other thoughts you would like to share with those of working towards a BQ?

Solid Long runs and good rest leading up to the race.