Ocala Marathon Review

So on a whim last week after perusing multiple race calendar websites (one of my favorite past-times), I turned to my husband and said "Hey so there's a marathon in Ocala next weekend. What the hell, let's do it! We both have to run a 24 miler that weekend anyway." And he was like "Um... yeah sure, OK how much is the race fee?"
On a side note - I love that I can drag my husband, Miguel, into random craziness and he just goes with it.
And that's how we ended up running the Ocala Marathon this past Sunday. I should mention this was the hubby's second marathon on record. I was very proud of him that he stepped up to the challenge without batting an eyelash.
I guess I should also mention the only reason he "had" to run a 24 miler this past weekend was because I coerced him into signing up for the Croom 50k a couple of months ago. Honestly, I'm not a horrible wife! He had just finished his first Ironman 70.3 (that I also convinced him to do) and I knew he could totally handle a 50k! Ok... I am chuckling as I type this, but I swear it didn't take much to twist his arm into it.
Back to the marathon review!!!!
We decided to drive up to Ocala as late as possible on Saturday night from Miami. According to Google Maps it was a 4.5 hour drive. We made it in 4. And I think we could have gone sub-4 if we didn't stop at the halfway point to switch drivers. What can I say? I have a heavy foot. We stayed at the race hotel - the Ocala Holiday Inn & Suites. The service was fantastic. They allowed us to check in at 11:30pm and had a nice breakfast ready at 5am for all the runners. Plus the hotel was just down the street from the race start. Not "walking" distance, but a 5 minute drive.
When we decided to do the race, we signed up and kinda forgot about it. Just had it as something to do in the back of our minds. All the blog reviews said great things about the race organization, beautiful scenery, and semi-warm temps. Well on Saturday morning I checked the weather for Ocala and my jaw dropped. On Saturday night the temperature would drop into the freezing 20s. Race start was supposed to be around 33 plus winds. And it didn't seem it would get much warmer during the race. Decision made! Thermal running gear it is!! And oh man, how happy I was to have made that decision.

Miguel & I pre-race about to leave our toasty hotel and brave the freezing tempts!

I brought several options, but finally settled on my Brooks Utopia Thermal Hoodie II, Nike Pro Combat Thermal Tights, Zombie Runner hat, Nike Thermal Running gloves, and ING NYC Marathon 2013 Finishers long sleeve shirt. Let me tell you... I did not take off one article of clothing (with the exception of my gloves at mile 23) for the whole race. IT WAS COLD BABY! Hello Polar Vortex! Ha! I have the wind and snot burns on my nose to prove it. Can we say sexy? Thank goodness for Aquaphor.
Oh yeah, you know I just made that image even sexier for ya. Burned red crispy nostrils slathered in clear greasy looking gel. Now that's hot. Yes, I have issues.
I digress!!! OK so we get to the race start and the marathon and half marathoners are about 150 to 200 people combined. Totally relaxed crowd. All ages and levels of athletes. It was a real home-town event. No frills, but with all the stuff that truly matters when it comes to a solid road race. First and foremost I want to state this course is BEAUTIFUL. Just stunning. I was kicking myself the whole race for not bringing my cell phone to snap pictures. I felt like every corner or top of a hill there was some picturesque scene, like something off of a post card. I made a point to run with out music and I am very happy I did. Just being able to quiet my mind and soak up all of the natural loveliness was so good for my soul. And the volunteers - the VOLUNTEERS! They did such a great job! Everyone was so enthusiastic! I felt as though every volunteer genuinely was happy to be there and wanted you to succeed. Because of the small number of racers the volunteers were personal and could spend more time helping you directly. Very much like an Ultra race. In turn, I am amazed by their maintained enthusiasm. They must have been out there for stretches of time without seeing a stream of runners and yet they were so positive and focused. All of the aid stations had Gatorade, water, Twizzlers, Hammerhead Gels, and Dunkin Donuts. Some even had sour worms! For a road marathon, that's a great spread.
The course was all asphalt with some hilly sections. It takes the runners through the horse ranches and local farms. Personally I didn't find the hills that difficult. I'm not a big fan of flat races. They tend to kill my legs quick with the repetition of using the same muscles over and over. Being that I had to do an 8 mile trail run the very next day, I wasn't trying to kill myself with a PR or even come close to it. Anddddd I had promised Miguel I would stick with him and be a source of positive motivation during the race.
I was having a great race. I never bonked. Never felt tired or like my tank was running empty. In fact, I felt as though I could have gone on and done a 50k instead of a marathon. I did make a conscious decision to hold back and just "go with the flow". Now Miguel's race was a bit different. At mile 18 he was already not feeling so hot and by mile 23 he was walking. He had developed some serious pain in his left knee and was having difficulty working through it. At one point I said to him "We are at mile 23 at exactly 4 hours! That means all we need to do is stick with a sub 10 minute pace and we can sneak in under 4:30! That will be a great PR for you honey!" Then the look he shot he knocked me off my happy horse. I know I said I was just "going with the flow".... but I was feeling so good! I wanted to whip through those last 6 miles... and then those last 3 miles. But alas... I DID make a promise. So I had to swallow my ego, muster my ultimate cheerleader and get my man to the finish line in form and with a time he could be proud of. With a run/walk combo we finished up the last 3 miles till I egged him on with a sprint to the finish. I am seriously SO proud of him. I know how much pain he was in, how crappy his stomach felt, and he still gutted it out. We finished in 4:37:19. All in all, not too shabby for a training run / marathon!
At the finish line there was bountiful food - pizza, cookies, candy, fruit, sodas... you name it. We crossed the red timing tarp, were given our beautiful Ocala Marathon 2014 medals, and headed straight to the food tent. After stuffing our faces and grabbing some more grub for the road, we headed back to Miami. My experience at the Ocala Marathon was totally awesome. I would do this race again in a heartbeat. Low race fee, a gem of a course, lovely volunteers, great food, affordable hotel and a nice medal - not to mention a sweet race shirt. What more could you ask for? And I don't want to forget the locals! Even though there really wasn't by any means a spectator "crowd" for the race, the random few supports were SO enthused to have us running in their town. I highly recommend this race! Do it!
  

Rocking Ocala Marathon finishers medal. Love the graphic with the horses running turning into a woman. So cool!