May 7th, 2023 will be a day thousands of Flying Pig Marathon runners will never forget. Every marathon I have done is memorable in it’s own way, but this year’s race was one that will stand out for years to come. A week out from the marathon, the weather forecast looked very favorable (clear & mid-40’s). However, as the week went on, the temperature and rain chance began to gradually build. The night before the race, it was looking very likely that heavy rain & storms would be in the area throughout the race. It’s not something you want to see for an outdoor activity but I was just going to have to make the best of it.
I woke up at 4:30am on race morning to rumbling thunder and bright flashes of lightning. The dreaded, but forecasted, race morning storms were rolling into the area. By the time my brother & sister-in-law picked me up at 5am to start our 25-minute drive downtown, it was full-on storming. There was so much uncertainty going through my head. “Would the race be canceled?”, “What if it is delayed and we have to sit around for hours?”, “Maybe it will clear up by the start?” Race mornings are always nerve-wracking, but this one just had a little extra uncertainty to it.
My excitement built as we exited the highway and navigated towards the parking garage. The rain started to slow and came to a full stop around 5:40am, less than an hour until the expected 6:30am start time. The storm cell had passed through, maybe everything had cleared out, I thought. I found my Mojo Running Club friends just inside the Paycor Stadium gates and went through my pre-race stretching routine. I left my phone at home with my wife, so I couldn’t check the radar to see how the rest of the storms were tracking. As we lined up in the corrals at around 6:15, it was still clear. All my rain gear that I brought with me to the start line went unused. Maybe the rest of the rain will miss us!
At 6:25, the Flying Pig Marathon Race Director came over the PA and announced that the race would begin as scheduled. A big cheer roared out from the thousands of runners lined up to begin. The mood dampened a little as she went on to explain that they were tracking a couple more cells of storms that were approaching the area. As the opening notes of the national anthem were being sung, the rain made its grand entrance. One by one the rain drops got bigger and more frequent as the anthem went on. We all looked around at each other and acknowledged that this race was going to be a wet one. I locked in mentally and was ready to tackle whatever adventure lied ahead.
Calm Before The Storm
The flames fired off and we were quickly on our way. The nerves quickly dropped away as we turned down 2nd street towards our first bridge. The feeling during the opening quarter mile of marathons is always amazing. Thousands of feet pounding down the road in unison always puts a smile on your face. Coming into the race, I had a couple of goals in mind. My A-Goal was to have fun and enjoy running my hometown race. The Flying Pig Marathon was my first full marathon five years ago (3:30), so I will always have a special connection to this race. It is amazing to look back on all of the progress I have made in 5 years to get to the level of fitness I have today.
For an actual time goal to aim for, it wasn’t as straightforward for me this year. In past years I was always focused on breaking 3 hours to qualify for the Boston Marathon. Now that I have experienced Boston, the focus turned to getting into the New York City Marathon to complete my North American Major Marathons. I did Chicago in 2021 and Boston in 2022, so I just only need the final NYC star. My main goal this spring was to get my automatic qualifying time (2:53 for <35 males) so I could avoid the entrance lottery that is difficult to win. Four weeks ago I took the pressure off of myself by hitting my standard at the Carmel Half Marathon. NYC also has a half marathon qualifying standard (1:21) that was easier for me to achieve. It would have been a big stretch to hit my full marathon standard at the hilly Flying Pig, so I was happy to check that box at Carmel. So I ended up coming into the Pig this spring not needing any specific time. This definitely helped calm the nerves as I could go out and run based on how I felt and with what the weather gave me. So, I settled on a B-goal of breaking the 3-hour mark like I did in Boston last spring (2:58).
The forecasted temps in the mid-60’s, high humidity and storms made me nervous about hitting this goal. My previous races in the heat & rain took a toll on me, so I was prepared to settle for a slower time today. Most recently the 70-80 degree temperatures at the 2021 Chicago Marathon forced me to settle for 25+ minutes slower than my goal time. However, I knew the Pig course like the back of my hand and knew all the hills that were awaiting me. The Pig course features rolling hills throughout, but has a big climb from miles 5.5 thru 8. My plan for the race was to start out between 6:50 – 7:00 pace and stay there through the hills. I would then pick up the pace some on the downhill to come through the half on pace for sub-3 hours.
I didn’t look at my watch much in the first mile, but just tried to stay as relaxed as possible to ease my way into the race. As we passed the 1-mile banner on the Taylor Southgate Bridge, I looked at my watch. 6:25! “What am doing, that’s way too fast!” I thought to myself. I quickly realized, along with the other somewhat confused runners around me, that it must have been placed short. My Garmin buzzed 6:48 when it finally reached its 1-mile mark. “Alright, that’s much better, right-on pace.” The pace felt very comfortable and that gave me some good confidence for the rest of the race.
The rain gradually calmed to a light drizzle as we toured through Northern Kentucky. Everything felt great, I knew my plan and I was sticking to it. A couple 6:40 miles clicked by and soon I was at the top of the bridge heading back into Ohio. That’s when I felt the breeze from the west start to pick up. I looked to my left and saw the lightning and dark clouds off in the distance.
Things felt great as we made the sweeping turn onto 7th street. This is one of my favorite parts of the course as the streets are lined with cheering spectators. The storms didn’t keep them away and their energy pushed us through the straight, flat stretch as we all mentally prepared for the grueling climb to come on the east side of downtown. The rain started to gradually pick up as we left 7th street onto Gilbert Ave. Over the final downhill, I prepared my mind for the next 3 miles of climbing. I knew every turn of this section. I had practiced this section many times and was ready. What I hadn’t practiced for was the massive storm that had finally arrived in the area.
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Here Comes The Rain
As I started up the first portion of the long climb, the storm cell hit. Lightning and thunder were all around us as the rain picked up to a downpour. The streets started to turn to waterslides as the rainwater rushed down the sloped streets. It seemed like the higher we climbed up through Eden Park, the harder the rain fell. By the time we reached the Eden Park Overlook, we were beyond drenched and were running through ankle deep rivers of water. I couldn’t help but just be in awe of what we were running through. It was very difficult to stay in rhythm with low visibility, pouring rain, and dodging the huge puddles and potholes. While they weren’t in pouring rain, a couple of my training runs in intense wind helped prepare me for the difficulty of staying in a consistent rhythm.
Training for marathons in Ohio gives you pretty much the whole spectrum of weather events to train through. I’ve run in single digits, 80 degrees plus temps, snow, rain, sleet, and wind. Those 30 minutes of running through Eden Park was probably the most extreme weather I’ve ever run in. Thunder and lightning surrounded us as we weaved through the park. Thankfully the mid-60 degree temperatures were a good balance to the rain. If the temperature was any lower, we would have all been freezing with how wet we were.
As it turns out, the race put out a Shelter In Place warning as the storm cell hit the area. The runners in our group never got the communication as we plowed ahead through the torrential downpour. In fact, it wasn’t until I finished the race that I got shelter news. I did note that one of the water stations on McMillon St. was unmanned when we passed it and thought that was odd. Turns out they were just following the shelter in place order. Thankfully no weather-related injuries were reported and all of the runners are very grateful for all of the race volunteers that helped make the race a success.
As we hit the high point of the course after mile 8, the rain finally started to calm down, but the effects lingered on. I was completely drenched from head to toe with at least 2 more hours of running ahead of me. However, the incredibleness of what we just ran through started to sink in. Somehow I had managed to keep all 3 of those miles under 7:00 pace. I felt strong still and knew it was time to enjoy some downhill. I caught a half dozen strong pack of guys and joined in and we all recounted what we just ran through. Everybody was in good spirits and just thankful not to be running through any more heavy rain. They were all aiming for roughly the same time goals as me so I was happy to find some others to help keep the pace and converse with.
We started clocking some fast splits as we took advantage the downhill portion of the course. We settled into a solid pace and enjoyed each other’s camaraderie as we neared the halfway mark. Our 6:30-6:40 pace was a little faster than my overall race goal, but I knew this section of the course would be the easiest to bank a little time. I felt myself get back into a rhythmic cadence and felt much more comfortable. Even with all the rain on the hills, I was still right on my race plan. We came through halfway at 1:28:36, smack in the middle of my 1:27-1:30 plan. Perfect!
Grinding To The Finish
We cruised into Mariemont shortly after the half point and our small pack started to separate. My legs were starting to feel the effects of 15 miles of hills and rain, but my breathing and heart rate were still doing ok. I decided to keep pressing forward with the mid-6:30 pace with a couple of the guys. However, we hit the highway at mile 18 and my watch buzzed 6:21. That’s way too fast for me, but they were pulling away from me. I could feel my heart rate climbing and knew I needed to back off. It was tough seeing them pulling away from me as we headed down the highway, but knew it was the right decision with 8 long miles to go.
The last 8 miles of the Flying Pig don’t have a lot of elevation change, but are still a tough challenge. Most of the crowd support is near the downtown area and after leaving Fairfax, it really got quiet. The rain hadn’t picked back up heavier than small light drizzles, so the humidity & mid-60’s started to affect me more. After more than 10 miles of running with a group I suddenly felt very alone. I watched my heart rate creep up little by little as I ticked off the miles. I could feel the fatigue starting to set in as my legs got heavier. Marathon running requires a lot of physical strength but requires an equal amount of mental strength. By mile 20 I had slowed to running around 6:50 pace from my 6:30’s average earlier. I found myself calculating my pace needed for sub-3 each time I went through a new mile mark. I knew if I didn’t blow up that I had it covered, but I was quickly getting very tired.
The 23rd mile was my first split over 7 minutes (7:02). “C’mon Kyle, just a few more miles to go – you can do this!”. Around this time, the rain started to pick back up as the next round of rain come through the area. It was cool and refreshing, as I couldn’t get any more wet than I already was. As I got closer to downtown, the course became more and more familiar. I have run this section hundreds of times over the past 5 years. I knew where the few climbs ahead were and what effort was needed. My legs were on fire, and I felt my cadence starting to slow.
I finally made it to the final mile and managed to stay in low 7:00’s. The crowds started to pick up as I made the final turn onto Mehring Way for the final stretch. I was giving everything I had, I wanted to go faster but my body was ready to be done. As I neared Great American Ballpark, my core started to cramp. This was new for me, but I just tried to focus on my breathing as I neared the final downhill into the finish. I found it difficult to stay upright as my body just wanted to slouch forward. It was painful, but I knew the finish line was just ahead.
As I came under the Roebling Bridge, I could finally see the finish line. I looked down at my watch and saw 2:56 tick to 2:57. I knew I had sub-3 at that point. A big smile came across my face as I trotted toward the finish line. All that hard work had paid off, I had made it! I crossed through in 2:57:37, my second fastest marathon of my seven career times. It also marked a new course record for me, as I improved my time by over 33 minutes compared to 2018.
What a race and what an experience! I’m very appreciative of everyone who supported me before, during and after the race. Marathon running takes a village and I’m so thankful to have a great one beside me!
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Flying Pig Marathon: By The Numbers
My 2023 Flying Pig Marathon training was by far the most consistent training block I have put together in my 5 years of distance running. I finished just shy of averaging 50 miles per week (892 total), but completed 84 more miles than my previous high (808). I pretty much stuck to the training plan I have followed for my other races, but made one pretty significant change. Previously on my easy mileage days I would average 5-6 miles at 7:45-8:00 pace. This year, I made the shift to 7-8 miles at 8:00-8:30 pace. Slowing down the easy runs helped my body handle the extra mileage and build more endurance base.
This was also my first marathon that I have trained for since my son Pax was born. Training for a marathon with a baby at home definitely made it more challenging to fit in 110 hours of running this spring. Flexibility and sacrifice was needed to fit around all of our busy schedules. Getting good sleep is crucial to recovery as well, so my wife and I were extra grateful when Pax started regularly sleeping through the night. Marathon running is definitely challenging, but well worth it! Click here to see my detailed weekly recaps which summarize my runs & workouts from each week.
