Getting My Marathon Legs Back

Just as I was starting to feel like I was getting back into my old marathon running shape after having our son Miles, I started a PhD program at Notre Dame. Going from stay-at-home mom to mom plus full-time student was quite an adjustment. I had the hardest time coming home in the evening, seeing Miles, and heading back out the door to run. My training quickly became only enough to complete marathons not compete them.

My schedule became less hectic after my spring semester came to an end and I began to find a balance between family, school, and running. After a slew of disappointing races, I was eager to begin seriously training again. I enlisted the help of my former coach Doug Yoder to develop a plan to get me to a marathon PR in the fall. He took the job seriously and gave me a challenging training schedule.



As Justin mentioned in his previous post, my target marathon was going to be Akron. That race usually has several ladies who run in the 2:50s, which we thought would help push me to my goal of 2:56. When our plans fell through for that race, we settled on the MVP Health Care Rochester Marathon. I was a little worried about whether this was a smart alternative because it was a smaller race than Akron so the chance that I would end up running alone was higher.

Since all my best marathons have been run by negative splitting, I decided to take that approach again. I was confident that I was in at least 2:58 shape, so I decided to run 6:50s for the first half and see how much I could push the pace the second half. Despite my confidence, my nerves were almost overwhelming me at the starting line. What if I overestimated the shape I was in? What if I listened to the little voices that pop into my head late in a race telling me to forget my goals? All those nervous thoughts were quickly converted to energy as soon as the gun went off.

After a fast first mile, I settled into my planned pace. By mile 2, the field had already spread out significantly and I found myself alone. I had pretty much given up on running with somebody, when I was joined by a guy named Jeff around mile 6. The two of us fell into pace together and chatted off and on through the first half, which we hit in 1:29. We gradually picked up the pace until we were hitting mid 6:30s. I was surprised at how great I felt going this faster pace and tried to ignore the little voices saying “you are going to regret this during the last miles.” Slowing down wasn’t an option.

At mile 23, Jeff kicked it into another gear, a gear that I didn’t have. He went on to finish 2:55:32 (an awesome time for his first marathon!) I just focused on staying steady for the last 3 miles as my legs were starting to feel quite fatigued. I knew if I could hold it together, I would get a new PR but I wasn’t sure if I had gone fast enough the second half to make it into the 2:56 range. When I went around the last corner and the finish clock came into view, I was filled with excitement - I was going run a 2:56! My official time was 2:56:37. I also won the race and broke the course record. I mention these as side notes because while fun and exciting, that was not what this particular race was about.

Now I need to decide what time I should make my new goal PR...

--Melissa

Substitute Marathon

All summer I trained diligently. Some days were hot, some were humid, sometimes my legs ached, but I kept training. Motivation was not hard to come by, I was specifically training towards the Akron Marathon on September 24, 2011. The Akron race had me "Fired Up" because in 2010 I ran a 2:26:57 there, and was certain through hard training I could lower that time. My wife, Melissa Gillette, was also training specifically for the Akron Marathon. Her goal was to run a new personal record.

Our training programs had built in speed workouts, recovery days, a taper period, and of course long runs. I choose to run a few marathons in the early part of fall in exchange for doing a solo long run in Goshen, IN. Even with detailed training, proper nutrition, ulitilizing recovery techniques, our goal of running well at the Akron Marathon hit a road block just two weeks prior to race day. Our training program prepared us for the miles and pace we were expecting to race at, but failed to prepare us with the possibilities of our babysitters having to cancel for that weekend.

Luckily my inlaws, Jim and Bertie Lehman, were kind enough to alert us two weeks prior to the Akron Marathon that they would not be available to watch Miles for that weekend. I frantically tried to find a different marathon that would be a good substitute for the Akron marathon. I was looking for a marathon with a competitive field of runners, a runner friendly course, and easy to get to and from. Melissa is a PHD student at Notre Dame and has to be at school early in Monday morning and does not get home until 4:30 pm on Fridays. After contacting several race directors, checking and double checking to confirm babysitting was available with my inlaws, we decided to run the Rochester (NY) Marathon on September 18th.

The positives of running the Rochester Marathon outweighed the negatives. The main negative I felt prior to the race was my ability to run as fast as I intended to the following weekend. Racing this weekend meant I would be doing 3 marathons in the last 14 days, hardly ideal for a fast time. Melissa was simply able to cut a week of training out of her training schedule and move the taper period up a week. The travel arrangements were quickly made and off we headed to New York.

My goals for the race was to run near 2:31-2:32 and place in the top two. These goals were in my range, but still left me nervous. Roughly 8 minutes prior to the start of the marathon these nerves were attacking my body with full force. I stood roughly 5 rods (Pops would be proud I know how far a rod is) from the starting line and was dry heaving. I felt fine physically, just was so nervous my body was trying to throw up.

Once the race took off I calmed down. It took me until about mile 1 to catch the fast starting runners. I tucked into their group, which now had 3 of us. We went through mile 5 in 28:33, now the pack was down to 2. Not long after this the other runner decided to settle into an easier pace. That left me in the lead. Were the runners behind me plotting together to run me down towards the finish? Did they know I have done marathons the previous 2 weekends?

I reached Mile 10 in 56:37, a 28:04 for the second 5 mile segment of the race. At Mile 12 I assessed my physical condition and determined I felt good. I said one last thing to the lead biker and then shut down the conversations to focus on going faster. Mile 15 split was 1:24:15, or 27:38 for the third 5 mile segment. A sub 2:30 marathon seemed in reach, but the next 5 miles were critical. I pushed a little harder towards Mile 20, which I reached in 1:51:50, a 27:35 split for that 5 miles, which was my fastest 5 mile segment of the race. Now as long as I did not blow up I would be sub 2:30. Miles 21 through 25 were hit in a 5:34 per mile average, for a 27:51 5 mile split.

John Piggott, a great runner himself, was on the course with roughly a mile to go. His cheering and excitement helped me push to a 5:29 last mile and close out the race in a 2:26:39. A time I frankly thought I had no shot of running this weekend. It turned out to be a course record and was my second fastest marathon. Roughly 30 minutes later Melissa powered in to the finish line in 2:56:37, her personal best, and also breaking the course record.


The excitement of both of us running the Rochester Marathon well outweighed the disappointment of not being able to compete in the Akron Marathon this year. Please do not blame me for looking at the Akron Marathon results and wondering what could have been. Using football lingo, this coming weekend I have a "bye" and will run my next marathon the weekend of October 1-2.

Last Place Deserves a Medal too!!!

There are many days when I wish that Pops was still around, unfortunately my Grandpa Gillette passed away on October 25, 2010. If he were still with us I would enjoy sharing with him the story of running the Sioux Falls Marathon in Sioux Falls, SD. I can envision him now, sitting at the edge of his chair bubbling with joy, this marathon is one we would have enjoyed sharing together. As with any stories about races he would ask questions like this, "What did the crops look like out there?" or one of my favorites, "What kind of trees did you see while running?" Oh Pops this course had it all...

Sure Pops cared about how I finished too, he always wanted to hear the time and place, but I doubt the finish time meant anything to him. Pops never felt like I would be able to win another marathon, actually after one of my earliest marathon victories he stated, "I doubt that will ever happen again." Did he lack confidence in me or did he think the competition was always a step ahead of me? I do not know, but what I do know is when I picked up my packet the race organizers also doubted I would win, and so the race story begins.

This race had me concerned due to the start and finish line being 7 miles apart. My goal was to address this confusion at the packet pickup. So I diligently stood in line, gathered bib number 339, and then found a race official to ask a question about the shuttles. I wanted to get on the earliest possible shuttle after finishing, because my rental car needed be back early. This race official looked me over and stated, "Unless you win, the shuttles will be going as soon as you get done, and chances of you winning are probably not good." This was followed by some ackward chuckles from him, well I was not chuckling, nor was I going to tell this guy that my goals for the race were to win and break the course record.

Race morning greeted me with bad news, Notre Dame failed to close out another football, and lost to Michigan. Outside of that the weather looked great in Sioux Falls. The race started at a fairly easy pace for me. I settled into the lead pack of 5 runners. This front pack included, Kory Cool a strong runner, Thomas Madut the defending champion and local hero, and Brad Orr a former Division I runner from Winthrop. Gary Krugger, another consistantly strong runner was not in the front pack, he had settled into a pace behind us.

Prior to the race I reviewed the course map and created a race strategy. This included when I wanted to push the pace, when I wanted to take a chance and go into the lead, and of course what it would take to get the course record. For the early miles I was content running with these guys, but Brad Orr had other plans. He pushed hard and broke away from the group at mile 6, so I went with him. By mile 9 the two of us had roughly 40 second lead on the other three guys. Brad turned and asked me, "If I were not here would you still be running with those guys?" I responded honestly. Soon after mile 9 a former college teammate, Charity Ortman, pulled up in her car and cheered for me. That provided a little boost, but I wanted to stick to my prerace plan.


Miles 10 through 14 were pretty uneventful, just cruising at 5:42 pace. At mile 15 I made a move to take the lead. Four hard miles in the low 5:30's and I never saw anyone again. The final 10 miles of the marathon course intersected with the final 10 miles of the half marathon course. This was a little annoying as I had to weave through every half marathon runner out there. This slowed me some and costed me the chance to go sub 2:30 again. I ended up with a 2:31:14, winning by around 32 seconds, and breaking the old course record of 2:34:33 by a few minutes.

After the race I caught a ride with my friend to my motel, showered, and then took the rental car back before returning to the awards. Once back at the awards I was alerted to the fact that my timing chip had failed to work during the race. The timing system had no record of me ever crossing the start line, split mats during the race, or even the finish line! Race directors reverted to using verbal testimony of the lead biker and cop, reviewed photos from the photography company, and spoke with me about the chip being on my shoe. As the finish photo below shows I had the chip on my right shoe the entire time. After much head scratching it was determined that the manner that I attached my timing chip caused it to fail. Apparently safety pining it to your shoes is not a good idea...who knew.

I spent the rest of the afternoon touring Sioux Falls park with Charity. We laughed about the timing misque...but there was nothing funny about Bill Rex the 71 year old last place marathon finisher. I was so lucky to sit next to him on the plane ride home. I asked Bill how his race went, and like all runners he had a story. His body shut down at mile 18, but he was not going to quit, not even when race organizers suggested he stops. Bill walked hunched over holding his hamstrings for the final 8 miles. A brave effort that deserves acknowledgement, which the local newspaper did, but Bill Rex was NOT awarded the medal he earned. As he was going into details about what it meant to him to run the race, I knew I had no choice. I had to make it right for him. I said, "Bill you earned yourself a medal!" Then I reached into my bag and gave him his overdue award. Bill will probably never forget the first place runner giving him a finishers medal, what a guy, what a story too.


So I would have shared all that with Pops. I bet he would have asked some nonrunning questions, which of course I would have answered: the cornstalks looked thin and I seen some large red oak trees. Maybe, just maybe, Pops would have surprised me and said he knew I could have won the marathon. Special Thank You to Elisha Page for taking such a great finish photo, that also proved I wore my chip.

15 years later...

On September 5, 1996 I toed the line for my first ever organized cross country race. The memories of the race are a little vivid at this point, but I do recall being nervous, not feeling ready for awaited me, and anxious for the painful feeling my body would experience. Coach Doug Sept, who was my middle school cross country coach, was there to cheer me on, as were a handful of friends and fellow athletes. In that race I stayed with the leader until the final stretch where I was dropped and finished in 2nd place.

Fast forward 15 years to present day. On September 5, 2011 I toed the line for my first ever Heart of America Marathon. Very few things have changed in the past 15 years with my running. I was nervous for this race too, I did not feel adequately prepared for the 6 large hills that awaited me, and I was anxious for how painful this marathon would leave me. Not only did the hills have me concerned, but also the uncertainty of how much this marathon would hurt my burnt left hand. I burnt this hand the previous weekend and still have limited movement in my left index finger. One fortunate part of running the Heart of America Marathon is it allowed for a handful of friends to watch me compete again. This included Coach Sept. Coach said he would be at the mile 23.5 aid station waiting on me. My goal was to not have a repeat of the 1996 race when I died at the end, I wanted to prove to Coach that I could finish races better now.

A few weeks before the marathon I made arrangements to stay with my friend Luise King. She and I grew up together starting in 4th grade when her family moved over from South Africa. Luise was a tennis player in high school, but now does Ironman triathlons. It was an honor to be hosted by such a great athlete. Luckily Luise knew her way around the area really well and was able to show me the course, which consisted of the aforementioned 6 large hills. The biggest hill was at mile 12.4, it is called the Easly Hill. Personally I think having a 9% grade hill that lasts nearly a mile named Easly Hill is an improper use of "Eas", the hill should be called Beastly Hill.

Once the gun went off, I settled into a fairly easy pace. I passed the first mile in 6:36, my objective was to start easy and save it for Easly Hilly. I ended up taking the lead just prior to mile 3 and was fortunate to have Kurt on the lead bike to keep me company for the race. The course was beautiful. It went on rolling Missouri country roads, down to the Missouri River, and of course up 6 monster hills. Just prior to approaching Easly Hill, Kurt drank a cup of espresso coffee. He said it would give him power to push up the hill. As I start climbing the hill I noticed my friend Luise biking down the hill. "No Luise don't go down the hill!!" I screamed at her. Knowing good well she would have to bike back up it. Little did I know she was doing a bicycling hill repeat workout up Easly Hill while waiting for me to arrive, what a blow to my ego.

After cresting Easly Hill I attempted to access a GU gel that was in the back pocket of my shorts. Typically I grab these with my left hand, not thinking I tried that again. WOW did that hurt the burnt fingers. I did manage to take 1 GU gel, but gave up on trying to get any others out of my shorts pocket. It hurt my hand too much. The half way point was on top of Easly Hill, I reached this in 1:17:34, and had a 4 minute lead according to volunteers.

Eventually I made my way to the mile 23.5 marker, and sure enough Coach Sept was there. He had the old school chant going too, "AV, AV, AV..." "Lets Go Tigers" and that is all it took to put a little giddy up in my step. To say I was determined to finish fast would be an understatement. I was determined to prove to Coach I could finish races hard now, but...

I fought up one final hill, turned right, then left, then left, and finally a long straight away to the finish. I was now at a full bore sprint to the line, and somehow Coach Sept beat me to the finish line! Seriously? Either he is in great shape or had a strategically parked car somewhere! Either way, I managed to win the marathon over the tough course in 2:36:58, and celebrated by catching up with my former cross country coach, who ironically never saw me win a race in middle school or high school. Somethings just take 15 years to happen.

Thank you to BJ Worley, of the Columbia Missourian for taking such a great finish photo.

26 Miles, 385 yards of Church...By Coach Lyle Miller

With a mad dash to the car and a “Why am I always running late on these mornings?”, I mentally review the upcoming hours, ensuring that all details are in place. Heading north on U.S. 131, I go over the permutations of potential problems, trying to calm my spirit. A thought comes to mind -- the marathon I’m running today is not unlike the church service I prepare for most Sunday mornings.



I’ve woken up early and put on my Sunday best. Though I’ve anticipated the appropriate apparel in advance, I pack my suitcase anyway so that I can adapt to the setting. With weather.com’s hourly forecast suggesting 34 degrees at 8 a.m. and upper 40s by noon, much care needs to be given to the garments that will accessorize appropriately. Do I wear a jacket? Long-sleeve shirt or short? Which shoes?

As I drive, I think back to how I have prepared for this moment with regular two- or three-hour long-run retreats that refresh and re-energize my spirit, but also provide a deeper level of growth than can take place solely in the practice of near-daily, 45-minute, five-mile devotionals. In my theology, a life of faithful discipleship goes beyond Sunday morning; similarly, being faithful to the desire to finish a race requires a commitment lived daily.



I’m met by greeters at the door of the Grand Rapids YMCA, who point the way to restrooms and other spaces. At a table, I am handed my “bulletin,” where I am told that today I will be congregant number 654. I safety-pin it to my singlet, like the stickers that say, “Hello, my name is …” for the visitors at some churches.

With 800 other parishioners, we are joined to the starting line in a call to worship. We greet each other with words like, “Good luck to you,” responding “and also with you” in predictable Pentecost-Sunday fashion. Announcements are given and the gun goes off in an anthemic fanfare. Overused hymns can lose their meaning with repetition at church, just like today’s themes from “Rocky” and “Chariots of Fire,” not to mention Bruce Springsteen’s “Born to Run.”

Today’s sermon is taken from the Gospels of Bill, Arthur, Jack and Jim. That’s Bowerman, Lydiard, Daniels and Fixx, four writers who coached many as the gospel of running’s message reshaped the lives of millions of new believers and converts. Running, too, has its charismatic missionaries. Today’s sermon, however, is preached to oneself – the need to run a controlled pace.

In a marathon, the communion table is set up frequently, perhaps every two miles or so. At each, altar boys and girls offer the wine of new blood, which looks and smells deceptively like Gatorade. The bread comes in the form of concentrated carbohydrate gel packs formulated for their spiritual and other nourishment.

Prayers of petition and confession are assumed in a marathon. We ask for strength. We bargain with God, telling the great runner in the sky that if we can only run and not be weary for this day, we will never sin again. And we confess that we have failed, failed to live that life of faithful five-milers during the week, and failed to practice what we have preached to ourselves about even pacing.

The worship service analogy breaks down at offering time. In church, the act of giving is encouraged. It’s a way to return to God a portion of ourselves. In a marathon, the goal is not to give an offering, to not be bent over along the side of the road, returning a portion of ourselves. More importantly – we seek to not let our bodies be the burnt offering stretched along the road, reeking of death at mile marker 22.

As in many congregations, sharing time is optional, preferred by some and loathed by others. While some runners welcome the chance to introduce themselves and share their joys and concerns, others resent the intrusion into their solitude.

Though today’s service will go about 20 minutes longer than expected, a frustratingly too-common experience for participants in either setting, I am still greeted at the finish line with words of blessing and benediction. The lead pastor/race director raises his hands and touches a finish medal to my forehead, offering words of benediction as he drapes the medallion over my shoulders, almost doing so in the name of Grete Waitz, Frank Shorter and Pheidippides, the ancient Greek soldier who ran from Marathon to Athens announcing victory over the Persians, dying as he offered his final words, “Rejoice. We conquer.”



“Well done,” says the director. “Enter into your rest. Go in peace.” (Or maybe, given how my quadriceps, hamstrings and other body parts feel, it was “go in pieces.”) The masseuse at the aid tent annointeth my legs with oil. I want to greet each with a holy kiss.

And finally, what is church without the potluck meal? Here, bagels and bananas, hot chili and cold yogurt, salty chips and proteiny peanut butter are spread out smorgasbord-style, and we help ourselves, returning to the welcoming table as often as we like. Every line has the best food, and we interact with old friends and new, offering words of blessing and cheer.

Truly, this is the day that the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it.

Written by Lyle Miller, after running the Grand Rapids marathon.