Paris Marathon 2008

So, although I have done a number of endurance events, I had yet to complete a full marathon. So, this year I decided it was time and since Paris is only a few hours away, it was destination: Paris Marathon 2008.
The plan was to race with Anna, me and our good friend Jen (unfortunately, her husband was in southwest Asia and unable to join us). Also unfortunately, Anna had a complication part way through her training and couldn’t join in on race day. But, luckily for Jen and me, she was willing to photo-document the event.
This was the 32nd running of the Paris Marathon and it was huge. There were about 30,000 runners and 200,000 spectators. It was the biggest event I’ve been a part of. We were running in a crowd the WHOLE race. That made the torture of 26.2 miles (or 42.2 kilometers) pass rather quickly.
As you can see, we lined in front of the Arc de Triomphe in the Place de l’Étoile. We queued according to expected finishing time. My goal was 3:30 and Jen’s was 4:30. For reference, the elite (read: professional) runners finish in just over 2 hours.

Jen and I looking a little nervous before the start.

As you look across the sea of people, you can see Jen in the lower center of the image.

It was a little chilly waiting around for the starter’s pistol. So, race organizers solved that problem by giving each competitor a plastic bag to retain heat and stay warm. Unfortunately, that meant that there was a HUGE mess to clean up.

Some groups and individuals really dressed up for the race. From about mile 8 to mile 10, I was running next to Superman.

Jen ran next to this guy for quite a while. He had quite a stride!

A whole legion was waiting to clean up…

And there was a lot to clean up.

Of all the photography stations along the way, this is the only one that got an image of me…

Hail the conquering heroes!

We made it all 42.2 kilometers (or 26.2 miles). Actually, because I was in a crowd the whole time, I ended up running a bit farther (almost 27 miles on the GPS). Jen and I were almost exactly on our goal times. I finished at around 3:40 officially (3:36 unofficially) and Jen “ran her little heart out” for a 4:32.

Some interesting facts about running a marathon. Of course, it’s an homage to a Greek messenger who, according to legend, ran from the port town of Marathon to Athens, warned the senate of impending invasion, and died on the spot. Fortunately, as far as I know, no one died in this race, but it was certainly a grueling race. In fact, most endurance runners hit a ‘wall’ of sorts at around mile 20 in a marathon. Since I had already hit that in my training and other races, I knew what to expect, but it was still a bit frustrating. I wanted my legs to work faster than they were.
As a bit of biological background, the carbohydrates a person eats are converted into glycogen by the liver and muscles for energy (or calorie) storage. Glycogen burns quickly to provide energy. Runners can store about 2,000 calories of glycogen in their bodies, enough for about 30 km (or 18-20 miles) of running. Not surprisingly, this is also the point where most people hit the wall. When glycogen runs low, the body must then burn stored fat for energy, which does not burn as readily. This is the point when physiologically runners experience dramatic fatigue, or ‘hit the wall’. Jen described it vividly as “a bad dream … like a monster chasing you and for some reason your legs aren’t running fast enough and you can’t will them any faster.”
Although we both hit the wall pretty hard, we were close to our goals and pleased with the result. We weren’t number 1 (Tsegaye Kebide from Ethiopia who ran it in 2:06:40 was the actual winner), we certainly felt like champions.
Since we’ve had some time to reflect on it, we’re already plotting out the best race for all four of us to compete in. So, stay tuned to the results from the next marathon.
Both before and after the race we took some time to see more sights of the city. Here is Jen looking particularly French.

Jen caught me taking a picture of Anna…

Near our hotel was the very pleasant Luxembourg Garden.



I love all the random works of art throughout the city. Here you can also see the Panthéon with its panoply of French patriots buried inside.

We also visited the light filled Sainte-Chapelle on the island of the city (near Notre Dame). It is a glorious Gothic chapel built by Louis IX (the name sake of St Louis in Missouri) between 1242-1248. Gothic architects loved to use light and this is perhaps the highest realization of that ideal. Also, there are 1,100 Biblical scenes represented on the stained glass (amazingly, two-thirds of it is original).
Suffice it to say, this place is amazing inside and out.




Here are the girls looking cute, but perhaps a little cold.

I love the motto of the French Republic: Liberty, Equality, Brotherhood.

We also visited the reverse designed Pompidou Center for Modern Art. It is filled with fascinating art from perhaps the most fascinating and tumultuous century in the current era, the 20th. I think it’s still waiting for the world to catch up with it.

Finally, what visit to a major city would be complete without a picture of its subway system. I love European mass transportation.

So, until the next adventure…
–Jim