The
Marine Corps Marathon is an annual
26.2 mile (42 K) road running
race held in
Washington, D.C. Its also known as
"
The People's Marathon" since there is no prize
money and no elite wave. I guess all the professionals
go to the
Chicago Marathon which is held the same
weekend (at least this year).
This year's race, on 22 October 2000,
was the 25th anniversary of the first race, and it was
my second marathon.
The race begins and ends at the Marine Corps War Memorial
(the Iwo Jima Monument). The course goes south from
the start past Arlington Cemetery and
the Pentagon, then around
Pentagon City before heading north again. After passing
the starting line again, the course crosses
Potomac River over Key Bridge arriving in
Georgetown at mile 8. One runs past the Watergate
apartments and the Kennedy Center toward the
Lincoln Memorial.
Turning onto Constitution Avenue
just before mile 10 is perhaps the most exciting part,
where the crowds are lined up from the Lincoln Memorial
all the way to the U.S. Capitol. The run around the
Capitol itself is boring, but then one finds the
crowds again when the course turns back west to run along
south part of the Mall. The course then heads south
all the way to Hains Point; although the spectators were
just scattered about East Potomac Park the scenery was
very nice. The turnaround at Hains Point comes at mile
18 and, heading north, one can see runners both ahead and
behind on the course as the course circles around the
Jefferson Memorial.
The miles 23 marker is on the 14th Street Bridge. In my
opinion this bridge marked the start of the most grueling
part of the run. The on-ramp to the bridge is steep and
never before has every single muscle in my legs screamed
with pain from so much lactic acid. Somehow the pain
subsided enough to keep me from stopping as we
passed the Pentagon again. Miles 24 to 26 were spent by
me in survival mode. The course heads north along the
now-familiar Route 110 passing Arlington Cemetery again
(I never saw the cemetery from the road).
As most people
learn in the hour before the start of the race from MCM
veterans, the hardest part of the race is the last half
mile where one runs past the starting line, turns a corner
into a very steep hill and runs around a long circle.
Indeed, running up the hill was like climbing five flights of
stairs. The crowds here were packed, but curiously subdued
compared to their counterparts at the finish of the New York
City Marathon. There were cheers and surges of excitement,
but not quite at the same energy level as in Central Park.
The finish is especially tortuous because, running around
a big circle, one doesn't see the finish line until nearly
there. So as I passed the 26 mile marker, muscles screaming
and left foot throbbing, I really, really wanted to
see the finish line so I could visualize pounding my way
there and estimate just how many more steps I needed
until I could collapse on the comfortable, soft, warm,
welcoming pavement and take a long nap.
Anyway, I did make it to the finish. In fact I chopped off
18 minutes from my 1999 NYC Marathon
time for a new Personal Record.
This was a very well-organized race and, in spite of its challenges,
a wonderful course. Although I'm still starry-eyed and nostalgic
about my first marathon in NYC, this was an equally rewarding
experience.