#11 - Crater Lake Marathon 2010

Date: Saturday, August 12, 2006

Location: Crater Lake National Park, Oregon

So after running the Mt hood PCt 50k, I joined the Maniacs. I was really excited to join the great club. At that time there we only 337 Maniacs, so i was assigned number 338. I had planned to run the Crater Lake Marathon because I thought it would be fun, plus I had never been to Crater Lake before. I traveled to Crater Lake with my mom and sister. We camped at the campground at Crater Lake, unlike most campgrounds it was first come first serve, so I was glad we got there on Thursday because the campground filled up that evening. The race was on Saturday, so we had Friday as a day to checkout the park. Friday morning we got up early and got tickets to take the boat tour of the lake. It was awesome! I highly recommend it, they take you on a boat all around the lake, and even drop you off at Wizard Island. I views from the boat is something you just don't get otherwise. I met a guy named Eddie Hahn (who I found out was a Maniac), he was going to run a marathon the day after Crater Lake in Bend. I had heard about this double, but knew I wasn't ready for a double. But I knew there would be a lot of Maniacs there, so I did the half marathon in Bend. The Crater Lake Marathon is very challenging. The whole race is either up or down, there are little to no flat parts of the run. The final two miles maybe the hardest. I was quite surprised when I managed to run a 3:53;41. The next day in Bend I ran the Haulin Aspen Half Marathon and had a lot of fun.

#10 - Mt Hood PCT 50k 2006

DATE: Saturday, July 29, 2006

LOCATION: Clackamas Ranger Station, Mt Hood, Oregon

Okay to be honest I don't remember a ton about this race. I do remember that the week leading up to it, I found out about the Marathon Maniacs. I remember seeing the singlets at some of the races, but never thought much of it. But I checked out the web site and thought it looked like a cool group. I discovered that I had already qualified (I ran my first two marathons in 9 days). Anyway, I remember on the drive to Mt Hood thinking that I wanted to join the club. This time I went camping the night before the race with my mom and dad. The race went really well. I ran a 50k PR of 4:59:31, which is really good for a trail race in which there are a lot of rocks and roots. I ran a pretty consistent place, I only really slowed down down after mile 22. The last six miles seemed to go on forever, which is after the last aid station. Upon getting home from this race, I signed up for the Marathon Maniacs on August 3rd.

#9 - Foot Traffic Flat Marathon 2006

DATE: July 4, 2006

LOCATION: Sauvie Island, Portland, Oregon

This race has a reputation for being a very hot one, and some years it is. But it's flat and that is why many people like to do it. In 2006, it was very cool and overcast, making way for ideal conditions for running a marathon. I had run Pacific Crest 10 days earlier and was all recovered from my cold. I thought to myself, I'll just go out there and enjoy the race. I ran a pretty good first half. I crossed through the half way point in 1:43:37. I remember think that I would just keep going as long as I could, and slow down at that point. In the last few miles, I was running even stronger and managed to kick it up a notch at the end. It was in the back of my head that I might be able to PR if I would hold onto the speed. I ended up crossing the finish line in 3:25:17, which gave me a PR by almost a minutes! I was so thrilled! I finished 15th out of about 71 runners, and won my age group. I got a cookie basket as a reward, which is weird because I've done that race five times, and that is the only year, they have even given anything out as a reward. A good time!

#8 - Pacific Crest Marathon 2006

DATE: Saturday, June 24, 2006

LOCATION: Sunriver, Oregon

I had to go back to where it all started! My family loved the Pacific Crest events in 2005, that we invited the who family to join us for a unofficial reunion. We rented the same house and we all had a good time with each other. I remember the race was a little warm. Around my birthday (June 22), I came down with a cold, and was feeling a little lousy, but I remember feeling better on race morning. I ran the race, but around mile 21-22, I started coughing. I probably could have run faster if it weren't for that. Anyway, it was a lot of fun. I ran 3:32:15, which really surprised me given the cold, and still remains my fastest time on that course. I remember hearing about a guy named Chuck Engle aka "Marathonjunkie". He won that race and well has 22 others (I think that's right) in running 52 marathons that year. I remember think that, he was crazy.

#7 - Capitol City Marathon 2006

DATE: Sunday, May 21, 2006
LOCATION: Olympia, Washington

This was my first race in which I ran a pretty steady pace. I didn't know much about this race going into it. My mom, dad and sister all joined me. We stayed at a hotel room pretty close to the starting area. My dad stayed in the hotel room, while my mom and sisters did the half marathon. I remember the weather was quite nice. I started out running a comfortable pace, and managed to run pretty good. I finished with a time of 3:31:48, which was very good for me at the time (second fasted marathon at that time). I remember it was a bit crazy at the finish area, but I managed to find my mom and sister and we drove back home that day. I remember thinking to myself at that time, "this marathon thing, is really fun". I think that was when I really fell in love with the marathon.

#6 - Pacific Shoreline Marathon 2006

DATE: Sunday, February 5, 2006 (Super Bowl Sunday)

LOCATION: Huntington Beach, California

My aunt suggested that I do the Pacific Shoreline Marathon in Huntington Beach, California. It’s not too far from where they live, plus being the 10^th anniversary of the race they were giving everyone a free MP3 player. I flew down to California and my cousin met me and we went to the expo. My aunt was suppose to take me around, but my grandpa needed her help, so my cousin was my ride around, She ended up doing the half marathon. I remember thinking that since I shaved 25 minutes off my time at Seattle, I could shave 15 minutes of my time and qualify or Boston. How naive I was! It wasn’t quite that easy. I started out running way too fast and hot the “wall” at mile 20. But I still managed to finish with a time of 3:38. I flew back later that day (which was Super Bowl Sunday). It was a good learning process.

#5 - Seattle Marathon 2005

DATE: Sunday, November 27, 2005
LOCATION: Seattle, Washington

Even prior to my first marathon I decided to run the Seattle Marathon in November of that year. I’m not quite sure what my rational was bit I guess I figured it would be fun. I do know I didn’t know what to expect about the weather (being late November). My mom and sister joined in on the drive up. We stayed at a Best Western Hotel about ¼ mile from the start. They did the half marathon, while I ran the full marathon. The weather ended up being very good it was in the 50’s and partly to mostly cloudy. I loved the atmosphere of the race to this day it remains one of my favorite marathons. What surprised me more than anything else is the fact that I ran a 25 minute PR. I ended up running a 3:26, and remember being thrilled the whole way home.

#4 - Lake Tahoe Marathon 2005

DATE: Saturday, October 8, 2005

LOCATION: Lake Tahoe, California

My plan was to do the Portland Marathon, but my aunt (who lives in California) suggested that I do the Lake Tahoe Marathon. I agreed and my mom and I flew to California (she and my aunt did the 20 mile walk). We rented a house in Tahoe City (near the finish). I did not know much about the race; it ended up being a very challenging course. I really wasn’t ready for the hills or the altitude. I started out too fast, and hit the “wall” and ended up walking quite a bit towards the end. But I managed to sill break 4 hours. After the race we relaxed on the beach before heading back home. On the bus ride to the start line, I sat near a guy who was running the triple marathon. At first I was like “whatever”, but now having done a few triples, I would love to go back and do the triple.

#3 - Mt Hood PCT 50k 2005

DATE: Saturday, July 30, 2005

LOCATION: Clackamas Ranger Station, Mt Hood, OR

I was always told, “If you can run 10 miles you can run a half marathon, and if you can run 20 miles you can run a marathon.” Based on this logic if you can run 75% of a specific distance you can run that distance. When I started running it was always my goal to push the limits and see how far I could go, so I wasn’t content with just running a marathon, I wanted to see how far I could run. In training for my first marathon I ran 26 miles, so I figured why not run a 50k, it’s only 5 miles more. Prior to this I had run in a lot of ORRC races, and so I was looking at running the Mt Hood PCT 50/50 (an ORRC race). I made plans to camp at a campground (about ¼ mile from the start) and my mom came long. I had never run on trails before, let alone an ultra. It was a simple out-and-back and the weather was perfect. I didn’t have too much trouble until I got to about mile 22, when I tripped on a root and took a face plant. It turned out to be not that bad, I had a gash under my right eye and a few scratches. I finished in 5:24 which isn’t that bad for a first time trail ultra. I really enjoyed the spectacular views of Mt Hood.

#2 - Foot Traffic Flat Marathon 2005

DATE: July 4, 2005

LOCATION: Sauvie Island, Portland, OR

So the first question that has to be asked about this one is “Are you crazy?” It was 9 days after my first marathon, when I ran my second. In the months leading up to my first marathon I ran quite a few 20 mile runs, so my thinking was “why not”. I thought the idea of running a marathon on the 4^th of July would be fun. This race always has an early start, so I remember getting up very early and driving to Sauvie Island. I didn’t improve on my time, but then again I didn’t expect to. I ended up running a 3:57, and had a smile on my face afterwards. I don’t remember it being too hard. I remember seeing a guy who was running 50 marathons in 50 states in 50 days, it was Sam Thompson, and maybe the first time I heard about running a marathon in all 50 states. I just remember thinking that I was a multi-marathon finisher. :-)

#1 - Pacific Crest Marathon 2005

DATE: Saturday, June 25, 2010
LOCATION: Sunriver, Oregon

It was my first. I had trained for about 6 months. I had no real fear of completing it, a few weeks before I ran 26 miles on my own. I chose Pacific Crest in Sunriver for no specific reason. It looked like a nice place. My mom received a free week long rental at a house in Sunriver so we planned the trip. The weather was awesome, it was sunny and warm, but the trees around Sunriver made it nice and cool. I remember being nervous at the start, and got off to a good start. I had no specific time goal, I just wanted to finish. The whole race I remember thinking to myself that I was doing it. Upon crossing the finish line I saw my family taking pictures and cheering me on. I was so filled with joy and was looking forward to doing it again. My time was 3:51, which was good enough for first place in my age group.

Welcome to the Count Down!!!

As may of you know I will be running my 100th marathon (or ultra) on Sunday November 28th in Seattle, Washington. As I prepare for this big milestone, I can't help, but think back to all the marathons I've already run. As a way to document my achievement, I started this blog. Each day, starting August 21st, I will look back at one race a day for 100 days leading to my big race on November 28th. I'm not much of a writer, so forgive me if I made grammar errors. Each post will be kept pretty short (between 150-300 words). I'm doing this as a way for others to see what I've done, and for others to get a feel for what any given race is like. But it's also a way for me to remember what I've done and what it was like. So I hope you enjoy the look back!

- Steve "Marathon Freak" Walters (Marathon Maniac #338)