The Tobacco Road Marathon, once more, I am coming back to this event dear to my heart as it was my 1st Marathon. This year, it is going to be a great one, as my daughter will be running her half and getting an official half marathon time. Earlier this year, we both ran the Disney Half Marathon, but the half-marathon distance was cut short due to an incoming storm during the event. Although that did not stop us from getting the necessary distance prior to the event, the finish time is not an official time for her.

It was a perfect day, a tag on the warm side for running (At least for me, it was), and for others, maybe a little bit on the cold side at the start. Similar to every time I have trained for Umstead 100, this will be my last long run in preparation for the event and also being a taper week. 

Also, this year, I am coming back to help with pacing the 5:05 full marathon. My friend BD was looking for volunteers and took the opportunity to help out and make sure not to press too much the pace given that this is more of a preparation event.

The Expo had a decent amount of vendors and booths, similar to last year. It was great talking to BD and many other friends and runners at the pacing table. I spent some time at the pacer’s table talking to other pacers and runners who were having questions about what to expect at the event. I walked around and looked at the different booths and picked up the event shirt and green socks.

The morning routine was the same as any long event. No changes to the breakfast and morning prep. My daughter Bianca, her boyfriend Clavon, and I got to the area with enough time, feeling good and excited to see all the runners, and talked to the many who had questions about how the pacing was going to work.

The venue was very nice, and the open area was very nice. I was able to talk to some of the runners and catch up with many friends who were doing the half and full marathon while others were volunteering. For pacers, BD always wants to have a couple of people per time slot. This year, I got the opportunity to run with Venu, another experienced ultra runner. We had the opportunity to meet with the TUFF group. Many of them were training for Umstead and using TRM as part of their running plan.

After a few words from BD, the pacer’s coordinator, with some advice and instructions and the group picture, we headed out to the main corral, where the runners were gathering to get ready for the start of the event.

After the National Anthem, they had the Elite Runners and the 1st wave of runners ready to go. With plenty of space and plenty of distance, everyone was very excited to get started.

Mile 1-3:

Sugars were in control from the start. These first miles were good, steady miles. We took our time during the first mile to warm up just a tad faster than the target of 11:48. The next couple of miles were on the faster side pace as the Marathon veered to the right to enter the trail. I was conscious of the form and checked the cadence and where I was landing on my feet since I was still concerned about my right knee, which started giving me problems a few weeks ago.

I needed to keep an eye on drinking at the aid stations, as I tend to really become dehydrated when the temperature goes closer to the mid-60s. I planned to get water at all the aid stations. Similar to other events that I have paced in the past, I was carrying my energy drink and fuel with me just in case, and with these temperatures, I just needed to pay attention so I do not get in trouble, and I am able to help others running with our group. 

Miles 4-8:

Now, we were just Marathon runners on the trail; I took some time to introduce myself and Venu. I talked again about the current plan we had for pacing, logistics, the approaches we were going to do, the target pace to meet the 5:05 target time, and the strategy at the water stations. Then, we shifted the conversations with the runners in our group. We then talked about their goals and their experience. Many runners in our group were tackling the Marathon for the first time; they were full of energy and excitement. We guided them when oncoming runners or cyclists were heading our way, making sure we all stayed safe.

We always provided information and kept the runners well informed about how long the rolling uphills and downhills were coming ahead. To this point, we were all just ahead of the target pace. But knowing that this was going to be a long event and that it was early, we held the faster pace just for a few miles more to be able to slow down at the water stations and give them a break in case they needed a bathroom break.

Great to see all the leaders and the other pacer groups that were ahead of us, especially reaching and after the turnaround. The whole group encouraged each other when they saw the passing runners. It was great to see that, for the most part, we were having great conversations and fun. Seeing them chatting about different topics was fantastic; I was running with a smile. We continued then to pass the turnaround, always providing a good shout-out to the volunteers and officers, making it safe for us to cross the intersections and all the runners passing by.

Miles 8-14:

At this point, we were feeling good; the weather was in the mid-60s, and we pressed the pace a bit on the downhill. Even with rolling hills, miles 10-14 can be a little bit challenging and could take some energy out of the runners. Crossing the halfway mark was uneventful; we asked them a requirement for the time split to count that they needed to be smiling by the time they crossed the mat for the halfway point. We all laughed about it. I was still taking water and Gatorade at every aid station; by this time, I had already taken the pack of cameos and baby food pouch that I was carrying.

Miles 15-19:

At this point in the event, we were holding the pace, allowing for those runners who wanted to finish under the 5:00 mark to just push ahead for the last 7 miles of the event. But we let the group know that we needed to press the pace during the flat, just a couple of seconds faster pace, as when we hit the turnaround, we were encountering once again some rolling long hills, and I wanted to make sure we were in good shape tackling them. Just at the turnaround, we started to once again see a few more friends. There was not much talking other than the “Looking strong,” “Nicely done,” “Hang in there,” and “Go get it.” We lost a couple of runners as we were getting ready to tackle the hardest miles of the Marathon the last 6 when the real race starts.  

Miles 20-23:

I walked some at the aid stations as we were heading back to the start/finish area, grabbing a couple of cups of Gatorade and one gel. The temperatures were still very optimal for running, and I was really happy to see that we still had many of the original groups with us. A couple of runners were suffering from cramps, and I had extra salt tablets that I shared with them to help ease the lack of electrolytes. Getting close to the turn into the road back to the finish line, one of the runners who was struggling passed us with a smile and, looking strong, pressing the pace.

Miles 24-26.2 (Finish): 

At the final stretch, we were doing good. The group was feeling fantastic, and most of them pressed on the pace to finish strong. We encouraged them to continue ahead, as we had a job to complete, and that job was to finish at 5:05. Other runners were counting on us to bring them safely to the finish line. At the second to last downhill, we continued to pick up a couple of runners and hung with them during the last uphill. 

The last downhill towards the finish line is a nice long one; with the newly joined runners, we picked up the pace just a tad and delivered them with seconds to spare. Most of the runners were happy, although perhaps, in pain from the effort, they were very proud of what they had accomplished. We spend some time with them, talking and chatting about recovery and perhaps other events in which we will see each other again. It was a great event; it was a perfect day for a great run.

Many PRs, 1st-time finishers, and BQ times today as the weather and the preparation of runners were superb. Rahul was coming in super fast time, although an early pace push cost him some struggles during the later part of the event. Jamie, Kaleel, Shreedar, Rakesh, Eirc, and Kali successfully completed their last “long” run in preparation for our event in a couple of weeks. I think they were so surprised at how well they were feeling by the end and after the event.

My daughter ran an awesome half, coming in easily under the 2:00-hour mark. Her first official half marathon time, given that back in January, was when she completed the distance at Disney Half Marathon. But back then, due to the weather, they changed the course, and even though the distance was completed, it did not count. This time, there were no weather issues that were going to derail her from completing a full-length event. She definitely redeemed herself. Calvin executed an amazing performance, negatively splitting his first solid half marathon. Both of them had an incredible PR performance during 2024TRM.

As for me, the knee held ok, once in a while letting me know it was there and not necessarily enjoying this, but it helped ok. I took that as a great compliment as I continued to walk and smile. Now for some super shorter mileage runs and lots of rest

---

Once again, the medal for this year was a very cool medal. The next event on deck in a couple of weeks is The Pursuit of 24 at Umstead 100. 🙂 I know, I know, I am insane. Wish me luck!

Month/Year	Event	Location	Type	Time
Mar-24	Tobacco Road Marathon	NC	Full	5:05:00

Highlights:

Course: Great ample road right of the start, narrowing a bit at the entrance of the trail close to mile 3. Except for a couple of small hills during miles 1-2 and 25-26, the course is mostly flat with long rolling hills.

Venue: At the finish, excellent, with plenty to drink and a nice bag of goodies.

Expo: Expo with some vendors or booths, but it was nice to browse around and talk to other friends and runners.

Weather: Perfect weather with some cloud coverage at the start followed by clear skies, great 35º with just 80% humidity at the start.

T1D: Sugars were good at the start, a tad on the high side. For the mid-event portion, they were stable.

Fueling: Pre-Race: 1 serving of Hot Cereal and Latte. Half of the banana about 10 minutes before the start time.

Race: Water and Gatorade at the water stations. Two Babyfood pouches and a Maurten caffeinated gel started about an hour and a half into the event, followed by additional Tailwind and E-fuel that I carried.

Post: Protein shake and lots of water.

Learning Points:

• As always, it is so great to hear the stories and meet new runners in all these events. So inspiring.
• Volunteering to pace a race is a great way to force yourself to a specific pace that will enable you to help taper, easily running a specific distance.